Adolphus William Ward

Who was Adolphus William Ward?

Sir Adolphus William Ward was an English historian and man of letters.

He was born at Hampstead, London, and was educated in Germany and at Peterhouse, Cambridge.

In 1866 he was appointed professor of history and English literature in Owens College, Manchester, and was principal from 1890 to 1897, when he retired. He took an active part in the foundation of Victoria University, of which he was vice-chancellor from 1886 to 1890 and from 1894 to 1896. He was a Member of the Chetham Society, serving as a Member of Council from 1884 and as President from 1901 until 1915. In 1897, the freedom of the city of Manchester was conferred upon him, he delivered the Ford Lectures at Oxford University in 1898, and on 29 October 1900 he was elected master of Peterhouse, Cambridge.

His most important work is his standard History of English Dramatic Literature to the Age of Queen Anne, re-edited after a thorough revision in three volumes in 1899.