Sometimes called “knock-down” furniture, campaign furniture was designed to be folded, collapsed, taken apart and packed flat to load onto a ship or a camel’s back. Although mobile furniture for military campaigns dates back to the Romans, the British Army in its global conquests in the 18th and 19th centuries defined the style with sturdy and elegant pieces. Even in a tent thousands of miles from London, a four-poster bed, dining table and seating could simulate the comforts of home.
Antique and vintage campaign-style furniture was also initially designed as propaganda. The mahogany and teak structures were part of a purposeful demonstration of power in these campaigns, with the colonizing military officers imposing their culture and view of what they considered “civilized” on a given land and its peoples. Designers and manufacturers including Thomas Butler, Ross & Co. of Dublin, and Morgan & Sanders contributed to the rapid production of this furniture as the British Empire expanded through Africa, Asia and Australia.
Campaign furniture was utilitarian as well as refined, fitted with recessed brass handles and brass angles on stackable chests and other case pieces to protect vulnerable corners. The Wellington chest was one of the most famous pieces to come out of this style, named for the Duke of Wellington, who slept in his campaign bed long after his battles were over.
The flexibility of campaign-style furniture would influence 20th-century Scandinavian modernists such as Kaare Klint, Mogens Koch and Arne Norell. For his 1930s Safari chair, Klint drew on the simple Roorkhee chair, named for a town in northern India. The lightweight and adaptable campaign-style seat was created in the late 19th century and had no fixed joinery. The Roorkhee’s influence can also be seen in the Wassily chair, a pared-down work of tubular metal and durable canvas conceived by legendary Bauhaus instructor Marcel Breuer.
Now, 21st-century designers like Jomo Tariku and Dokter and Misses are creating pieces that recognize the contributions of African artisans to campaign furniture in order to reframe this style without overlooking its difficult past.
Find a collection of authentic antique and vintage campaign bedroom furniture, chairs, decorative objects and other pieces on 1stDibs.
Regency Mahogany and Brass Campaign Double Wine Cooler
Located in Essex, MA
Purchased at Sothebys in New York twenty years ago for 10,000 this unusual piece with two bottle compartments with removable cover. Brass strapped mahogany case with rounded corners....
Brass
19th Century Anglo-Indian Brass Mount Campaign Style Cellarette on Stand
Located in Germantown, MD
Beautiful hardwoods and cast brass fittings. Holds 12 bottles. Top is removable from base. Recently refinished. Measures 18" in width, 14" in depth, stands 31" tall. Bottle slots are...
Brass
English Mahogany Wine Cooler, circa 1890
Located in Evergreen, CO
The perfect way to display and serve the wine of the day or night, this open wine cooler is both convenient and stylish. Made in England from imported mahogany during the late-19th c...
Mahogany
$5,737
H 33.47 in W 33.08 in D 18.51 in
Transitional Style Ormolu-Mounted Marquetry Commode, 19th Century
Located in Paris, FR
Late 19th century transitional style marquetry commode with three drawers. The set is topped with a Breche d’Alep molded marble top with canted corners. A marquetry motif of interlac...
Marble, Bronze
$6,900
H 58.86 in W 35.63 in D 18.9 in
19th-Century Portuguese Cabinet on Stand – Exquisite National Style
Located in Rio De Janeiro, BR
19th-Century Portuguese Cabinet on Stand – Exquisite National Style A remarkable 19th-century Portuguese cabinet on stand, crafted in the National Portuguese style from Imbuia wood a...
Brass
$12,500Sale Price|47% Off
H 78 in W 47.5 in D 20 in
Superb 19th Century Anglo Indian Rosewood Cabinet, Intricate Bone & Ebony Inlay
Located in Miami, FL
Superb 19th Century Anglo Indian Rosewood Cabinet, Intricate Bone & Ebony Inlay Offered for sale is a superb and finely carved and inlaid 19th century Anglo Indian rosewood cabi...
Bone, Ebony, Rosewood
$18,500
H 69.75 in W 41.25 in D 19.75 in
English 18th Century Chinoiserie Japanned Cabinet on 19th Century Stand
Located in Atlanta, GA
An English 18th century chinoiserie lacquer cabinet, raised on a later 19th century black lacquer stand in the Chinese taste. The cabinet retains its original form with twin doors op...
