Windsor Captain’s Chair in Alder, Beech & Elm, C1890

A Windsor captain’s chair with arms and top comb in alder, under arm turnings and legs in beech, with elm seat made in High Wycombe c1890. This chair shows evidence of having been used as a barber’s chair in a former life. Photographs show a slight scollop out of the back of the top comb and evidence of some kind of fixing having been attached to the rear seat edge. Barbers used to attach a head rest to chairs of this style, to make a comfortable seat for their clients. Such headrest was obviously removed from this chair long ago, as the colour of both parts is very much in keeping with wear on the rest of the chair. The maker has stamped his in initials on the rear edge of the seat ‘JC’ (unattributed) and there is also a ‘2’ stamp, which may have been added to show its station in the barber’s salon alongside other similar chairs. Its original constant use has contributed to the lovely colour. Original dark brown / black paint has worn away on the arms and top comb and most of the seat, leaving the under arm turned spindles and legs, which would not have experienced much wear, with more of their original paint finish untouched. This particular chair has an elegant grace, compared to some of its more ‘robust’ counterparts. and features a soft peak to the front edge of the saddle shaped seat. Made in the Thames Valley c1890.

width at armbow : 62 cms (24.5”)

height : 78 cms (30.5”)

depth (from back of top comb to front of legs) : 59 cms (23”)

seat height: 46 cms (18”)

between front arm supports: 41 cms (16”)

seat depth (from bottom of under arm turnings to front edge of seat) 44cms (17.25”)

Why do I call this style of chair a ‘Windsor chair’ ? I wrote a paper in support of my exhibition of Thames Valley Windsor chairs in 1998 in which I identified that the term 'Windsor chair' had evolved in its use, to describe wooden chairs whose axis of construction is the seat, ie where the legs are jointed up into the underside of the seat board and the superstucture is jointed into the top surface of the seat board. This description was endorsed in Mike Harding-Hill's excellent 2003 published book 'Windsor Chairs' (Antique Collectors' Club).

When I first started buying chairs in 1979, the term ‘Windsor chair’ was used within the antiques trade, to describe exclusively, hoop back and comb back armchairs and side chairs. 19th century chairs such as ‘Oxford’ style chairs and ‘slat and splat back chairs’ with a deep top comb rail at the top, with their sawn and shaped outer supports were typically described as ‘kitchen chairs’. As time passed by, these slightly more ‘humble’ chairs, made in greater quantities, became known as ‘Kitchen Windsor’ chairs and then eventually the ’Kitchen’ disappeared from common usage, possibly as ‘the trade’ tried to elevate their status.

Dr Bernard Cotton used the term 'Windsor' to descibe all such chairs in his 1990 published epic and definitive tome 'The English Regional Chair' (Antique Collectors' Club) for which I contributed many of the chairs illustrated. His work became a 'reference' for the antiques trade and certainly contributed to the adoption of the description 'Windsor chair' becoming a more widely used generic term.

Whatever the reasoning, an evolution in the accepted meaning / use of the term ‘Windsor chair’ had occurred, but not without reason, as the method of construction remains key, as above, in contrast to ‘frame chairs’ where the back upright extends from top to bottom, with seat rails / seat jointed into the back upright and into the front legs.

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