Not currently on display at the V&A

Windsor Chair

ca. 1750 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Windsor chairs are characterised by their solid wood seats, with legs and arm-supports dowelled into them. Their simple, strong construction made them ideal for use out of doors, although they would have been stored under cover. They can sometimes be seen in mid-18th-century paintings with a garden setting. Windsor chairs used outside were usually painted to protect them from damp. Such chairs were known in the 18th century as 'Forest chairs'. Such chairs might also be used inside in relatively grand houses, either in halls or libraries.

The green paint on this chair could be original; it was discovered under a later layer of brown, removed by the Museum in 1969. The seat is made of elm, carved in a saddle shape and chamfered, or shaped, at the edges. The splayed legs are characteristic of English 18th-century windsor chairs. The design of this chair is very close to two discovered in a church in Newark, so it is possible that it was made in that twon, which had a noted trade in Windsor chairs.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Elm seat, spindles, arm-bow and top rail of ash, legs of oak, all painted green. The seat is shaped with an adze, the spindles with a draw knife
Brief description
A comb-back Windsor armchair of simple form,with spindles shaped with a draw knife, painted green, probably for garden use.
Physical description
A comb-back Windsor armchair of simple form,with spindles shaped with a draw knife, painted green, probably for garden use. The elm seat is D-shaped and cut in saddle formation at the front. The legs, of oak, are tapering and turned, with thickened sections at the top and the base of each. The spindles are of ash, as are the front arm supports, which are of narrow, boards, shaped on the front edge. The ash arm bow is shaped into a deep curve by steaming and the ash top rail follows a shallower curve.
Dimensions
  • Height: 108cm
  • Width: 68cm
  • Depth: 63cm
  • Of seat height: 41cm
Measured NH Nov 2020
Style
Gallery label
WINDSOR ARMCHAIR ENGLISH; about 1750 Ash, elm, and oak, painted green(pre October 2000)
Credit line
Bequeathed by D. A. MacAlister Esq.
Object history
When the V&A acquired this armchair it was covered in brown paint. The later paint layers were removed to restore the first green paint scheme.

A pair of armchairs of closely similar form were discovered in a church in Newark, and published by William Sergeant in 2018 (see reference, below). The similarity between the three suggests that the V&A chair may be from the same workshop in the area of Newark, Nottinghamshire.

A similar chair features in Antiques Trade Gazette, Issue 2391, 11 May 2019, p.40.
Historical context
Such simple Windsor chairs, often painted green, as this one was, were known as 'Forest chairs' and were used in gardens or garden buildings. They were light and easily portable.
Summary
Windsor chairs are characterised by their solid wood seats, with legs and arm-supports dowelled into them. Their simple, strong construction made them ideal for use out of doors, although they would have been stored under cover. They can sometimes be seen in mid-18th-century paintings with a garden setting. Windsor chairs used outside were usually painted to protect them from damp. Such chairs were known in the 18th century as 'Forest chairs'. Such chairs might also be used inside in relatively grand houses, either in halls or libraries.

The green paint on this chair could be original; it was discovered under a later layer of brown, removed by the Museum in 1969. The seat is made of elm, carved in a saddle shape and chamfered, or shaped, at the edges. The splayed legs are characteristic of English 18th-century windsor chairs. The design of this chair is very close to two discovered in a church in Newark, so it is possible that it was made in that twon, which had a noted trade in Windsor chairs.
Bibliographic references
  • The Windsor Chair Exhibition at West Wycombe Park. Catalogue of an exhibition held in 2012, no. 31. Text by Michael Harding-Hill and Robert Parrott.
  • Haworth-Booth, Mark, 'The Dating of 18th Century Windsor Chairs', Antique Dealers' and Collectors' Guide, January 1973, pp. 63-69, illus. p. 64.
  • The Rural Chair: A travelling exhibition arranged by the Circulation Department of the Victoria and Albert Museum 1. 'Large Windsor armchair painted green. The sticks and arm-bow of ash, seat of elm, the legs oak. The arm-bow is bent wood, the seat saddle-shaped and chamfered beneath. The legs are turned and splayed without stretchers. Splayed legs are characteristic of early English Windsors and appear throughout the American tradition. The back-rail, although of unusual type, is probably original. A coat of brown paint was removed in 1969. All joints are shown. Probably mid-18th century. W.11-1969'
  • William Sargeant, 'Joseph Newton, Windsor Chair Maker', in 'Regional Furniture' vol. XXXII (2018), pp. 93-102, pp. 98-9, fig. 5, with one of the comparable chairs found in the Newark church illustrated in fig. 6.
Collection
Accession number
W.11-1969

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Record createdJanuary 24, 2001
Record URL
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