Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Under Napoleon III’s rule, Paris underwent a great rebuilding overseen by Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann, which created grand avenues and lavish landmarks like the Paris Opera. Antique Napoleon III–style furniture was flamboyant and eclectic. It was also known as Second Empire style since it followed and referenced the Empire style of his uncle Napoleon I.
Developing from 1852–70, Napoleon III furniture was plush and ornate, matching the fashion for masked balls and socializing in salons. It borrowed freely from earlier French styles including Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI as well as aesthetics from around the world, from antiquity to Asian art. As writer Gustave Claudin remarked in 1867, the country’s architects worked in “a style which one would be tempted to call neo-Greco-Gothico-Pompadour-Pompeian.”
Napoleon III chairs were completely covered with velvet and lined with tassels; pouf footstools invited people to put up their feet. Sofas were upholstered with tapestries, and beds were adorned with gilt bronze and theatrical canopies. The addition of conservatories to homes led to new indoor-outdoor furniture, while the spirit of hygiene promoted by Baron Haussmann inspired bright, floral motifs.
Although the most ostentatious designs were for the elite, as seen in the Napoleon III apartments preserved in the Louvre, where red velvet, gilding and chandeliers create a cacophony of luxury, these trends influenced homes across classes as manufacturing made design increasingly accessible. Papier-mâché furniture allowed for elaborate shapes that would have been difficult to carve in wood. The malleable material was painted with chinoiserie patterns and decorative designs. It was mass-produced by factories such as Jennens and Bettridge with varnishing and mother-of-pearl inlays creating an effect reminiscent of Asian lacquer. (Surfaces that had been “japanned” — a specialty of Jennens and Bettridge — were intended to resemble lacquer work that was created in East Asia.)
Find a collection of antique Napoleon III decorative objects, tables, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery, Fruitwood
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric, Beech
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Giltwood
21st Century and Contemporary American Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Velvet, Oak
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Linen, Bentwood
2010s American Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Bronze
2010s American Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery, Bentwood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Rattan
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery, Beech
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Bouclé
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Velvet
1880s Portuguese Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery, Velvet, Giltwood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Wrought Iron
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
2010s American Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric, Wood
1950s American Vintage Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Wood
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Giltwood
Late 19th Century Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Cane, Wood, Paint
Late 20th Century American Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Velvet
1990s Dutch Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Steel
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric, Wood, Velvet
21st Century and Contemporary Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Chenille
Early 1800s French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric, Hickory
Early 20th Century French Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Velvet, Wood
Early 20th Century Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Brass
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery, Bouclé
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric
20th Century Unknown Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Reed, Wood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Upholstery
21st Century and Contemporary American Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Velvet, Oak
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Chaise Longues
Fabric