List of heads of state of India

Sixteen individuals have served as head of state of India, from the independence of India in 1947 to the present day. The current head of state of India is Droupadi Murmu, elected in 2022 after being nominated by the National Democratic Alliance.

The first major empire to use such title was the Mughal Empire, whose emperors formally used the title "Emperor of Hindustan". When the Mughal Empire started declining, the dominant power was overtaken by the Maratha Empire who were looked upon as the ceremonial rulers of the entire Indian subcontinent by outside powers and smaller rulers within India. By 1818 after the Marathas were overthrown, the governor-generals of the East India Company carried the title "Emperor of India". After the British Raj was formed in 1857, following the abolishment of the Company Raj, the monarchs assumed the same title until 1947, when India won Dominion status.

From 1947 to 1950, the head of state under the Indian Independence Act 1947 was the King of India,^[1]^[2] who was also the monarch of the United Kingdom and of the other Dominions of the British Commonwealth. The monarch was represented in India by a governor-general. India became a republic under the Constitution of 1950 and the monarch and governor-general were replaced by a ceremonial president.

[1]

[2]

No.	Titular Name	Birth Name	Birth	Reign	Death
1	Babur بابر	Zahir ud-Din Muhammad ظهیر الدین محمد	14 February 1483 Andijan	21 April 1526 – 26 December 1530 (4 years, 8 months and 5 days)	26 December 1530 (aged 47) Agra
2	Humayun همایوں	Nasir ud-Din Muhammad نصیر الدین محمد	6 March 1508 Kabul	26 December 1530 – 17 May 1540 (9 years, 4 months and 21 days) 22 February 1555 – 27 January 1556 (11 months and 5 days)	27 January 1556 (aged 47) Delhi
3	Akbar I اکبر	Jalal ud-Din Muhammad جلال الدین محمد	15 October 1542 Umerkot	11 February 1556 – 27 October 1605 (49 years, 8 months and 16 days)	27 October 1605 (aged 63) Agra
4	Jahangir جهانگیر	Nur ud-Din Muhammad نور الدین محمد	31 August 1569 Agra	3 November 1605 – 28 October 1627 (21 years, 11 months and 25 days)	28 October 1627 (aged 58) Bhimber^[3]
5	Shah Jahan I شاه جهان	Shihab ud-Din Muhammad شهاب الدین محمد	5 January 1592 Lahore	19 January 1628 – 31 July 1658 (30 years, 6 months and 12 days)	22 January 1666 (aged 74) Agra
6	Aurangzeb اورنگزیب Alamgir I عالمگیر	Muhi al-Din Muhammad محی الدین محمد	3 November 1618 Dahod, Gujarat	31 July 1658 – 3 March 1707 (48 years, 7 months and 3 days)	3 March 1707 (aged 88) Ahmednagar
7	Azam Shah اعظم شاه	Qutb ud-Din Muhammad قطب الدين محمد	28 June 1653 Burhanpur	14 March – 20 June 1707 (3 months and 6 days)	20 June 1707 (aged 53) Agra
