# Dictionary of National Biography, 1927 supplement/Liberty, Arthur Lasenby

​LIBERTY, Sir ARTHUR LASENBY (1843–1917), fabric manufacturer, the eldest son of Arthur Liberty, lace manufacturer, of Nottingham and of Chesham, Buckinghamshire, by his wife, Rebecca Lasenby, was born at Chesham 13 August 1843. He was educated at University School, Nottingham. In 1862, at the age of nineteen, he was appointed manager of Farmer and Rogers's Oriental warehouse in Regent Street, London, the first depôt in England for the exclusive sale of goods from the Far East. Liberty held this position until 1874, when the warehouse was closed, and during these twelve years came into close contact with artists interested in Oriental and other crafts, who used to meet there. Among them were Leighton, Burne-Jones, Rossetti, Whistler, and William Morris. In 1875 Liberty went into business on his own account, with three employees, at 218 ​Regent Street, which he called East India House. Here the same coterie of friends continued to meet. From this modest beginning sprang the important business of Liberty & Co., well known throughout Europe and America.
Liberty was a shrewd business organizer, careful in the selection and treatment of his staff, many of whom remained a lifetime in his service. One of his principal designers was the architect, Edward William Godwin [q.v.]. He was a zealous promoter of better conditions for employees and an enthusiastic supporter of the early-closing movement. But his success was mainly due to his own thorough methods, his artistic perception, and his knack of anticipating the trend of public taste. As early as 1875 he realized that the industries of the East were influencing a much wider circle than a few connoisseurs; he therefore tried to satisfy the growing demand for Oriental textiles and colours by manufacturing fine fabrics of softer texture and subtler tint than had hitherto been generally obtainable in the West. Before long he had succeeded in producing British machine-made stuffs which equalled the hand-made products of Asia. At a later date (1888–1889) he visited Japan in order to study Japanese arts and crafts and the details of their manufacture.
Liberty's influence on the British silk and woollen industry of the 'seventies was considerable. Not only did he induce manufacturers to abandon adulteration, but, in conjunction with his friend, Sir Thomas Wardle [q.v.], he succeeded in introducing fine dyes hitherto supposed to be the exclusive product of the East. His aims were closely parallel with those of William Morris, and it has been supposed that Liberty was largely guided by Morris's example. The suggestion is erroneous, for Liberty was in close touch with a large circle, and his artistic ideas were influenced by the East rather than by the mediaeval Western art to which Morris was devoted. But both men educated the artistic taste of the public, and stimulated manufacturers to higher standards of design and workmanship.
In 1913 Liberty was knighted in recognition of his services to applied and decorative arts. He was J.P. and D.L. for the county of Buckingham, and high sheriff in 1899, juror of several international exhibitions, member of the council of the London Chamber of Commerce, and an officer of numerous commercial and artistic associations. He died at Lee Manor, Buckinghamshire, 11 May 1917. He married in 1875 Emma Louise, daughter of Henry Blackmore, of Exmouth, Devon; there were no children of the marriage.
[The Times, 12 May 1917; private information; personal knowledge.]
G. D. R.