Editing William Morris (section)

=== Textile experimentation and political embrace: 1875–1880 ===
{{multiple image
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| image1 = Morris Snakeshead printed textile 1876 v 2.jpg
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| image2 = Morris Peacock and Dragon Fabric 1878 v2.jpg
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| footer = Two of Morris's designs: ''Snakeshead'' printed textile (1876) and "Peacock and Dragon" woven wool furnishing fabric (1878)
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Now in complete control of the Firm, Morris took an increased interest in the process of textile dyeing and entered into a co-operative agreement with [[Thomas Wardle (industrialist)|Thomas Wardle]], a silk dyer who operated the Hencroft Works in [[Leek, Staffordshire]]. As a result, Morris would spend time with Wardle at his home on various occasions between summer 1875 and spring 1878.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=311–317|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=348–350}} Deeming the colours to be of inferior quality, Morris rejected the chemical [[aniline]] dyes which were then predominant, instead emphasising the revival of organic dyes, such as [[indigo]] for blue, walnut shells and roots for brown, and [[cochineal]], [[kermes (dye)|kermes]], and [[Rose madder|madder]] for red.{{sfn|MacCarthy|1994|pp=351–352}} Living and working in this industrial environment, he gained a personal understanding of production and the lives of the proletariat, and was disgusted by the poor living conditions of workers and the pollution caused by industry; these factors greatly influenced his political views.{{sfn|MacCarthy|1994|pp=350, 356–357}} After learning the skills of dyeing, in the late 1870s Morris turned his attention to weaving, experimenting with silk weaving at Queen's Square.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1p=351|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=400–402}}

In the Spring of 1877, the Firm opened a store at No. 449 Oxford Street and obtained new staff who were able to improve its professionalism; as a result, sales increased and its popularity grew.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1p=353|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2p=409}} By 1880, Morris & Co. had become a household name, having become very popular with Britain's upper and middle classes.{{sfn|MacCarthy|1994|p=412}} The Firm was obtaining increasing numbers of commissions from aristocrats, wealthy industrialists, and provincial entrepreneurs, with Morris furnishing parts of [[St James's Palace]] and the chapel at [[Eaton Hall, Cheshire|Eaton Hall]].{{sfn|MacCarthy|1994|pp=411–412}} As a result of his growing sympathy for the working-classes and poor, Morris felt personally conflicted in serving the interests of these individuals, privately describing it as "ministering to the swinish luxury of the rich".{{sfn|MacCarthy|1994|p=412}}

Continuing with his literary output, Morris translated his own version of [[Virgil]]'s ''[[Aeneid]]'', titling it ''The Aeneids of Vergil'' (1876). Although many translations were already available, often produced by trained Classicists, Morris claimed that his unique perspective was as "a poet not a pedant".{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=320–323|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=361–362}} He also continued producing translations of Icelandic tales with Magnússon, including ''Three Northern Love Stories'' (1875) and ''Völuspa Saga'' (1876).{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=310–311, 330–335|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=371–372}} In 1877 Morris was approached by [[Oxford University]] and offered the largely honorary position of Professor of Poetry. He declined, asserting that he felt unqualified, knowing little about scholarship on the theory of poetry.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=336–337|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=pp=374–375}}

In summer 1876, Jenny Morris was diagnosed with [[epilepsy]]. Refusing to allow her to be societally marginalised or institutionalised, as was common in the period, Morris insisted that she be cared for by the family.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=328–330|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=368–371}} When Janey took May and Jenny to [[Oneglia]] in Italy, the latter suffered a serious seizure, with Morris rushing to the country to see her. They then proceeded to visit a number of other cities, including [[Venice]], [[Padua]], and [[Verona]], with Morris attaining a greater appreciation of the country than he had on his previous trip.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=359, 366–370|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=387–390}} In April 1879 Morris moved the family home again, this time renting an 18th-century mansion on [[Hammersmith]]'s Upper Mall in West London that was owned by the novelist [[George MacDonald]]. Morris named it Kelmscott House and re-decorated it according to his own taste.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=371–373|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=391–398}} In the House's grounds he set up a workshop, focusing on the production of hand-knotted carpets.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1p=373|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=403–406}} Excited that both of his homes were along the course of the [[River Thames]], in August 1880 he and his family took a boat trip along the river from Kelmscott House to Kelmscott Manor.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1899|1pp=8–16|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=424–428}}

