Freda Dudley Ward

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Winifred May, Marquesa de Casa Maury (28 July 1894 – 16 March 1983), universally known by her first married name as Freda Dudley Ward, was an English socialite best known for being a mistress of the Prince of Wales, who later became King Edward VIII.

Born Winifred May Birkin, she was the elder daughter of Colonel Charles Wilfred Birkin, a British textile magnate, and his American wife, the former Claire Lloyd Howe. She was the mistress of the Prince of Wales from 1918 to 1923, after which she remained his close confidante until 1934 and the beginning of his relationship with Wallis Simpson.^[1]

Her great-niece is the actress Jane Birkin.

Freda Birkin was twice married:

• 1) The Right Honourable William Dudley Ward, Liberal MP for Southampton (married 9 July 1913 - divorced 1931)
  • i) Penelope Ann Rachel, (1915 - 1982)
  • ii) Claire Angela Louise (1916 - 1999)
• 2) Pedro Jose Isidro Manuel Ricardo Mones, Marques de Casa Maury (married 20 October 1937 - divorced 1954)

Though her first husband's family surname was Ward, the combination "Dudley Ward" eventually became their official surname, through common usage.

[edit] Footnotes

1. ^ Philip Ziegler King Edward VIII: The Official Biography (Collins, London, 1990) p.94-100.