Born in 1820, he was the eldest son of a local magistrate, William Wright Luard Justice of the Peace, D.L. of Witham Lodge, Witham, Essex (formerly of Hatfield Peverel Priory) and Anne Garnham, only child of Thomas Garnham of Felsham Hall, Suffolk.
Luard entered the Royal Naval College (formerly the Royal Naval Academy) at Portsmouth at the age of 13 and later studied at Portsmouth Naval College.
After a distinguished career as a naval officer, including as captain and commander of HMS Formidable and HMS Conqueror, he served as superintendent of the Sheerness Dockyard and the Malta Dockyard. From 1882 to 1885, he was President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. He was promoted Rear-Admiral in 1875, Vice-Admiral on 15 June 1879, and Admiral in 1885.
Luard was advanced to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath by Queen Victoria in 1897, during her diamond jubilee year.
Luard married Charlotte Du Cane (an anglicization of the original French surname "Du Quesne") in 1858. Admiral and Lady Luard had 11 children.
He died in 1910 as a result of injuries sustained in a carriage accident.
A staunch Liberal and supporter of Prime Minister William Gladstone, Luard retired to his estate in Essex where he served as a Justice of the Peace and as an active member of the court of Quarter Sessions.
