William Ward, 1st Earl of Dudley

William Ward, 1st Earl of Dudley (27 March 1817 – 7 May 1885), known as The Lord Ward from 1835 to 1860, was a British landowner and benefactor.

Ward was born on 27 March 1817 at Edwardstone Boxford, Suffolk, England, the son of William Ward, 10th Baron Ward, who had succeeded in the barony of Ward on the death of his second cousin, Foreign Secretary John Ward, 1st Earl of Dudley, in 1833 (the earldom becoming extinct). His mother was Amelia, daughter of William Cooch Pillans. He was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford and Trinity College, Oxford. He played first-class cricket for Oxford University Cricket Club between 1838 and 1842. His inheritance included Himley Hall and the ruins of Dudley Castle.

Between 1859 and 1877 Ward paid for the entire refacing and restoration of Worcester Cathedral and there is a monument to him in the cathedral. In 1868 he defrayed one third of the cost of the tower and spire of St John the Baptist's Church at Hagley. He was also a trustee of the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. In 1860 the earldom held by his kinsman was revived when he was created Viscount Ednam, of Ednam in the County of Roxburgh, and Earl of Dudley, of Dudley Castle in the County of Stafford.

Lord Dudley married, firstly, Selina Constance, daughter of Hubert de Burgh, on 24 April 1851. She died on 14 November of the same year, aged only 22. There were no children from this marriage.

He married, secondly, Georgina Elisabeth, daughter of Sir Thomas Moncreiffe, 7th Baronet, and Lady Louisa Hay-Drummond, on 21 November 1865. They had six sons and one daughter:

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