Charles Robert Ashbee, born in 1863, formed the Guild of Handicraft in 1888, establishing workshops in Essex House, Mile End Road, London. The Guild craftsmen worked in a wide range of disciplines including cabinet making, printing, bookbinding, silversmithing and jewellery making, and by the turn of the century the Guild had established an international reputation for itself. This satisfied one of Ashbee's aims, that of raising standards of craftsmanship and encouraging his craftsmen not only to make artefacts but to contribute to the design process as well.
His second aim was to see his craftsmen take charge of their own affairs and create a better life for themselves. It was this thought in his mind, combined with the steady decline of working conditions in London, that prompted Ashbee to investigate the possibility of moving his men away from the foul air of the capital in favour of the clean air of the countryside. In total Ashbee looked at more than two dozen possible locations, but eventually decided that Chipping Campden was the ideal place, having as it did sufficient vacant dwellings for the craftsmen and their families, the part derelict silk mill to house the Guild workshops, and an excellent railway connection to London.
So it was that in 1902 Ashbee, together with some 40-odd craftsmen with their wives and children, arrived in Chipping Campden. They soon settled in, taking over some of the more prominent buildings in the town. Ashbee himself moved into Woolstaplers Hall, and the adjacent Braithwaite House was put to use as a hostel for the unmarried men working at the Guild, as well as being a store for the Guild library. Further down the High Street, beyond the Square, Island House was home to the Essex House Press book bindery, and Ashbee established an architectural office in Elm Tree House in Lower High Street.
At this time, evening classes were being run by the Grammar School with the aid of a County Council grant, and Ashbee took over both the classes and the associated grant. He later transferred them to Elm Tree House which he had taken over in December 1904 under the new name of Campden School of Arts and Crafts. The School flourished and soon had over 300 men, women and children being taught a wide range of subjects. By 1910 the influence of the School was such that thirty subjects were being taught in at least five satellite locations around Chipping Campden.
Sadly, the successful integration of the Guild and its workers into Chipping Campden was not matched by its financial performance. In the first two years of its presence in Campden profits were down ; in 1904 the workers had to be put on short time ; in both 1905 and 1906 the Guild made losses ; and in 1908, in the face of further losses brought about by poor trading conditions and competition from cheaper, mass produced goods, the Guild of Handicrafts was finally wound up.
Although the Guild's presence in Campden was relatively short lived it is no exaggeration to say that its influence continues to be felt to the present day. Many dwellings that would otherwise have disappeared still stand today, having been rescued from ruin, being either repaired or rebuilt. The Hart family still operates a silversmithing business in its original location in the Old Silk Mill. The late Robert Welch, a designer of international repute, occupied offices in the Old Silk Mill and the shop bearing his name still operates a short distance away. Younger craftspeople also have workshops in the Old Silk Mill, as does a stonemason, and a new gallery there showcases the work of painters, cabinetmakers, photographers and textile artists.
Between the wars the movement to preserve and protect the character of the town continued, led to a great extent by F.L. Griggs, an artist who had first visited in 1904 and later moved to Campden.
Finally, an exciting new development in the form of the Court Barn Museum provides a truly unique repository for historically important materials relating to the skill and imagination of artists and designers, architects and craftspeople who have worked in Chipping Campden and the surrounding villages of the north Cotswolds, beginning with the Arts and Crafts movement in the early twentieth century and continuing to the present day. The Court Barn opened on 28th July 2007 and is located in Church Street, close to the historic almshouses and the ruins of Campden House.
September '10 Bulletin