Political pensioner
Encyclopedia
A political pensioner enjoys a pension
awarded due to his or political career or significance.
For service in these offices there may be awarded pensions for life in the following scale: (I) a first class pension not exceeding 2000 a year, in respect of not less than four years service or its equivalent, in an office of the first class; (2) a second class pension not exceeding 1200, in respect of service of not less than six years or its equivalent, in an office of the second class; (3) a third class pension not exceeding 800 a year, in respect of service of not less than ten years in an office of the third class.
The service need not be continuous, and the act makes provision for counting service in lower classes as a qualification for pension in a higher class. These pensions are limited in number to twelve, but a holder must not receive any other pension out of the public revenue, if so, he must inform the treasury and surrender it if it exceeds his political pension, or if under he must deduct the amount. He may, however, hold office while a pensioner, but the pension is not payable during the time he holds office. To obtain a political pension, the applicant must file a declaration stating the grounds upon which he claims it and that his income from other sources is not sufficient to maintain his station in life.
, the term applies to the following former ruling houses of princely state
s who saw their feudal territories annexed by the East India Company
before it transferred power in British India to the Crown
in 1858.
Although politically important members could be relocated or exiled, they retained throughout India and until the end of the Raj
a hereditary right to their former princely rank and titles (in several cases including a gun salute) as well as a monetary "political pension" in the form of a privy purse
. Only a few years after India's independence in 1947, the nationalist government of the Indian Union 'persuaded' most of these princes to relinquish their annual pensions on so-called patriotic grounds. For those who continued to receive the payments, the sums were reduced to a pittance through not compensating for inflation.
Muslim pensioners:
Six Hindu thrones, the first three held by the Bhonsle family:
Only one Sikh pensioner: Punjab's last ruling Maharajah, Duleep Singh
.
Similar 'golden cage' arrangements were often made later by other (not only British) governments. An extreme case was the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, for whom the Italian island of Elba
was turned into an operetta empire.
Pension
In general, a pension is an arrangement to provide people with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income from employment. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum.The terms retirement...
awarded due to his or political career or significance.
UK domestic politicians
By the British Political Offices Pension Act of 1869, pensions were instituted for those who had held political office. For the purposes of the act, political offices were divided into three classes: (1) those with a yearly salary of not less than 5000; (2) those with a salary of less than 5000 and not less than 2000; (3) those with a salary of less than 2000 and more than £1000.For service in these offices there may be awarded pensions for life in the following scale: (I) a first class pension not exceeding 2000 a year, in respect of not less than four years service or its equivalent, in an office of the first class; (2) a second class pension not exceeding 1200, in respect of service of not less than six years or its equivalent, in an office of the second class; (3) a third class pension not exceeding 800 a year, in respect of service of not less than ten years in an office of the third class.
The service need not be continuous, and the act makes provision for counting service in lower classes as a qualification for pension in a higher class. These pensions are limited in number to twelve, but a holder must not receive any other pension out of the public revenue, if so, he must inform the treasury and surrender it if it exceeds his political pension, or if under he must deduct the amount. He may, however, hold office while a pensioner, but the pension is not payable during the time he holds office. To obtain a political pension, the applicant must file a declaration stating the grounds upon which he claims it and that his income from other sources is not sufficient to maintain his station in life.
Overseas
In the history of the British EmpireBritish Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
, the term applies to the following former ruling houses of princely state
Princely state
A Princely State was a nominally sovereign entitity of British rule in India that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.-British relationship with the Princely States:India under the British Raj ...
s who saw their feudal territories annexed by the East India Company
East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
before it transferred power in British India to the Crown
The Crown
The Crown is a corporation sole that in the Commonwealth realms and any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof represents the legal embodiment of governance, whether executive, legislative, or judicial...
in 1858.
Although politically important members could be relocated or exiled, they retained throughout India and until the end of the Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
a hereditary right to their former princely rank and titles (in several cases including a gun salute) as well as a monetary "political pension" in the form of a privy purse
Privy Purse in India
In India, the Privy Purse was a payment made to the royal families of erstwhile princely states as part of their agreements to first integrate with India in 1947, and later to merge their states in 1949 whereby they lost all ruling rights...