8	Bahadur Shah I بهادر شاہ Shah Alam I شاه عالم اول	Mirza Muhammad Mu'azzam مرزا محمد معظم	14 October 1643 Burhanpur	19 June 1707 – 27 February 1712 (4 years, 8 months and 8 days)	27 February 1712 (aged 68) Lahore
9	Jahandar Shah جهاندار شاہ	Muiz ud-Din Muhammad معز الدین محمد First Puppet emperor	9 May 1661 Deccan	27 February 1712 – 11 February 1713 (11 months and 15 days)	12 February 1713 (aged 51) Delhi
10	Farrukhsiyar فرخ سیر	Muin al-Din Muhammad معین الدین محمد Puppet emperor under the Sayyids of Barha	20 August 1685 Aurangabad	11 February 1713 – 28 February 1719 (6 years and 17 days)	19 April 1719 (aged 33) Delhi
11	Rafi ud-Darajat رفیع الدرجات	Shams al-Din Muhammad شمس الدین محمد Puppet emperor under the Sayyids of Barha	1 December 1699	28 February 1719 – 6 June 1719 (3 months and 9 days)	6 June 1719 (aged 19) Agra
12	Shah Jahan II شاہ جهان دوم	Rafi al-Din Muhammad رفع الدين محمد Puppet emperor under the Sayyids of Barha	5 January 1696	6 June 1719 – 17 September 1719 (3 months and 11 days)	18 September 1719 (aged 23) Agra
13	Muhammad Shah محمد شاه	Nasir al-Din Muhammad نصیر الدین محمد Puppet emperor under the Sayyids of Barha	7 August 1702 Ghazni	27 September 1719 – 26 April 1748 (28 years, 6 months and 30 days)	26 April 1748 (aged 45) Delhi
14	Ahmad Shah Bahadur احمد شاہ بهادر	Mujahid al-Din Muhammad مجاهد الدین محمد	23 December 1725 Delhi	29 April 1748 – 2 June 1754 (6 years, 1 month and 4 days)	1 January 1775 (aged 49) Delhi
15	Alamgir II عالمگیر دوم	Aziz al-Din Muhammad عزیز اُلدین محمد	6 June 1699 Burhanpur	3 June 1754 – 29 November 1759 (5 years, 5 months and 26 days)	29 November 1759 (aged 60) Delhi
16	Shah Jahan III شاه جهان سوم	Muhi al-Millat محی الملت	1711	10 December 1759 – 10 October 1760 (10 months)	1772 (aged 60–61)
17	Shah Alam II شاه عالم دوم	Jalal al-Din Muhammad Ali Gauhar جلال الدین علی گوهر	25 June 1728 Delhi	10 October 1760 – 31 July 1788 (27 years, 9 months and 21 days)	19 November 1806 (aged 78) Delhi
18	Shah Jahan IV جهان شاه چهارم	Bidar Bakht Mahmud Shah Bahadur Shah Jahan IV بیدار بخت محمود شاه بهادر جهان شاہ	1749 Delhi	31 July 1788 – 11 October 1788 (2 months and 11 days)	1790 (aged 40–41) Delhi
17*	Shah Alam II شاه عالم دوم	Jalal al-Din Muhammad Ali Gauhar جلال الدین علی گوهر Puppet emperor under the Scindias of Gwalior	25 June 1728 Delhi	16 October 1788 – 19 November 1806 (18 years, 1 month and 3 days)	19 November 1806 (aged 78) Delhi
19	Akbar Shah II اکبر شاه دوم	Muin al-Din Muhammad میرزا اکبر Puppet emperor under the East India Company	22 April 1760 Mukundpur	19 November 1806 – 28 September 1837 (30 years, 10 months and 9 days)	28 September 1837 (aged 77) Delhi
20	Bahadur Shah II Zafar بهادر شاه ظفر	Abu Zafar Siraj al-Din Muhammad ابو ظفر سراج اُلدین محمد	24 October 1775 Delhi	28 September 1837 – 21 September 1857 (19 years, 11 months and 24 days)	7 November 1862 (aged 87) Rangoon

