Crofts was born in Leeds in 1847 and, having studied at Rugby School, moved to Berlin where he began his career as an artist, specialising in military art. Crofts studied at the Dusseldorf school of painting, under German military artist Emil Hunten. His first exhibited works were scenes from the Franco-Prussian War, the final years of which he had witnessed first-hand. His work ‘One touch of nature makes the whole world kin’ was awarded the Crystal Palace prize medal in 1874. Following this, Crofts regularly exhibited at the Royal Academy and was elected an Associate of the RA in 1878.