Regency Seating
Like France’s Empire style, Regency-style furniture was rooted in neoclassicism; the characteristics of its bedroom furniture, armchairs, dining room tables and other items include clean lines, angular shapes and elegant details.
Dating roughly from the 1790s to 1830s, antique Regency-style furniture gets its name from Prince George of Wales — formally King George IV — who became Prince Regent in 1811 after his father, George III, was declared unfit to rule. England’s Regency style is one of the styles represented in Georgian furniture.
George IV’s arts patronage significantly influenced the development of the Regency style, such as the architectural projects under John Nash, which included the renovation of Buckingham House into the formidable Buckingham Palace with a grand neoclassical facade. Celebrated designers of the period include Thomas Sheraton, Henry Holland and Thomas Hope. Like Nash, Hope instilled his work with classical influences, such as saber-legged chairs based on the ancient Greek klismos. He is credited with introducing the term “interior decoration” to English with the 1807 publishing of Household Furniture and Interior Decoration.
Although more subdued than previous styles like Rococo and Baroque, Regency interiors incorporated copious use of chintz fabrics and wallpaper adorned in chinoiserie-style art. Its furniture featured fine materials and luxurious embellishments. Furniture maker George Bullock, for instance, regularly used detailed wood marquetry and metal ornaments on his pieces.
Archaeological discoveries in Egypt and Greece informed Regency-era details, such as carved scrollwork, sphinxes and palmettes, as well as the shape of furniture. A Roman marble cinerary chest, for example, would be reinterpreted into a wooden cabinet. The Napoleonic Wars also inspired furniture, with martial designs like tented beds and camp-style chairs becoming popular. While the reddish-brown mahogany was prominent in this range of pieces, imported woods like zebrawood and ebony were increasingly in demand.
Find a collection of antique Regency tables, seating, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
2010s English Regency Seating
Mahogany
1970s French Vintage Regency Seating
Steel
20th Century Regency Seating
Upholstery, Foam, Wood
Early 20th Century English Regency Seating
Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary English Regency Seating
Fabric, Wood
2010s English Regency Seating
Gold Leaf
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Oak
Mid-20th Century American Regency Seating
Upholstery, Cane, Satinwood, Feathers
Mid-20th Century American Regency Seating
Wood, Paint
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Silk, Wood
1970s Unknown Vintage Regency Seating
Wood
Late 20th Century Unknown Regency Seating
Upholstery, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary English Regency Seating
Mahogany
1980s Vintage Regency Seating
Walnut
Early 1800s English Antique Regency Seating
Yew
20th Century American Regency Seating
Leather, Walnut
19th Century Antique Regency Seating
Silk
19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Cane, Mahogany
Early 20th Century Unknown Regency Seating
Mohair, Giltwood
Late 20th Century American Regency Seating
Leather, Fabric, Wood
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany
1960s Vintage Regency Seating
Velvet, Walnut
2010s English Regency Seating
Maple
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Beech
1790s English Antique Regency Seating
Wood
20th Century American Regency Seating
Brass
1880s Antique Regency Seating
Walnut
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Leather, Mahogany
19th Century Antique Regency Seating
Brocade
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Velvet, Oak
Late 20th Century American Regency Seating
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Regency Seating
Steel
Mid-20th Century American Regency Seating
Textile, Wood
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Regency Seating
Wood
19th Century Irish Antique Regency Seating
Leather, Mahogany
Early 19th Century British Antique Regency Seating
Leather
Early 1900s English Antique Regency Seating
Upholstery, Wood
Mid-20th Century American Regency Seating
Upholstery, Wood
Late 20th Century British Regency Seating
Oak
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Mother-of-Pearl, Pine
1830s English Antique Regency Seating
Leather, Hardwood
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Leather, Mahogany
Early 1900s Antique Regency Seating
Wood
20th Century Regency Seating
Wood
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany
Early 20th Century Regency Seating
Fabric, Wood
Early 19th Century Antique Regency Seating
Fabric, Upholstery, Velvet, Wood
Late 20th Century American Regency Seating
Upholstery, Wood
Early 20th Century American Regency Seating
Wood
Mid-20th Century American Regency Seating
Wood, Paint
19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 19th Century Irish Antique Regency Seating
Leather, Mahogany
Mid-20th Century Italian Regency Seating
Velvet
1810s Scottish Antique Regency Seating
Upholstery, Elm
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Rattan, Pine
19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Walnut
1920s British Vintage Regency Seating
Fabric, Wood
1790s Danish Antique Regency Seating
Fabric, Wood
18th Century French Antique Regency Seating
Velvet, Walnut
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany, Ebony