Royal Crown Derby
Encyclopedia
The Royal Crown Derby Porcelain Company is a porcelain
manufacturer, based in Derby
, England
. The company, particularly known for its high-quality bone china
, has produced tableware
and ornamental items since approximately 1750. It was known as "Derby Porcelain" until 1773, when it became Crown Derby, the "Royal" being added in 1890, the factory having closed and been revived in the meantime.
immigrant from Saxony
, settled in Derby, where between 1747 and 1755 he made soft-paste porcelain
vases and figurine
s. At the beginning of 1756 he formed a business partnership with William Duesbury (1725 — 1786), a porcelain painter formerly at Chelsea porcelain factory
and Longton Hall, and the banker John Heath. This was the foundation of the Derby company, although production at the works at Cockpit Hill
, just outside the town, had begun before then, as evidenced by a creamware
jug dated 1750, also in the possession of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Planché disappeared from the scene almost at once, and the business was developed by Duesbury and Heath, and later Duesbury alone. A talented entrepreneur, Duesbury developed a new paste which contained glass frit, soaprock
and calcined bone. This enabled the factory to begin producing high-quality tableware. He quickly established Derby as a leading manufacturer of dinner services and figurines by employing the best talents available for modelling and painting. Figure painting was done by Richard Askew, particularly skilled at painting cupid
s, and James Banford. Zachariah Boreman and John Brewer painted landscapes, still lifes, and pastorals. Intricate floral patterns were designed and painted by William Billingsley.
In 1770, Duesbury further increased the already high reputation of Derby by his acquisition of the famous Chelsea porcelain factory
in London. He operated it on its original site until 1784 (the products of this period are known as "Chelsea-Derby"), when he demolished the buildings and transferred the assets, including the stock, patterns and moulds, and many of the workmen, to Derby. Again, in 1776, he acquired the remainder of the formerly prestigious Bow porcelain factory
, of which he also transferred the portable elements to Derby.
In 1773, Duesbury’s hard work was rewarded by King George III, who after visiting the Derby works granted him permission to incorporate the royal crown into the Derby backstamp, after which the company was known as Crown Derby.
In 1786, William Duesbury died, leaving the company to his son, William Duesbury II, also a talented director, who besides keeping the reputation of the company at its height, developed a number of new glazes
and body types.
Despite much good work, the Kean period was disruptive and the company suffered financially.
William Duesbury III, born in 1790, son of William Duesbury II, took over the factory when he came of age in 1791, and Kean having sold his interest to his father-in-law, William Duesbury's grandfather, named Sheffield, the concern continued under the name of Duesbury & Sheffield.
In 1815, the factory was leased to the firm's salesman and clerk, Robert Bloor, and the Duesburys played no further part in it. Bloor borrowed heavily to be able to make the payments demanded but proved himself to be a highly able businessman in his ways of recouping losses and putting the business back on a sound financial footing. He also possessed a thorough appreciation of the aesthetic side of the business, and under him the company produced works that were richly coloured and elegantly styled, including brightly coloured Japanese Imari
patterns, generally featuring intricate geometric patterns layered with various floral designs. These designs proved extremely and lastingly popular, and Derby continued to thrive.
In 1845, however, Bloor died, and after three years under Thomas Clarke, the Cockpit Works were sold and the factory closed in 1848.
of the Duesburys, still owned by the present Royal Derby Company.
, as their romantic and lavish designs exactly met the popular taste of the period.
granted them the title "The Royal Crown Derby Porcelain Company".
In 1935 Royal Crown Derby acquired the King Street factory, thus reuniting the two strands of the business.
.
Present product lines include paperweights, introduced in 1981 and immensely popular. Royal Crown Derby also continue to produce patterns in the Imari style, distinguished for its rich colours and intricate gilding, including the dinnerware ranges Old Imari, Traditional Imari, Red Aves, Blue Mikado (designed by Thomas Amos Reed), and Olde Avesbury.
features a museum of porcelain items, and offers tours of the factory, a gift shop and a restaurant.
Porcelain
Porcelain is a ceramic material made by heating raw materials, generally including clay in the form of kaolin, in a kiln to temperatures between and...
manufacturer, based in Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The company, particularly known for its high-quality bone china
Bone china
Bone china is a type of soft-paste porcelain that is composed of bone ash, feldspathic material and kaolin. It has been defined as ware with a translucent body containing a minimum of 30% of phosphate derived from animal bone and calculated calcium phosphate...
, has produced tableware
Tableware
Tableware is the dishes or dishware , dinnerware , or china used for setting a table, serving food, and for dining. Tableware can be meant to include flatware and glassware...
and ornamental items since approximately 1750. It was known as "Derby Porcelain" until 1773, when it became Crown Derby, the "Royal" being added in 1890, the factory having closed and been revived in the meantime.
