Bernard Mordaunt Ward
Encyclopedia
Bernard Mordaunt Ward was an author and third-generation British soldier most noted for his support of the Oxfordian theory of Shakespeare authorship
and writing the first documentary biography
of Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
.
, India into a military family, the son of Bernard Rowland Ward (16 January 1863—30 April 1933) and Jeanie Duffield (d. 11 Apr 1925). At age 18 he entered the Royal Military Academy
, Sandhurst
as a cadet and in 1912 was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 1st King's Dragoon Guards
. He was promoted to first lieutenant at the beginning of World War I and attained the rank of captain a month before the war ended. He retired in 1927 as a member of the reserves, which he resigned in 1939 due to ill health. He was usually addressed as Captain B. M. Ward for the rest of his life. He never married and died 12 October 1945 at age 52.
From 1900 Ward's father was an instructor at the Sandhurst academy and a respected author on military engineering. He became interested in the Shakespeare authorship question
and was the main organizer of the original Shakespeare Fellowship. He was a groupist, with Sir Francis Bacon as the chief editor and organizer, and published several articles and a book about the Shakespeare authorship question. Ward followed his father in his anti-Stratfordian interests, but favoured Oxford as the true author, influenced by J. Thomas Looney
's "Shakespeare" Identified in Edward De Vere, the seventeenth earl of Oxford (1920).
Ward also became Chairman of the Abbotsholme Association, an organization to promote the Abbotsholme School, a private
boarding
and day school
in Rocester
in Staffordshire
, and in 1934 he wrote a book about the founder, Dr Cecil Reddie, as a way to support him in a dispute over control of the school.
's The Arte of English Posie was authored by John Lumley
, a noted collector of books and art, based on biographical details gleaned from the work. Ward was refuted "heartlessly" by Willcock and Walker in their 1936 critical edition.
Ward published several articles in scholarly journals announcing his discovery that Oxford was the author of works attributed to George Gascoigne
, and in 1926 he published a reprint edition of Gascoigne's A Hundreth Sundry Flowres, which included an introduction advancing the theory that it was in fact compiled and edited by Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
. Oxford supposedly also contributed some poems and revealed his authorship using an acrostic
that spelled out "Edward de Vere" in the poem "The absent lover (in ciphers) disciphering his name, doth crave some spedie relief as followeth". Ward claimed that the posy (motto) on the title page, which was signed to 22 of the 100 poems, was Oxford's; that the signature Si Fortunatus Infoelix was the posy of Christopher Hatton
, a commoner, and thereby identified Hatton's contributions; and that the initials F.I. in The Posies of George Gascoigne (1575) stood for the principal letters in Hatton’s supposed motto. All of his conjectures were disproved by academic Shakespeareans, but Ward's Gascoigne theory is still put forth by some modern Oxfordians, while others have disavowed it.
Ward's biography has been criticized by historians for suppressing details of Oxford's life and putting all aspects of his career and relationships in a favourable light. He greatly exaggerated Oxford's military and literary accomplishments, and ignored or recast his faults. Nelson characterised Ward as "more hagiographer than historian" (In turn, Nelson was characterised as "More demonologer than biographer" by Oxfordian Richard Walen).
Oxfordian theory of Shakespeare authorship
The Oxfordian theory of Shakespearean authorship proposes that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford , wrote the plays and poems traditionally attributed to William Shakespeare of Stratford-upon-Avon. While a large majority of scholars reject all alternative candidates for authorship, popular...
and writing the first documentary biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
of Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford was an Elizabethan courtier, playwright, lyric poet, sportsman and patron of the arts, and is currently the most popular alternative candidate proposed for the authorship of Shakespeare's works....
.
Biography
He was born in MadrasChennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
, India into a military family, the son of Bernard Rowland Ward (16 January 1863—30 April 1933) and Jeanie Duffield (d. 11 Apr 1925). At age 18 he entered the Royal Military Academy
Royal Military Academy
The Royal Military Academy 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...
, Sandhurst
Sandhurst
Sandhurst is a small town and civil parish in England of 7,966 homes and 20,803 inhabitants , primarily domiciliary in nature with a few light industries...
as a cadet and in 1912 was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 1st King's Dragoon Guards
1st King's Dragoon Guards
The 1st King's Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1685 as The Queen's Regiment of Horse, named in honour of Queen Mary, consort of King James II. It was renamed The King's Own Regiment of Horse in 1714 in honour of George I...
. He was promoted to first lieutenant at the beginning of World War I and attained the rank of captain a month before the war ended. He retired in 1927 as a member of the reserves, which he resigned in 1939 due to ill health. He was usually addressed as Captain B. M. Ward for the rest of his life. He never married and died 12 October 1945 at age 52.
From 1900 Ward's father was an instructor at the Sandhurst academy and a respected author on military engineering. He became interested in the Shakespeare authorship question
Shakespeare authorship question
Image:ShakespeareCandidates1.jpg|thumb|alt=Portraits of Shakespeare and four proposed alternative authors.|Oxford, Bacon, Derby, and Marlowe have each been proposed as the true author...
and was the main organizer of the original Shakespeare Fellowship. He was a groupist, with Sir Francis Bacon as the chief editor and organizer, and published several articles and a book about the Shakespeare authorship question. Ward followed his father in his anti-Stratfordian interests, but favoured Oxford as the true author, influenced by J. Thomas Looney
J. Thomas Looney
John Thomas Looney . was an English school teacher who is best known for having originated the Oxfordian theory, which claims that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford was the true author of Shakespeare's plays.-Life:Looney was born in South Shields...
