Lord Mayo was the 4th Viceroy of India. Richard Southwell Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, was an Irish statesman who served as Viceroy of India from 1869 until his assassination in 1872. The local Indians referred to him as Lord Mayo.

Born:21 February 1822, Dublin, Ireland
Assassinated:8 February 1872, Port Blair
Lord Mayo (Viceroy of India: 1869 – 1872)

– Financial Distribution between centre and state was introduced for the first time
– First Census in 1872
– Mayo College for the royal elite was set up: Mayo College was established at Ajmer in 1875 for the education of young Rajput princes. Colonel Sir Oliver St John became its first Principal.
– Lord Mayo was the only Governor-General who was killed in India.
– He was killed by Sher Ali Afridi in Port Blair
– Establishment of Statistical Survey of India
–  Dept. of Agriculture and Commerce
– State railways

Assassination

In 1872, while inspecting the convict settlement in Port Blair, Andaman Islands, he was assassinated by Sher Ali Afridi, an Afghan convict who used a knife. Mayo’s body was returned to Ireland and buried near his home at Palmerstown House in the medieval ruined church of Johnstown, County Kildare. On March 11, 1872, Afridi was hanged.

As a result of his assassination, there were more calls for the establishment of an intelligence bureau in India to aid in the tracking down of fugitives or anyone else considered a subversive element by the British colonial authorities.

FAQs

What was Lord Mayo known for?

Lord Mayo took interest in the Prison reforms, especially the convict settlements at the Andaman Islands. The most important legal reform during his time was the passage of the Indian Evidence Act in 1872. The act removed this anomaly and differentiation and introduced a standard set of law applicable to all Indians.

Which Viceroy of India was assassinated?

Sher Ali Afridi, also called Shere Ali, is known for killing Lord Mayo, the Viceroy of India, on 8 February 1872. He was a prisoner on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands at the time, sentenced for murder.

What was the real name of Lord Mayo?

Richard Southwell Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, was an Irish statesman who served as Viceroy of India from 1869 until his assassination in 1872. The local Indians referred to him as Lord Mayo,

Which Indian Governor-General was assassinated in the Andaman Islands?

Lord Mayo, the Governor-General of India from 1869 to1872, was assassinated in the Andaman Islands. In 1872, he was assassinated by Sher Ali Afridi, an Afghan prisoner.