William Morris - never to late, never too rich!

 

William Morris became a socialist when he was nearly 50 and a successful businessman. No it’s neither never too late nor never too rich.  

He spent the rest of his life campaigning ‘to end the system of privilege which allowed the property-owning classes to profit from the labour of the rest of society’. And because he was concerned that ‘gradual reform would only mask society's problems and delay change, he wanted revolution.

The William Morris Gallery is located a far cry from the heady days that Morris lived his teenage years in the house we visited. He was born into a wealthy  family who were shocked when he decided to become an artist and not a clergyman. 

He founded an interior design business and sought to change the Victorian age with its industrialisation that caused great poverty and injustice by focussing on beauty as a ‘basic human need’. He sought social equality and a return to craftsmanship (sic). 

Born in 1834 he died in 1896. He was a textile designer, poet, writer and socialist activist. He is recognised as one of the leading cultural and political figures of the Victorian era. He was a naturalist, an environmentalist and most of all a socialist who fought against the capitalist system of privilege and excesses.