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.
1920s Italian Vintage Regency Seating
Tapestry, Mahogany
2010s English Regency Seating
Maple
Early 1800s English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany
1930s Vintage Regency Seating
Mahogany
1960s American Vintage Regency Seating
Upholstery, Walnut, Giltwood
19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary American Regency Seating
Upholstery, Wood
Mid-20th Century British Regency Seating
Beech
17th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Oak
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany
20th Century American Regency Seating
Upholstery, Wood
Late 20th Century Philippine Regency Seating
Cane
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Silk, Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary Regency Seating
Upholstery, Walnut
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany
20th Century Regency Seating
Brass
1980s Vintage Regency Seating
Mahogany
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Wood, Upholstery
Mid-20th Century Regency Seating
Velvet, Paint
1860s English Antique Regency Seating
Cane, Mahogany
1990s American Regency Seating
Giltwood
21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Regency Seating
Wood
1980s American Vintage Regency Seating
Upholstery, Cherry
Early 20th Century American Regency Seating
Fabric, Mahogany
Late 20th Century Italian Regency Seating
Linen, Upholstery, Wood
Early 19th Century British Antique Regency Seating
Brass
1950s English Vintage Regency Seating
Leather, Hardwood
20th Century English Regency Seating
Leather
1950s Norwegian Vintage Regency Seating
Jacquard, Wood, Cherry
1950s American Vintage Regency Seating
Fabric, Paint, Giltwood, Wood, Cane, Upholstery
Mid-20th Century American Regency Seating
Wood, Paint
Early 20th Century Regency Seating
Fabric, Wood
1950s American Vintage Regency Seating
Walnut
Mid-19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Pine
1980s Unknown Vintage Regency Seating
Velvet
Early 20th Century American Regency Seating
Wood
Late 20th Century Regency Seating
Paint
1750s British Antique Regency Seating
Oak
Early 19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Upholstery, Hardwood
Late 20th Century American Regency Seating
Upholstery, Mahogany
Late 20th Century Regency Seating
Fabric, Wood
Early 17th Century American Antique Regency Seating
Fabric, Wood
Mid-20th Century Hungarian Regency Seating
Berlin Iron
Late 20th Century American Regency Seating
Leather, Fabric, Wood
Early 1800s English Antique Regency Seating
Mahogany
20th Century American Regency Seating
Silk, Hardwood, Giltwood
1950s American Vintage Regency Seating
Fabric, Paint, Giltwood, Wood, Cane, Upholstery
Early 19th Century British Antique Regency Seating
Hardwood
Early 1900s Antique Regency Seating
Walnut
Early 19th Century British Antique Regency Seating
Chenille, Wood
18th Century Italian Antique Regency Seating
Upholstery, Wood
20th Century Regency Seating
Velvet, Cane
Mid-19th Century French Antique Regency Seating
Velvet, Beech
1810s English Antique Regency Seating
Brass
1950s American Vintage Regency Seating
Metal, Brass
19th Century English Antique Regency Seating
Wood