Rosalind Frances Howard, Countess of Carlisle and her husband George were good friends of the Morris family. The two families went on holidays together in Italy and the Morrises frequently stayed with them at their home Naworth Castle in Cumberland. Rosalind was called ‘The Radical Countess’ due to her campaigning for women’s political rights and of temperance reform. Besides having eleven children, she helped managed the family estates, and was an active member of local government. In 1890 she became a member of the Women’s Liberal Federation and persuaded the organisation to support extending the suffrage to all women.