in 1761. Edward's grandfather, William Weld, reclaiming Lulworth after its forcible occupation by Roundheads in the English Civil War, came close to insolvency. It was saved mainly through the dowry brought in by Edward's mother, Margaret Simeons, and later by Edward's own skills, which set it on a course to prosper for two centuries in the hands of the Weld family. In 1929, however, during the tenure of Herbert Weld Blundell, Lulworth castle was completely gutted by fire. Edward's and all subsequent improvements to the eighteenth century Adam style interiors, furnishings and pictures, including the magnificent library, were lost, except for a quantity of valuable pictures, books and furniture which were rescued with the help of two teams of Girl Guides who happened to be camping in the park. Fortuitously, a photographic and documentary record of the castle had been made in 1926 by the publication, Country Life. The castle lay a derelict ruin for seventy years until one of Edward's descendants, Wilfrid Weld, undertook a painstaking restoration in partnership with Historic England to bring it to its current status as a museum. Very occasionally, furniture and pictures from Lulworth have appeared in auction rooms, which by their provenance and mid-eighteenth century dating suggest their original acquisition was by Edward Weld. Edward Weld is the subject of an extant portrait in oil attributed to the painter Adrien Carpentiers. References External links Weld Family tree from 1599 to c. 1840 Attributed to Adriaen Carpentiers: "Portrait of Edward Weld (1705–1761) of Lulworth Castle, in a Garden, a Statue of Minerva Beyond" Edward Weld's final resting place at Lulworth Castle Description and illustration of the "Lulworth Castle Dragon Chairs" 1705 births 1761 deaths British Roman Catholics 18th-century art collectors 18th-century English landowners English Roman Catholics People from Dorset Recusants Edward Weld (Senior)