No.	Titular Name	Birth Name	Birth	Reign	Death
1	Shivaji शिवाजी	Shivaji Shahajiraje Bhonsle शिवाजी शहाजीराजे भोसले	19 February 1630, Shivneri	6 June 1674 – 3 April 1680 (5 years, 10 months and 27 days)	3 April 1680 (aged 50), Raigad
2	Sambhaji संभाजी	Sambhaji Shivajiraje Bhonsle संभाजी शिवाजीराजे भोंसले	14 May 1657, Pune	16 January 1681 – 11 March 1689 (8 years, 1 month and 23 days)	11 March 1689 (aged 31), Delhi
3	Rajaram I राजाराम	Ramaraja Fateh Shah Bhonsle रामराजा फतेह शाह भोंसले	24 February 1670, Rajgad	11 March 1689 – 3 March 1700 (10 years, 11 months and 20 days)	3 March 1700 (aged 30), Simhagad
4	Shivaji II शिवाजी द्वितीय	Shivaji Shah Fateh Ramaraja Bhonsle शिवाजी शाह फतेह रामराजा भोंसले	6 June 1696, Gingee	3 March 1700 – 12 January 1708 (7 years, 10 months and 9 days)	14 March 1726 (aged 29), Panhala
5	Shahu I शाहू	Shahu Sambhaji Rajshah Bhonsle शाहू संभाजी राजशाह भोंसले	18 May 1682, Gangwali	12 January 1708 – 15 December 1749 (41 years, 11 months and 3 days)	15 December 1749 (aged 67), Satara
6	Rajaram II राजाराम द्वितीय	Ramaraja Shahu Khan Bhonsle रामराजा शाहू खान भोंसले	17 June 1726, Kolhapur	15 December 1749 – 11 December 1777 (27 years, 11 months and 26 days)	11 December 1777 (aged 51), Satara
7	Shahu II शाहू द्वितीय	Shahu Ramaraja Khan Bhonsle शाहू रामराजा खान भोंसले	16 January 1763, Nasik	11 December 1777 – 3 May 1808 (30 years, 4 months and 22 days)	3 May 1808 (aged 45), Satara
8	Pratap Singh प्रतापसिंह	Fateh Singh Pratap Khan Bhonsle फ़तेह सिंह प्रताप खान भोंसले	18 January 1793, Satara	3 May 1808 – 3 June 1818 (10 years and 29 days)	14 October 1847 (aged 54), Varanasi

Name	Reign	Consort	Imperial Durbar	Royal House
Victoria	1 May 1876 – 22 January 1901	None^[a]	1 January 1877 (represented by Lord Lytton)	Hanover
Edward VII	22 January 1901 – 6 May 1910	Alexandra of Denmark	1 January 1903 (represented by Lord Curzon)	Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
George V	6 May 1910 – 20 January 1936	Mary of Teck	12 December 1911	Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1910–1917) Windsor (1917–1936)
Edward VIII	20 January 1936 – 11 December 1936	None	None^[b]	Windsor
George VI	11 December 1936 – 15 August 1947^[4]	Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon	None^[c]	Windsor