William Duesbury I and II
In 1745 André Planché, a HuguenotHuguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
immigrant from Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
, settled in Derby, where between 1747 and 1755 he made soft-paste porcelain
Soft-paste porcelain
Soft-paste porcelain is a type of a ceramic material, sometimes referred to simply as "soft paste". The term is used to describe soft porcelains such as bone china, Seger porcelain, vitreous porcelain, new Sèvres porcelain, Parian porcelain and soft feldspathic porcelain, and is also used more...
vases and figurine
Figurine
A figurine is a statuette that represents a human, deity or animal. Figurines may be realistic or iconic, depending on the skill and intention of the creator. The earliest were made of stone or clay...
s. At the beginning of 1756 he formed a business partnership with William Duesbury (1725 — 1786), a porcelain painter formerly at Chelsea porcelain factory
Chelsea porcelain factory
The Chelsea porcelain manufactory is the first important porcelain manufactory in England; its earliest soft-paste porcelain, aimed at the aristocratic market—cream jugs in the form of two seated goats—are dated 1745...
and Longton Hall, and the banker John Heath. This was the foundation of the Derby company, although production at the works at Cockpit Hill
Derby Porcelain
The production of Derby porcelain dates from the first half of the 18th century, although the authorship and the exact start of the production remains today as a matter of conjecture. The oldest remaining pieces in the late 19th century bore only the words «Darby» and «Darbishire» and the years...
, just outside the town, had begun before then, as evidenced by a creamware
Creamware
Creamware is a cream-coloured, refined earthenware created about 1750 by the potters of Staffordshire, England, which proved ideal for domestic ware. It was popular until the 1840s. It was also known as tortoiseshellware or Prattware depending on the colour of glaze used...
jug dated 1750, also in the possession of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Planché disappeared from the scene almost at once, and the business was developed by Duesbury and Heath, and later Duesbury alone. A talented entrepreneur, Duesbury developed a new paste which contained glass frit, soaprock
Soapstone
Soapstone is a metamorphic rock, a talc-schist. It is largely composed of the mineral talc and is thus rich in magnesium. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occurs in the areas where tectonic plates are subducted, changing rocks by heat and pressure, with influx...
and calcined bone. This enabled the factory to begin producing high-quality tableware. He quickly established Derby as a leading manufacturer of dinner services and figurines by employing the best talents available for modelling and painting. Figure painting was done by Richard Askew, particularly skilled at painting cupid
Cupid
In Roman mythology, Cupid is the god of desire, affection and erotic love. He is the son of the goddess Venus and the god Mars. His Greek counterpart is Eros...
s, and James Banford. Zachariah Boreman and John Brewer painted landscapes, still lifes, and pastorals. Intricate floral patterns were designed and painted by William Billingsley.
In 1770, Duesbury further increased the already high reputation of Derby by his acquisition of the famous Chelsea porcelain factory
Chelsea porcelain factory
The Chelsea porcelain manufactory is the first important porcelain manufactory in England; its earliest soft-paste porcelain, aimed at the aristocratic market—cream jugs in the form of two seated goats—are dated 1745...
in London. He operated it on its original site until 1784 (the products of this period are known as "Chelsea-Derby"), when he demolished the buildings and transferred the assets, including the stock, patterns and moulds, and many of the workmen, to Derby. Again, in 1776, he acquired the remainder of the formerly prestigious Bow porcelain factory
Bow porcelain factory
The Bow porcelain factory was an emulative rival of the Chelsea porcelain factory in the manufacture of early soft-paste porcelain in Great Britain...
, of which he also transferred the portable elements to Derby.
In 1773, Duesbury’s hard work was rewarded by King George III, who after visiting the Derby works granted him permission to incorporate the royal crown into the Derby backstamp, after which the company was known as Crown Derby.
In 1786, William Duesbury died, leaving the company to his son, William Duesbury II, also a talented director, who besides keeping the reputation of the company at its height, developed a number of new glazes
Ceramic glaze
Glaze is a layer or coating of a vitreous substance which has been fired to fuse to a ceramic object to color, decorate, strengthen or waterproof it.-Use:...
and body types.
Michael Kean
William Duesbury II did not live to fulfil his promise: he died in 1797 at the age of 34 and the company was taken over by his business partner, an Irishman named Michael Kean, who later married Duesbury's widow. He seems not to have enjoyed good relations with the highly skilled workforce, and many eminent artists left. Others however produced good work under his management, including Moses Webster, a flower painter who replaced Billingsley, Richard Dodson (who specialised in birds), George Robertson (land- and seascapes) and Cuthbert Lawton (hunting scenes). The best-known artist of this time was William Pegg, a Quaker, famed for his striking and idiosyncratic flower painting. He started in 1797 but his religious beliefs led him to the conclusion that painting was sinful and he left in 1800. He returned in 1813, but left again in 1820.Despite much good work, the Kean period was disruptive and the company suffered financially.
William Duesbury III, born in 1790, son of William Duesbury II, took over the factory when he came of age in 1791, and Kean having sold his interest to his father-in-law, William Duesbury's grandfather, named Sheffield, the concern continued under the name of Duesbury & Sheffield.