[[File:William Morris by Sir William Blake Richmond retouched.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Portrait of William Morris by [[William Blake Richmond]]]]

Morris became politically active in this period, coming to be associated with the [[Radicalism (historical)|radicalist]] current within British [[liberalism]]. He joined the [[Eastern Question Association]] (EQA) and was appointed the group's treasurer in November 1876. EQA had been founded by campaigners associated with the centre-left [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]] who opposed Prime Minister [[Benjamin Disraeli]]'s alliance with the [[Ottoman Empire]]; the Association highlighted [[Batak massacre|the Ottoman massacre of Bulgarians]] and feared that the alliance would lead Disraeli to join the Ottomans in [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|going to war]] with the [[Russian Empire]].{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=347–351|2a1=Thompson|2y=1955|2pp=192–193, 202–225|3a1=MacCarthy|3y=1994|3pp=378–382}} Morris took an active role in the EQA campaign, authoring the lyrics for the song "Wake, London Lads!" to be sung at a rally against military intervention.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1p=351|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2p=384}} Morris eventually became disillusioned with the EQA, describing it as being "full of wretched little personalities".{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=362|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=385–386}} He nevertheless joined a regrouping of predominantly working-class EQA activists, the [[National Liberal League (United Kingdom)|National Liberal League]], becoming their treasurer in summer 1879; the group remained small and politically ineffective, with Morris resigning as treasurer in late 1881, shortly before the group's collapse.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1899|1p=7|2a1=Thompson|2y=1955|2pp=261–265|3a1=MacCarthy|3y=1994|3pp=421–422}}

However, his discontent with the British liberal movement grew following the election of the Liberal Party's [[William Ewart Gladstone]] to the Premiership in 1880. Morris was particularly angered that [[Second Gladstone ministry|Gladstone's government]] did not reverse the Disraeli regime's [[First Boer War|occupation of the Transvaal]], introduced the [[Protection of Person and Property Act 1881|Coercion Bill]], and oversaw the [[Bombardment of Alexandria]].{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1899|1pp=7–8|2a1=Thompson|2y=1955|2pp=264–266|3a1=MacCarthy|3y=1994|3p=423}} Morris later related that while he had once believed that "one might further real Socialistic progress by doing what one could on the lines of ordinary middle-class Radicalism", following Gladstone's election he came to realise "that Radicalism is on the wrong line, so to say, and will never develope [sic] into anything more than Radicalism: in fact that it is made for and by the middle classes and will always be under the control of rich capitalists".{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1899|1p=103|2a1=Thompson|2y=1955|2pp=266–267|3a1=MacCarthy|3y=1994|3pp=422–423}}

In 1876, Morris visited the [[Church of St John the Baptist, Burford]], where he was appalled at the [[Building restoration|restoration]] conducted by his old mentor, G. E. Street. He recognised that these programs of architectural restoration led to the destruction or major alteration of genuinely old features in order to replace them with "sham old" features, something which appalled him.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1p=340|2a1=Thompson|2y=1955|2pp=226–228|3a1=MacCarthy|3y=1994|3pp=375–377}} To combat the increasing trend for restoration, in March 1877 he founded the [[Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings]] (SPAB), which he personally referred to as "Anti-Scrape". As he adopted the role of honorary secretary and treasurer, most of the other early members of SPAB were his friends, while the group's program was rooted in Ruskin's ''[[The Seven Lamps of Architecture]]'' (1849).{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1901|1pp=339–346|2a1=Thompson|2y=1955|2p=228|3a1=MacCarthy|3y=1994|3pp=375–377}} As part of SPAB's campaign, Morris tried to build connections with art and antiquarian societies and the custodians of old buildings, and also contacted the press to highlight his cause. He was particularly strong in denouncing the ongoing restoration of [[Tewkesbury Abbey]] and was vociferous in denouncing the architects responsible, something that deeply upset Street.{{sfnm|1a1=Thompson|1y=1955|1p=229|2a1=MacCarthy|2y=1994|2pp=377–378}} Turning SPAB's attention abroad, in Autumn 1879 Morris launched a campaign to protect [[St Mark's Basilica]] in [[Venice]] from restoration, garnering a petition with 2000 signatures, among whom were Disraeli, Gladstone, and Ruskin.{{sfnm|1a1=Mackail|1y=1899|1pp=5–6|2a1=Thompson|2y=1955|2p=229|3a1=MacCarthy|3y=1994|3pp=415–416}}