Campaign Furniture

          Campaign furniture is relatively rare, so it’s unlikely that you will come across it in an everyday auction or a dealer’s shop. It is basically any furniture made specifically for travel, being designed in such a way that it could be carried with ease, with either chunky brass handles or dismantled completely to be packed away for long voyagers.

          Although this type of furniture has been in use in basic form for thousands of years, it was the British during the eighteenth and nineteenth century who really took it to a new level of luxury and ingenuity. With the rise and expansion of the empire, the British gentleman found himself transplanted into far-flung and alien parts of the world. 

          Whether he was an officer in the army, something in the colonial government, or involved in trade and commerce, the British gent needed to live his life as if he were back home in Britain. He had no desire to fit in with the local ways and customs, so he did everything possible to re-create life as it had been back home. A gentleman required a certain level of comfort, so the furniture to which he was accustomed back home in his townhouse would need to be replicated while he was camping in a tent in the desert or furnishing his new palace in Bombay.

          Some of the best furniture makers of the day were cashing in on the requirements of this new breed of wealthy traveler, and Chippendale was amongst those that fought over lucrative contracts to supply unbelievably copious amounts of the finest campaign furniture – also known as knockdown furniture – that was destined for the colonies.

          This knockdown or campaign furniture was as clever as it was tasteful and fashionable. Some great examples are a writing bureau that, when the drawers were removed, a few levers pulled, and feather cushions added, could convert into a bed, and  mahogany dining tables capable of seating 20 people – in the middle of the jungle – that could break down into components small enough to fit into a 10-inch-deep box. My personal favorite, though, must be the ladies’ bidet that, when not in use, converted into a leather traveling case – lovely!

          A fascinating publication of the nineteenth century was called The Complete Indian Housekeeper and Cook. Aimed squarely at highborn Brits living in India during the golden years of empire, it advised its readers that while traveling up-country, the first rule of camp was: “do not make yourself uncomfortable for want of things to which you are accustomed.” 

          I’m not, sure but I reckon The Honorable Emily Eden subscribed to this magazine.

          Emily set off up-country from Calcutta with her sister and brother, the governor-general of India, for a little break way from the hustle, bustle, and heat of the city. She took with her a few pieces of campaign furniture and other requirements to keep her comfortable while out camping. Carrying Emily’s gear were 60 horses, 140 elephants, 200 baggage camels, and bullock carts that stretched off into the sunset – oh!, and 12,000 camp followers to help out a bit here and there.

          Campaign furniture wasn’t used only on land, either. Those traveling to India or Africa would spend up to three months at sea. Most of us would have spent the voyage being sick in steerage, but the lucky few who could afford large cabins needed furniture. Campaign furniture was perfect, as it could be easily packed away and stored if the captain ordered it, as he might have done because of bad weather – or in case the decks needed to be cleared to make way for cannon and fighting should the ship be threatened by pirates or an enemy man o’ war.

          Because the campaign furniture was as fashionable, stylish, and of the same quality as the furnishings back home, once landed safely in port the same furniture used at sea could then be used to furnish the toffs’ new homes in the colonies, or if their travels continued it would make life that much more bearable and civilized whilst living under canvas.

           The most famous of all types of campaign furniture must be the Wellington chest. These were tall and narrow chests of drawers with a hinged side flap which locked over the edges of the drawers. This unique locking system prevented the drawers from opening in transit, and also protected the drawers’ contents from unwanted hands while living in camp.

          Wellington chests date from the early part of the nineteenth century, around the time of the Napoleonic wars, and were named after the Duke of Wellington. There are no locks on the drawers, as the locking side-flap provides all the security, and on some of the more expensive Wellington chests, a false drawer disguises a pull-out writing surface.  For the travelling naturalist of the day, or collector, a Wellington chest might have been fitted out as a specimen chest with the drawers lined with cloth, or fitted with compartments to receive such items that were valuable and treasured at the time as eggs, butterflies, insects, fossils, and the like.

          For wealthy British army officers or merchants abroad, ordinary campaign furniture was not enough. They required wine tables, bookcases, games tables, four-poster beds, and reclining chairs, to mention just a few necessities. There was also an element of competition, particularly between army officers, as to who could furnish his tent in the most fashionable and affluent manner; some had fireplaces built under canvas, and some even had electrified lamps. The big irony here, though, is that the more portable the furniture became, the more the army officers and colonialists ordered to take on their journeys. This was great news for the furniture makers back in Britain, but in order to transport the fabulously transportable campaign furniture, the travelling adventurers had to hire even more elephants, horses, oxen, and paid help!

David Harper 2007