Robert Bloor
Imari porcelain
Imari porcelain is the name for Japanese porcelain wares made in the town of Arita, in the former Hizen Province, northwestern Kyūshū. They were exported to Europe extensively from the port of Imari, Saga between latter half of 17th century and former half of 18 th century, Japanese as well as the...
patterns, generally featuring intricate geometric patterns layered with various floral designs. These designs proved extremely and lastingly popular, and Derby continued to thrive.
In 1845, however, Bloor died, and after three years under Thomas Clarke, the Cockpit Works were sold and the factory closed in 1848.
King Street
A group of former employees set up a factory in King Street in Derby, and continued to use the moulds, patterns and trademarks of the former business, although not the name, so keeping alive the Derby traditions of fine craftsmanship. No mechanical processes were used, and no two pieces produced were exactly the same. Among the items preserved was the original potter's wheelPotter's wheel
In pottery, a potter's wheel is a machine used in asma of round ceramic ware. The wheel may also be used during process of trimming the excess body from dried ware and for applying incised decoration or rings of color...
of the Duesburys, still owned by the present Royal Derby Company.
Osmaston Road
In 1877, an impressive new factory was built by new owners of the Crown Derby name in Osmaston Road, Derby, thus beginning the modern period of Derby porcelain. Crown Derby’s patterns became immensely popular during the late Victorian eraVictorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
, as their romantic and lavish designs exactly met the popular taste of the period.
Royal Crown Derby
In 1890, Queen Victoria appointed Crown Derby to be “Manufacturers of porcelain to Her Majesty” and by Royal WarrantRoyal Warrant
Royal warrants of appointment have been issued for centuries to those who supply goods or services to a royal court or certain royal personages. The warrant enables the supplier to advertise the fact that they supply to the royal family, so lending prestige to the supplier...
granted them the title "The Royal Crown Derby Porcelain Company".
In 1935 Royal Crown Derby acquired the King Street factory, thus reuniting the two strands of the business.
Allied Potteries
In 1964, the company was acquired by S. Pearson and Son and became part of the Allied English Potteries Group, later to be joined by Royal DoultonRoyal Doulton
The Royal Doulton Company is an English company producing tableware and collectables, dating to 1815. Operating originally in London, its reputation grew in The Potteries, where it was a latecomer compared to Spode, Wedgwood and Minton...
.
Royal Crown Derby (II)
In 2000, Hugh Gibson, a former director of Royal Doulton and a member of the Pearson family, led a buy-out, making Royal Crown Derby once again an independent and privately-owned concern, which at present (2006) employs about 300 people at the Osmaston Road works.Present product lines include paperweights, introduced in 1981 and immensely popular. Royal Crown Derby also continue to produce patterns in the Imari style, distinguished for its rich colours and intricate gilding, including the dinnerware ranges Old Imari, Traditional Imari, Red Aves, Blue Mikado (designed by Thomas Amos Reed), and Olde Avesbury.
Royal Crown Derby Visitor Centre
The Royal Crown Derby Visitor Centre in DerbyDerby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
features a museum of porcelain items, and offers tours of the factory, a gift shop and a restaurant.
See also
- John HaslemJohn Haslem (artist)John Haslem , was an English china and enamel painter, and writer. He painted many portrait miniatures of Queen Victoria, the Royal Family and other nobility.-Life and work:...
(1808–1884), an apprentice china painter at the factory from 1822, and said to be one of the best flower artists at the works. He also wrote a history entitled "The Old Derby China Factory" (George Bell, 1876). - Georg HoltzendorffGeorg HoltzendorffCount Georg Holtzendorff was a painter of Saxony, specialist in landscapes, figure subjects and cherubs, who sought refuge in England in consequence of the Franco-Prussian War.- Works :...
, a GermanGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
painter who made the studies for the Gladstone Dessert Service.
Further reading
- Barret, Franklin A[llen], and A.L. Thorpe. Derby Porcelain (London) 1971.
- Bradley, Gilbert, Judith Anderson, and Robin Barkla. Derby Porcelain, 1750-1798 (Heneage) 1992. Gilbert Bradley edited a Derby Porcelain International Society Newsletter, c. 1985-95.
- Bradshaw, P., Derby Porcelain Figures 1750-1848 (London: Faber Monographs), 1990.
- John W, William Billingsley 1758-1828 1968.
- Murdoch, J. and J. Twitchett. Painters and the Derby China Works 1987.
- Rice, Dennis. Derby Porcelain: The Golden Years 1750-1770 1983.
- Sargeant, M, Royal Crown Derby (Princes Risborough), 2000.
- Twitchett, John, Derby Porcelain (London: Antique Collectors' Guide), (1980), 2006.
- Twitchett John and Henry Sandon. Landscapes on Derby and Worcester Porcelain 1984.
- Twitchett, John and B. Bailey, Royal Crown Derby 1988.