Leather Campaign Chair

The campaign (or Roorkee) chair began life in the 19th century as portable, knock-down furniture for British officers stationed in India and Africa. They needed real chairs—sturdy, comfortable, and respectable—that could travel with them between posts. The solution was brilliantly simple: a wooden frame that slipped together without glue, a sling seat and back, and leather straps that held everything in tension. When you were ready to move on, the whole chair broke down into a small bundle that could be strapped to a mule or packed into a trunk.

Over time, that humble field chair caught the eye of architects and designers. In the 1930s, Danish designer Kaare Klint reinterpreted it as the now-iconic “Safari Chair,” keeping the loose joints and sling seat but refining the proportions for living rooms instead of tent camps. Many of the chair designs we recognize today—low, leather-strapped, slightly reclined lounge chairs—trace their lineage back to this Roorkee form. It’s one of those quiet classics: if you love interiors, you’ve seen it, even if you didn’t know its name.

Today’s safari/Roorkee chairs keep the same essential ingredients: a knockdown wood frame, a suspended seat and back, and arms made from leather or canvas straps. What’s changed is the context. Instead of colonial outposts, they live in sunrooms, studies, and weekend houses; instead of rough canvas, they’re often made in beautiful full-grain leather that develops a soft patina over time. In other words, you’re getting a chair with real history and design pedigree—but also a deeply practical, light, movable seat that can roam the house as easily as you do.