Arthur Alderson France was born in Bradford, Yorkshire, England on 3 July 1862. He was the son of the architect Charles France (1835-1902) and was articled to his father and Eli Milnes (1830-1899) at their practice Milnes & France, in Bradford in 1878 and remained with them as their assistant until 1883. He also attended Bradford Technical College. In 1888 he became a partner in Milnes & France along wth Milnes's son, Charles Edward Milnes (1862-1935)
Following the death of their respective fathers, Charles Edward Milnes and Arthur Alderson France took over the running of the firm. In 1905 they submitted an entry in the competition to design Lambeth Municipal Buildings, Their entry is illustrated in British Competitions in Architecture vol. 1, no. 1, January 1905 (pp. 37, 38).
Arthur Alderson France was elected a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects (FRIBA) in 1898. He was killed in in action France on 7 October 1916 whilst serving as a second lieutenant in the Royal Engineers during World War One,
Directory of British Architects 1834-1914. Compiled by Antonia Brodie, et al. Volume 1: A-K. London; New York: British Architectural Library, Royal Institute of British Architects/Continuum, 2001
‘Obituary’. RIBA Journal vol. 24, 1916-17 pp. 12, 64, 131