[2] She was appointed Honorary Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire on her 84th birthday in 1921.

She began to display a preference for the arts, and devoted herself by turns to the study of painting, sculpture, and music.

[citation needed] On 10 November 1856, at age 19, she married a Russian count, Constantine de Guerbel.

After a few years' stay in Europe, the family returned to New York, and soon afterward made the acquaintance of Henriette Sontag,[7] who encouraged Ward to study singing.

When the Ward family returned to Europe, Sontag gave Geneviève a letter of introduction to the composer Rossini.