No.	Governor-General or Viceroy (Lifespan)	Term of office		Secretary of State for India	Prime Minister
Governors-General and Viceroys of India, 1858–1947
1	Charles Canning, 2nd Viscount Canning^{[nb 1]} (1812–1862)	1 November 1858	21 March 1862	Lord Stanley Charles Wood	Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby Viscount Palmerston
2	James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin (1811–1863)	21 March 1862	20 November 1863	Charles Wood	Viscount Palmerston
—	Robert Napier (acting) (1810–1890)	21 November 1863	2 December 1863
—	William Denison (acting) (1804–1871)	2 December 1863	12 January 1864
3	Sir John Lawrence, 1st Baronet (1811–1879)	12 January 1864	12 January 1869	Charles Wood George Robinson, Earl de Grey Viscount Cranborne Stafford Northcote George Campbell, 8th Duke of Argyll	Viscount Palmerston John Russell, 1st Earl Russell Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby Benjamin Disraeli William Ewart Gladstone
4	Richard Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo (1822–1872)	12 January 1869	8 February 1872	George Campbell, 8th Duke of Argyll	William Ewart Gladstone
—	John Strachey (acting) (1823–1907)	9 February 1872	23 February 1872
—	Francis Napier, 10th Lord Napier (acting) (1819–1898)	24 February 1872	3 May 1872
5	Thomas Baring, 2nd Baron Northbrook (1826–1904)	3 May 1872	12 April 1876	George Campbell, 8th Duke of Argyll Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury	William Ewart Gladstone Benjamin Disraeli
6	Robert Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Earl of Lytton (1831–1891)	12 April 1876	8 June 1880	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury Gathorne Gathorne-Hardy, Viscount Cranbrook Marquess of Hartington	Benjamin Disraeli William Ewart Gladstone
7	George Robinson, 1st Marquess of Ripon (1827–1909)	8 June 1880	13 December 1884	Marquess of Hartington John Wodehouse, 1st Earl of Kimberley	William Ewart Gladstone
8	Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Earl of Dufferin (1826–1902)	13 December 1884	10 December 1888	John Wodehouse, 1st Earl of Kimberley Lord Randolph Churchill John Wodehouse, 1st Earl of Kimberley R. A. Cross, 1st Viscount Cross	William Ewart Gladstone Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury William Ewart Gladstone Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury
9	Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne (1845–1927)	10 December 1888	21 January 1894	R. A. Cross, 1st Viscount Cross John Wodehouse, 1st Earl of Kimberley Henry Fowler	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury William Ewart Gladstone Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery
10	Victor Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin (1849–1917)	21 January 1894^[6]	6 January 1899	Henry Fowler Lord George Hamilton	Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury
11	George Curzon, 1st Baron Curzon of Kedleston^[7] (1859–1925)	6 January 1899	18 November 1905	Lord George Hamilton William St John Brodrick	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury Arthur Balfour
Appointed by Edward VII (1901–1910)
12	Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Earl of Minto (1845–1914)	18 November 1905	23 November 1910	William St John Brodrick John Morley Robert Crewe-Milnes, Earl of Crewe	Arthur Balfour Henry Campbell-Bannerman H. H. Asquith
Appointed by George V (1910–1936)
13	Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst (1858–1944)	23 November 1910	4 April 1916	Robert Crewe-Milnes, Earl of Crewe John Morley, 1st Viscount Morley of Blackburn Robert Crewe-Milnes, 1st Marquess of Crewe Austen Chamberlain	H. H. Asquith
14	Frederic Thesiger, 1st Viscount Chelmsford (1868–1933)	4 April 1916	2 April 1921	Austen Chamberlain Edwin Montagu	H. H. Asquith David Lloyd George
15	Rufus Isaacs, 1st Marquess of Reading (1860–1935)	2 April 1921	3 April 1926	Edwin Montagu William Peel, Viscount Peel Sydney Olivier, 1st Baron Olivier F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead	David Lloyd George Bonar Law Stanley Baldwin Ramsay MacDonald Stanley Baldwin
16	E. F. L. Wood, 1st Baron Irwin (1881–1959)	3 April 1926	18 April 1931	F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead William Peel, Viscount Peel	Stanley Baldwin Ramsay MacDonald
—	George Goschen, 2nd Viscount Goschen (acting) (1866–1952)	29 June 1929	11 November 1929	William Peel, Viscount Peel, William Wedgwood Benn	Stanley Baldwin Ramsay MacDonald
17	Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Earl of Willingdon (1866–1941)	18 April 1931	18 April 1936	William Wedgwood Benn Samuel Hoare Lawrence Dundas, 2nd Marquess of Zetland	Ramsay MacDonald Stanley Baldwin
Appointed by Edward VIII (1936)
18	Victor Hope, 2nd Marquess of Linlithgow (1887–1952)	18 April 1936	1 October 1943	Lawrence Dundas, 2nd Marquess of Zetland Leo Amery	Stanley Baldwin Neville Chamberlain Winston Churchill
Appointed by George VI (1936–1947) (as Emperor of India)
19	Archibald Wavell, 1st Viscount Wavell (1883–1950)	1 October 1943	21 February 1947	Leo Amery Frederick Pethick-Lawrence, 1st Baron Pethick-Lawrence	Winston Churchill Clement Attlee
20	Louis Mountbatten, 1st Viscount Mountbatten of Burma (1900–1979)	21 February 1947	15 August 1947	Frederick Pethick-Lawrence, 1st Baron Pethick-Lawrence William Hare, 5th Earl of Listowel	Clement Attlee

