The Role of British Governor Generals, Residents, and Commissioners in the Administration of Bangalore

Abstract

The British conquest of Mysore in 1799 marked the beginning of a new political and administrative order in Bangalore. Over the next century, the city came under three distinct but interrelated authorities: the Governor Generals of India, who directed overall colonial policy; the Residents, who supervised the Mysore court; and the Commissioners, who directly administered the state during the period of Commissioner’s Rule (1831–1881). This research article examines their respective roles in reshaping Bangalore’s governance, economy, and urban identity. While the Governor Generals provided strategic direction, the Residents functioned as political supervisors ensuring Mysore’s compliance, and the Commissioners carried out administrative reforms and infrastructural development from Bangalore. The study highlights how these interventions consolidated colonial power, created a dual city structure of Cantonment and Pettah, and inadvertently laid the foundations of Bangalore’s modernity.