This Is What "Ward" Means in 'Bridgerton' — And What It Says About Sophie's Origins

Warning: this article contains spoilers for Bridgerton Season 4 Part 1.

Part 1 of Bridgerton's Season 4 is finally here. After the happy resolution of Penelope and Colin's friends-to-lovers romantic story arc in Season 3, the ton has eyes on the second-eldest Bridgerton sibling, Benedict.

Benedict, who has in the past eluded commitment, begins to fall for Sophie Baek(Yerin Ha), a mysterious masked woman at his mother's masquerade ball. Sophie's origins are later revealed, but it was a bit confusing for viewers when the Earl of Penwood referred to her as "his ward."

In a flashback, the Earl of Penwood introduces his new wife, Araminta, to the staff who work on his estate. Sophie is standing with them, but he passes over her. When Araminta asks about Sophie, the Earl says that she is his "ward." He tells Araminta, "I know you will care for her as your own."

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a ward is "a person, especially a child, who is legally put under the protection of a law court or guardian."

The Collins Dictionary also lists a "ward" as "guardianship over a minor or some other person legally incapable of managing his or her own affairs."

Cosmopolitan notes that, because of Araminta's shocked and displeased reaction, Sophie is likely the Earl's "illegitimate" daughter. He simply refers to her as his ward because of his place in society and the taboo of raising a child out of wedlock.

In the funeral sequence later on, Araminta tells Sophie that her late mother was a maid and Lord Penwood's mistress, per The Mirror. Araminta tells her that she needs to be "invisible" by working as a maid and being a servant to get financial stability and protection. Sophie argues that she's the daughter of a nobleman, but Araminta warns her not to step out of her position in society.

In An Offer from a Gentleman, the Julia Quinn book that Bridgerton Season 4 is based on, Sophie's mother dies in childbirth. Sophie's dying grandmother leaves her on Lord Penwood's doorstep. Lord Penwood takes her in after seeing a "family resemblance."

The book's Fandom page says, "The Earl told everyone she was the orphaned daughter of a friend who he’d taken in as his ward, even though it was quite obvious that she was his child."

When Sophie was 14, Lord Penwood died, and Araminta failed to mention that he'd left Sophie money in his will. Araminta kept Sophie at her estate as part of the household staff.

"Benedict lives in a fantasy world. Sophie lives in a hard reality," Jess Brownell told Tudum. "You have two characters who are at opposite ends of a pole, and rather than either of them needing to get all the way to the other side, they both need to travel to the middle," she said.

Jess continued, "Between fantasy and reality, true love lies in the middle — neither one creates the circumstances for romance to bloom. You have to embrace a little bit of both."

Bridgerton Season 4 Part 1 is available to stream on Netflix. The second half of the season is set to release on Feb. 26, 2026.