's "Shakespeare" Identified in Edward De Vere, the seventeenth earl of Oxford (1920).
Ward also became Chairman of the Abbotsholme Association, an organization to promote the Abbotsholme School, a private
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
boarding
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
and day school
Day school
A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...
in Rocester
Rocester
Rocester is a village and civil parish in the East Staffordshire district of Staffordshire, England. Its name is spelt Rowcestre in the Domesday Book.-Geography:...
in Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, and in 1934 he wrote a book about the founder, Dr Cecil Reddie, as a way to support him in a dispute over control of the school.
Literary authorship theories
In 1925 Ward argued that George PuttenhamGeorge Puttenham
George Puttenham was a sixteenth-century English writer, literary critic, and notorious rake. He is generally considered to be the author of the enormously influential handbook on poetry and rhetoric, The Arte of English Poesie ....
's The Arte of English Posie was authored by John Lumley
John Lumley, 1st Baron Lumley
John Lumley, 1st Baron Lumley was an English aristocrat.- Early life :John Lumley was born about 1533, was grandson and heir of John, Lord Lumley, being son and heir of his only son and heir apparent George Lumley by Jane second daughter and coheir of Sir Richard Knightly of Upton,...
, a noted collector of books and art, based on biographical details gleaned from the work. Ward was refuted "heartlessly" by Willcock and Walker in their 1936 critical edition.
Ward published several articles in scholarly journals announcing his discovery that Oxford was the author of works attributed to George Gascoigne
George Gascoigne
George Gascoigne was an English poet, soldier, artist, and unsuccessful courtier. He is considered the most important poet of the early Elizabethan era, following Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey and leading to the emergence of Philip Sidney...
, and in 1926 he published a reprint edition of Gascoigne's A Hundreth Sundry Flowres, which included an introduction advancing the theory that it was in fact compiled and edited by Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford was an Elizabethan courtier, playwright, lyric poet, sportsman and patron of the arts, and is currently the most popular alternative candidate proposed for the authorship of Shakespeare's works....
. Oxford supposedly also contributed some poems and revealed his authorship using an acrostic
Acrostic
An acrostic is a poem or other form of writing in which the first letter, syllable or word of each line, paragraph or other recurring feature in the text spells out a word or a message. As a form of constrained writing, an acrostic can be used as a mnemonic device to aid memory retrieval. A famous...
that spelled out "Edward de Vere" in the poem "The absent lover (in ciphers) disciphering his name, doth crave some spedie relief as followeth". Ward claimed that the posy (motto) on the title page, which was signed to 22 of the 100 poems, was Oxford's; that the signature Si Fortunatus Infoelix was the posy of Christopher Hatton
Christopher Hatton
Sir Christopher Hatton was an English politician, Lord Chancellor of England and a favourite of Elizabeth I of England.-Early days:...
, a commoner, and thereby identified Hatton's contributions; and that the initials F.I. in The Posies of George Gascoigne (1575) stood for the principal letters in Hatton’s supposed motto. All of his conjectures were disproved by academic Shakespeareans, but Ward's Gascoigne theory is still put forth by some modern Oxfordians, while others have disavowed it.
Oxford as Shakepeare
Taking to heart Looney's call for research to prove Oxford was Shakespeare, around 1923 Ward began digging in archives for evidence of Oxford's authorship. In 1928, he published a massive biography of Oxford aimed at rehabilitating the earl's reputation. Prevented from his publishing house from openly supporting the Oxfordian theory in the book, he was content to provide tacit support, portraying Oxford as a remarkable Renaissance man: a highly-educated and well-travelled courtier, soldier, scholar, poet, playwright, patron of the arts, theatrical entrepreneur—in short, the perfect fit for the portrait of the author as determined by Looney's biographical reading of Shakespeare's works. For the rest of the 20th century Ward's was the only documentary biography of Oxford available until Alan Nelson's Monstrous Adversery displaced it in 2003.Ward's biography has been criticized by historians for suppressing details of Oxford's life and putting all aspects of his career and relationships in a favourable light. He greatly exaggerated Oxford's military and literary accomplishments, and ignored or recast his faults. Nelson characterised Ward as "more hagiographer than historian" (In turn, Nelson was characterised as "More demonologer than biographer" by Oxfordian Richard Walen).
Publications
- "The Authorship of the Arte of English Posie: A Suggestion", RES I (1925) pp. 284-308.
- A Hundreth Sundrie Flowres From the Original Edition of 1573, London: F. Etchells and H. Macdonald, 1926
- The Seventeenth Earl of Oxford (1550-1604) from Contemporary Documents, London: Murray, 1928.
- "The Famous Victories of Henry V: Its Place in Elizabethan Dramatic Literature," RES, IV (1928), pp. 270-94.
- "Queen Elizabeth and William Davison", English Historical Review (1929) 44, pp. 104-6.
- Reddie of Abbotsholme, London: Allen & Unwin, 1934.