Brass
English Regency Mahogany Sarcophagus Shaped Wine Cooler
Located in Bedfordshire, GB
A fine quality regency perioid mahogany sarcophagus shaped wine cooler, or cellarette, retaining original brass carrying handles and fine colour throughout, raised on original plinth...
Mahogany
$5,800
H 31.25 in W 43.25 in D 16.25 in
Mastercraft Asian Campaign Style Black Lacquer Chest with Brass Mountings, 1980s
By Mastercraft
Located in Stamford, CT
Mastercraft black lacquered Asian style campaign chest, 1975. High quality and unusual brass mountings. Three dovetail drawers approximately 9" high each. Paperwork stating by Master...
Brass
George III Period Oval Mahogany Wine Cooler
Located in Lymington, GB
An oval mahogany wine cooler, George III period, circa 1790. With excellent, unrestored, deep, rich color and patination, and original solid-brass carrying handles to either side. This smart Georgian wine cooler (cellaret or cellarette) retains its original waxed surface and patina. It is brass-bound (of coopered construction) supported on its separate, original stand. Raised on square tapering legs terminating in its original brass cappings and castors. It can be also used as a small side table or lamp table. Comes with a bespoke, clear, safety glass cover. Nb. An antique oval wine cooler of this design is quite rare, and makes a very elegant addition to a dining room sideboard, or an occasional table in a drawing room. By removing the top, some examples of this form of wine cooler were often later converted to be used as jardinières. See Christies, 23rd May 2013, lot 23: a mahogany oval wine cooler sold @ £17,500. Literature: Ralph Edwards CBE FSA 'Shorter Dictionary of English Furniture', Hamlyn, London (Fourth Impression 1972) p. 640: “In late Georgian times the wine cooler was generally a plain mahogany tub hooped with brass and standing on four legs. Mary Kenyon in a letter to her mother (October 30th 1775) wrote that among the furniture in the parlour of her new house in Lincoln’s Inn Fields was a ''handsome cistern of mahogany with brass hoops etc. under the sideboard”. A typical example of a brass-bound wine cooler is shown in a picture by Zoffany, representing William Ferguson...
Mahogany
19th Century Anglo - Indian / Burmese Carved Cabinet
Located in Hoddesdon, GB
An exceptional 19th century Anglo Indian hardwood cabinet, profusely hand-carved with intricate open fretwork of scrolling foliage, floral motifs and trailing vines. The central pane...
Teak
$4,500
H 75 in W 36 in D 14.5 in
Chippendale Style 19th Century Mahogany Two-Part Bookcase Cabinet on Stand
Located in Tarry Town, NY
Antique Chippendale style bookcase cabinet on stand, made in England in the early to mid-19th century and finely crafted in solid mahogany. The piece is constructed in two parts, con...
Brass
Regency Wine Cooler or Cellarette
Located in Pasadena, CA
This is a classic Georgian Mahogany Cellarette that dates to the late 18th or early 19th century. The cellarette lacks its original mahog...
Brass
$22,500
H 74.75 in W 41 in D 21 in
English 18th Century Japanned Chinoiserie Cabinet on 19th Century Stand
Located in Atlanta, GA
An English 18th century japanned cabinet richly decorated in gilt chinoiserie, raised on a later 19th century stand. The arched double doors open to reveal an elaborate fitted interi...
Wood
Antique Nautical Storage Cabinet/ Cellarette
Located in Bridgeport, CT
Well-crafted from wood panels with fine brass hardware and side handles. The inside with six storage compartments. The cellarette has a very fine age patina. Measures: H. 16 1/2", ...
Brass
Sold
H 19.25 in W 18.75 in D 15 in
English 1890s Campaign Mahogany Cellarette with Brass Accents and Bracket Feet
Located in Atlanta, GA
An English campaign mahogany cellarette from the late 19th century, with brass accents, and mounted on bracket feet. Born in England in the last years of the 19th century, this English cellarette...
Brass