John Ward, 1st Earl of Dudley

John William Ward, 1st Earl of Dudley PC FRS (* August 9, 1781, † March 6, 1833 ) was a British nobleman and politician.

Life

Ward was the son of William Ward, 3rd Viscount Dudley and Ward, and his wife Julia Bosville. He studied at Oxford University, where he first Oriel College, and later attended Corpus Christi College.

1802 Ward was first elected as a Tory in the House of Commons. He first represented the constituency Downton, from 1803 to 1806 then Worcestershire, 1806-1807 Petersfield, 1807-1812 and 1819-1823 Wareham Bossiney.

In the latter year he inherited after the death of his father, whose title and the associated seat in the House of Lords. In 1827 he became Foreign Minister in the government of George Canning. He held that office in the governments of Frederick John Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich, and Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. In 1828 he resigned as Prime Minister.

1827 Ward was admitted to the Privy Council and charged to the Earl of Dudley. He died in 1833 unmarried. His earldom and the inherited Viscountstitel extinguished, while the downstream dignity of Baron Ward went over as much of older titles to a distant cousin.

As Foreign Minister Ward left no lasting impression. However, he was an educated man and had a reputation as an author and speaker. He supported the establishment of the University of London. His correspondence with Edward Copleston, Bishop of Llandaff, was published in 1840 by this.