. Only a few years after India's independence in 1947, the nationalist government of the Indian Union 'persuaded' most of these princes to relinquish their annual pensions on so-called patriotic grounds. For those who continued to receive the payments, the sums were reduced to a pittance through not compensating for inflation.
Muslim pensioners:
- the imperial MughalMughal EmpireThe Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
family, Paramount rulerParamount RulerThe term Paramount Ruler, or sometimes Paramount King, is a generic description, though occasionally also used as an actual title, for a number of rulers' position in relative terms, as the summit of a feudal-type pyramid of rulers of lesser polities in a given historical and geographical context,...
of India as Padshah-i-Hind, in or near Delhi - the heirs of its failed Muslim fundamentalist challenger, Tippu Sultan's Mysore-based Khudadad empire
- the Prince of Arcot (formerly Nawab Subadar of the Realm of the Carnatic)
- the Nawab of AwadhNawab of AwadhThe Nawab of Awadh is the title of rulers who governed the state of Awadh in India in the 18th and 19th century. The Nawabs of Awadh originated form Persia-Establishment:...
(Oudh) - the Nawab of KurnoolKurnoolKurnool is located at . It has an average elevation of 273 metres .Kurnool lies on the banks of the Tungabhadra River. The Handry and Neeva rivers also flow through the city. The K.C...
(Karnul)? - the Nawab of MasulipatamNawab of MasulipatamThe Nawabs of Masulipatam ruled under the Nizam in eastern India. The best known of them was Nawab Haji Hassan Khan.Their title later became Nawab of Banganapalle as they shifted from Masulipatam to Banganapalle...
, head of a younger branch of the nawabs of Banganapalle - the Nawab of Murshidabad (in fact the dynasty of the former Nawab Nazim of greater BengalBengalBengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
; in West Bengal) - the Nawab of Surat
Six Hindu thrones, the first three held by the Bhonsle family:
- the Maharaja of NagpurNagpurNāgpur is a city and winter capital of the state of Maharashtra, the largest city in central India and third largest city in Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune...
- the Maharaja of AssamAssamAssam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
(not the whole present constitutive state) - the Raja of Kolaba, Angre dynasty
- the Raja of SataraSataraSatara is a city located in the Satara District of Maharashtra state of India. The town is 2320 ft. above sea-level, near the confluence of the Krishna and its tributary river Venna. The city was the capital of the Maratha empire in the 17th century, hence one of the the historical cities of...
, had even earlier lost all real power to his chief minister, the PeshwaPeshwaA Peshwa is the titular equivalent of a modern Prime Minister. Emporer Shivaji created the Peshwa designation in order to more effectively delegate administrative duties during the growth of the Maratha Empire. Prior to 1749, Peshwas held office for 8-9 years and controlled the Maratha army...
, who had become the hegemon of the MahrattaMahrattaMahratta may refer to* the Maratha caste, a ruling class of the Indian subcontinent* the Maratha EmpireShips*SS Mahratta , lost in a collision with SS Victoria in 1887 in the River Hoogly.* SS Mahratta , lost on the Goodwin Sands in 1909....
confederation - the Raja of Tanjore
- the Raja of CoorgKodaguKodagu , also known by its anglicised former name of Coorg, is an administrative district in Karnataka, India. It occupies an area of in the Western Ghats of southwestern Karnataka. As of 2001, the population was 548,561, 13.74% of which resided in the district's urban centres, making it the least...
Only one Sikh pensioner: Punjab's last ruling Maharajah, Duleep Singh
Duleep Singh
This article is about Maharaja Dalip Singh. For other uses, see Dalip SinghMaharaja Dalip Singh, GCSI , commonly called Duleep Singh and later in life nicknamed the Black Prince of Perthshire, was the last Maharaja of the Sikh Empire...
.
Similar 'golden cage' arrangements were often made later by other (not only British) governments. An extreme case was the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, for whom the Italian island of Elba
Elba
Elba is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino. The largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago, Elba is also part of the National Park of the Tuscan Archipelago and the third largest island in Italy after Sicily and Sardinia...
was turned into an operetta empire.