No.	Portrait	Monarch (Birth–Death)	Reign		Royal House	Prime Minister	Governor General
No.	Portrait	Monarch (Birth–Death)	Reign start	Reign end	Royal House	Prime Minister	Governor General
1		George VI (1895–1952)	15 August 1947	26 January 1950	Windsor	Nehru	Mountbatten (1947–1948)
1		George VI (1895–1952)	15 August 1947	26 January 1950	Windsor	Nehru	Rajagopalachari (1948–1950)

List of heads of state of India

Emperor of Hindustan (1526-1857)

Chhatrapati of India (1674–1818)

Emperor of India (1876–1947)

Governor-General

Monarch of India (1947–1950)

Governor-General

President of India (1950–present)

Standards

Notes

References

External links

Related Articles

No.	Portrait	Governor-General (Birth–Death)	Tenure		Prime Minister
No.	Portrait	Governor-General (Birth–Death)	Took office	Left office	Prime Minister
Appointed by George VI (1947–1950) (as King of India)
1		The Rt. Hon. The Earl Mountbatten of Burma (1900–1979)	15 August 1947	21 June 1948	Jawaharlal Nehru
2		Chakravarti Rajagopalachari (1878–1972)	21 June 1948	26 January 1950	Jawaharlal Nehru

No.	Portrait	President (Birth–Death)	Elected	Tenure		Political affiliation (at time of appointment)		Prime Minister
No.	Portrait	President (Birth–Death)	Elected	Took office	Left office	Political affiliation (at time of appointment)		Prime Minister
1		Rajendra Prasad (1884–1963)	1952 1957	26 January 1950	13 May 1962		Indian National Congress	Nehru
2		Sir Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888–1975)	1962	13 May 1962	13 May 1967		Independent	Nehru Nanda (acting) Shastri Nanda (acting) I. Gandhi
3		Zakir Husain (1897–1969)	1967	13 May 1967	3 May 1969 (died in office.)		Independent	I. Gandhi
–		V. V. Giri (1894–1980)	–	3 May 1969	20 July 1969		Independent	I. Gandhi
–		Mohammad Hidayatullah (1905–1992)	–	20 July 1969	24 August 1969		^[8]	I. Gandhi
4		V. V. Giri (1894–1980)	1969	24 August 1969	24 August 1974		Independent	I. Gandhi
5		Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (1905–1977)	1974	24 August 1974	11 February 1977 (died in office.)		Indian National Congress	I. Gandhi
–		Basappa Danappa Jatti (1912–2002)	–	11 February 1977	25 July 1977		Indian National Congress	I. Gandhi Desai
6		Neelam Sanjiva Reddy (1913–1996)	1977	25 July 1977	25 July 1982		Janata Party	Desai C. Singh I. Gandhi
7		Giani Zail Singh (1916–1994)	1982	25 July 1982	25 July 1987		Indian National Congress	I. Gandhi R. Gandhi
8		Ramaswamy Venkataraman (1910–2009)	1987	25 July 1987	25 July 1992		Indian National Congress	R. Gandhi V. P. Singh Shekhar Rao
9		Shankar Dayal Sharma (1918–1999)	1992	25 July 1992	25 July 1997		Indian National Congress	Rao Vajpayee Deve Gowda Gujral
10		K. R. Narayanan (1920–2005)	1997	25 July 1997	25 July 2002		Indian National Congress	Gujral Vajpayee
11		A. P. J. Abdul Kalam (1931–2015)	2002	25 July 2002	25 July 2007		Independent	Vajpayee M. Singh
12		Pratibha Patil (born 1934)	2007	25 July 2007	25 July 2012		Indian National Congress	M. Singh
13		Pranab Mukherjee (1935–2020)	2012	25 July 2012	25 July 2017		Indian National Congress	M. Singh Modi
14		Ram Nath Kovind (born 1945)	2017	25 July 2017	25 July 2022		Bharatiya Janata Party	Modi
15		Droupadi Murmu (born 1958)	2022	25 July 2022	Incumbent		Bharatiya Janata Party	Modi