Major-General Sir Edward Wolstenholme Ward (17 August 1823 – 5 February 1890)
[ was an Indian-born British soldier and Australian politician as well as cricket player.
]
Background
Born in Calcutta
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
, he was the oldest son of John Petty Ward and his wife Eleanor Erskine, daughter of John Erskine. He was educated at Royal Military Academy, Woolwich
The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers of the Royal Corps of Sig ...
and joined then the Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...
as cadet in 1841.
Career
Shortly after his admission, he got a promotion to second lieutenant and then in 1844 to first lieutenant. After additional studies at the Royal School of Mines
The Royal School of Mines comprises the departments of Earth Science and Engineering, and Materials at Imperial College London. The Centre for Advanced Structural Ceramics and parts of the London Centre for Nanotechnology and Department of Bioe ...
, he began working for the Royal Mint
The Royal Mint is the United Kingdom's oldest company and the official maker of British coins.
Operating under the legal name The Royal Mint Limited, it is a limited company that is wholly owned by His Majesty's Treasury and is under an exclus ...
and became second captain in 1852.[ Two years later, Ward was sent as deputy-master of its oversea branch to ]Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
[ and was promoted to captain in 1855. In May of the latter year, he was nominated a non-elective member of the ]New South Wales Legislative Council
The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...
, sitting in it for nine months.[ He was appointed to the council for life in 1861, however resigned his seat in 1865.] Ward was promoted to major in January 1964 and to lieutenant-colonel only few months later. When he returned to England in 1866, he was set on halfpay.[
In 1869, he became colonel and resumed his old post as deputy-master in a new branch in ]Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
.[ He was awarded a Commander of the ]Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III.
...
in 1874 and retired with a pension three years later, having been promoted to major-general. In 1879, he was further honoured as a Knight Commander.
Ward played for the New South Wales cricket team
The New South Wales men's cricket team (formerly named NSW Blues) are an Australian men's professional first class cricket team based in Sydney, New South Wales. The team competes in the Australian first class cricket competition known as the ...
in four of its early matches against Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
between 1857 and 1862.[ He was one of the pioneers of ]roundarm bowling
In cricket, roundarm bowling is a bowling style that was introduced in the first quarter of the 19th century and largely superseded underarm bowling by the 1830s. Using a roundarm action, the bowlers extend their arm about 90 degrees from their ...
in Australia and was most effective, taking 27 wickets in his four matches at an average of 7.66. In the match against Victoria in 1858-59 he took 10 wickets for 57 runs. In 1857 the ''Australian Cricketer's Guide'' said of him: "Is an excellent and puzzling left-hand round-arm bowler, with medium pace, keeping the ball usually 'on the spot'."
He was a trustee of the Australian Museum
The Australian Museum is a heritage-listed museum at 1 William Street, Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. It is the oldest museum in Australia,Design 5, 2016, p.1 and the fifth oldest natural history museum in the ...
and member of the Australian Philosophical Society
The Royal Society of New South Wales is a learned society based in Sydney, Australia. The Governor of New South Wales is the vice-regal patron of the Society.
The Society was established as the Philosophical Society of Australasia on 27 June 1 ...
.[ He was elected a member of the ]Photographic Society
The Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, commonly known as the Royal Photographic Society (RPS), is one of the world's oldest photographic societies. It was founded in London, England, in 1853 as the Photographic Society of London with ...
in March 1853 remaining a member until at least 1859.
Family
On 21 November 1857, he married Anne Sophia Campbell, daughter of Robert Campbell, and had by her three sons and four daughters. Ward died in Cannes
Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...
, aged 66.
See also
* List of New South Wales representative cricketers
This is a list of male cricketers who have played for New South Wales in first-class, List A and Twenty20 cricket. It is complete to the end of the 2017–18 season. The list refers to the sides named as "New South Wales" and does not include pl ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Edward Wolstenholme
1823 births
1890 deaths
Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council
New South Wales cricketers
Royal Engineers officers
Edward
Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”.
History
The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sa ...
19th-century Australian politicians