Not long after his death, two compilations of letters written by the "old" Earl of Dudley, John William Ward were published. "Letters to Ivy" was compiled by S.H.Romilly and consisted of correspondence to a Mrs. Helen Stewart (wife of Dugald Stewart) of Edinburgh. D.S. had been a tutor of Ward's prior to his attending Oriel College, Oxford. He regarded the Stewart family as more or less equivalent to his own and wrote to "Ivy" as he called her, on a regular basis for most of his life.
The other book of letters were to Edward Copleston, later the Bishop of Llandaff, with whom Ward corresponded regularly with his old Oxford master, again for many years.
I have read both of these books and found them fascinating, though a bit heavy going, especially the Copleston edition. They both illustrate Ward's interests and views on a wide range of subject matter, particularly the politics of the day,both domestic and European, and the machinations of his rise to become Foreign Secretary, and the literary works of the classics and those of many contemporary figures including his friend Lord Byron. Ward travelled extensively abroad in Europe and these events are well covered in his letters. Some interesting accounts of everyday life (such as the sometimes indifferent quality of postal services) can also be gleaned, as well as the amount of quite serious illnesses he suffered from time to time, to an extent almost unthinkable by today's standards. Highly recommended.
What has all this got to do with Witley Court you may ask? J.W.W. left his vast fortune in trust to the son of his second cousin, and it was the trustees of young William Ward who purchased the Witley & Holt estates from the Foley's in 1837/8. So without old John's money the history of Great Witley would have told a very different story indeed.
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