Sir William Grey (1818 – 15 May 1878) was an English administrator who worked with the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

in India and served as lieutenant-governor of Bengal from 1867 when he succeeded Sir

Cecil Beadon Sir Cecil Beadon, (1816 – 18 July 1880) was an English administrator in British India, serving as lieutenant-governor of the Bengal Presidency from 1862 to 1866, when he was relieved of the post after a commission of inquiry, which was critic ...

and later as governor of Jamaica.

Biography

Grey was the fourth son of Edward Grey, bishop of Hereford while his mother was the daughter of James Croft of Greenham Lodge, near Newbury, Berkshire. Grey studied at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

, but did not complete studies and joined the War Office as a clerk. Nominated to work in the Bengal civil service he entered

Haileybury College Haileybury is a co-educational public school (fee-charging boarding and day school for 11- to 18-year-olds) located in Hertford Heath, Hertfordshire. It is a member of the Rugby Group and enrols pupils at the 11+, 13+ and 16+ stages of edu ...

in January 1839 and passed out in July 1840. During his first term, he was rusticated for late night parties in his room but made up for it in later terms. He went to Bengal in 1840 and worked for a while in various offices before becoming a private secretary to Sir Herbert Maddock in 1845. In 1851 he became secretary of the Bank of Bengal. He became a secretary to the government of Bengal in 1854. He went on furlough to England in January 1857 but was forced back by the

rebellion Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

in that year. He was appointed director general of the post office in 1859 after holding various temporary offices. In 1861 he became a member of the council of the governor-general of Bengal. In 1867 he became lieutenant-governor of Bengal. As an administrator, he opposed excessive centralization and helped decentralise the postal department. He opposed the application of income-tax rules in India. He often held opposing views to those of the governor-general Sir John Lawrence. He felt that the use of land cess to support education was unjust to the landholders. His position did not find favour with

Lord Mayo Richard Southwell Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, (; ; 21 February 1822 – 8 February 1872) styled Lord Naas (; ) from 1842 to 1867 and Lord Mayo in India, was a prominent British statesman and Conservative politician. He served as Chief Secreta ...

. He was made Knight Commander of The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India in the

1870 Birthday Honours The 1870 Birthday Honours were appointments by Queen Victoria to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of the Queen, and wer ...

. He retired in 1871 and returned to England. In 1874 he accepted a position of governor in Jamaica. He died at Torquay on 15 May 1878. He was married first in 1845 to Margaret née Jackson and after her death in 1862 he married again in 1865 to Georgina née Plowden. He had five sons and four daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grey, William 1818 births 1878 deaths Lieutenant-governors of Bengal Knights Commander of the Order of the Star of India