The best definition we could come up with is a collapsible, foldable or inflatible seat with backrest which you can use in various outdoor settings. There are many kinds of chairs which can be called 'camping chair' which differ greatly in size and style. The only common characteristic to all fishing folding chair is that they can be made smaller for the purpose of transportation. These chairs are generally meant to be used outdoors, in gardens, parks, countryside, beaches or in tents. The North Americans distinguish between backpacking chairs and camping chairs. In the UK 'backpacking chair' is not a frequently used term. We will include cover all foldable or packable outdoor chairs here
　　Have you ever pondered the humble origins of the camping chair you are sitting on?
　　We are going to take on a journey from ancient sitting furniture to modern camping chair based on designs of early stools.
　　Until late 19th century the chair designs we feature were not developed for camping as such. Most of them were made for use during military campaignsas well as being used as garden chairs or inside homes for sedentary tasks.
　　The oldest known folding stool was created in Mesopotamia, which is modern-day Iraq, some 4500 years ago.
　　500 years later this stool was found to have been used by the Egyptians: a few fold up stools were discovered in Tutankhamun’s tomb by archaeologists.
　　These stools were made from two square-shaped wooden frames that were connected in the middle forming an X structure. Tutankhamun’s ceremonial throne, which was also found in the tomb, is the oldest ancient folding chair with backrest we found. Egyptian folding stools contained stretcher fabric or leather to sit on; todays version consists of a foldable aluminium frame with polyester fabric stretchers. Egyptian style folding stools were also used 3000 years ago in territories where Germany and Denmark now are.
　　Ancient Greeks borrowed many furniture designs from the Egyptians, including the folding stools. The Greeks, who had more timber available to experiment with, redesigned the Egyptian stool naming their version Diphros (stool) Okladias (Oikos meant home and family in ancient Greek). This suggests that the stool was often used at home for sedentary tasks or as general mobile furniture. Most surviving Diphros Okladias are ornamental with the stool legs often resembling animal legs, like the one below.
　　The Greeks are credited with creating a first three-legged stool. Whilst they had highly sophisticated back chair designs (with backs) for use indoors, it appears that Diphros Okladias were never updated to a chair with back support.
　　Oh, those Romans... What have they ever done for us? Well, apart from viaducts, concrete, sanitation, and other unimportant things, they were the first known nation to create foldable metal stools.
　　Advances in metal technology meant that metal fold-up chairs could take up less space and could be used in wet conditions for longer periods of time compared to the wooden options. These chairs are thought to have been used by the officers of the Roman army in the 4th and 5th centuries AD.
　　What happened next? A few hundred years later Vikings created a bog chair (8th to 9th century), also known as a Viking chair or Stargazer chair. This chair consists of two planks of wood put together in an X form.
　　These folding chairs (probably taken by the Vikings on their sea voyages) had a reclined angle that was more suitable for relaxation and was less for use during sedentary tasks, such as craftwork or knitting.
　　During the medieval period, the scissors chairs gained popularity. These chairs were more elaborated versions of the folding stools, including back support and armrests.
　　The seating area could be made out of wood, fabric, or a leather stretcher with sheepskin or a pillow placed on top of the wood-only version to make it softer. This chair was often used during military campaigns, in churches, and the sedentary craftsmen, such as weavers. It then gained popularity as a garden chair in the 18th-19th century. its foldability, arm and backrests make it a clear It was predecessor of today camping chairs.
　　Joseph Beverley Fenby was a British inventor who, amongst other things, invented a foldable chair that goes by the name of the Fenby chair but became widely known in Europe as an officer’s chair or “Campaign Chair”. He designed in 1855 and patented only as late as 1881. It was manufactured by an Italian company in Tripoli, Libyaunder new name Tripolina. The Fenby's design uses hinge mechanisms to create a chair that can be folded in seconds with the fabric attached to the wooden structure in four of its corners. Nigor Flycatcher is a slightly modified version of the Fenby Chair.
　　Have you ever been to an event that has a zillion unfolded chairs? The folding chair which is so widely used today was first patented in the USA by John Cram in 1855. There have been many updated designs since but the main principles have remained the same: in some, chair parts only change their angle when the chairs are folded, in others, parts slide when the chair is folded or unfolded.
　　Many modern camping chair designs have been based on the same folding principles. If we look at the Outwell Kenai chair, for example; it has armrests but unfolds and folds using the same mechanical principles as John Cram's original design.
　　In Western societies camping as a pastime only became popular among large parts of society in the late 19th century. Dwellers of increasingly industrialised towns began using expanding train infrastructure to visit the seaside and countryside during at weekends. Garden chairs travel chairs, military chairs were all used as camping furniture.New designs had to emerge to satisfy the increasing 'weekender' demand.
　　The deckchair design is often attributed to Cram's 1855 patent, used during the American Civil War and marketed in Britain as Yankee Hammock Chairs. In 1886 the design was improved by John Thomas Moore resulting in the deckchair design we know today. Nowadays it is a popular choice as a garden chair as well as being rentable in parks or the beach.
　　In the late19th century, Anderson's Safari Chairs gained popularity. Modelled on the Egyptian/ Etruscan folding stool but with an added backrest, these chairs were used in expeditions and various military campaigns as well as for general garden and camping use. This classic design is most familiar to us today as a the director's chair in the film industry.
　　During both wars British troops, among other designs, were using foldable chairs made out of canvas, wood, and metal. They were easy to erect and had a more upright angle compared to the reclined Fenby chairs making them a better choice for performing tasks, such as writing.
　　During the World War II plywood folding chairs based on John Cram's design were used in US Air Force's briefing rooms.
　　Use of aluminum consumer goods gradually grew after World War II. Most chairs designed for camping were made from polyester canvas and sliding aluminium or steel tubes which are connected by plastic joint parts and rivets. This British army folding chair is the same design that can be purchased in camping shops.
　　Such chairs are still the most popular camping/garden chair design and are available in almost all outdoor shops. Usually, they are made out of relatively inexpensive parts in high numbers which makes them the cheapest option available- as low as £8 or $10. Carrying them around, however, is less convenient as they is 0.8-1m high when packed. Many traditional-style camping chairs now come with bottle holder pocket or footrest.
　　Conclusion
　　In the last decade, the range of camping chairs has greatly diversified. Three notable trends are increase of ultralight chair models, as well as proliferation of rocking chairs and chair shades. Lighter and stronger materials have enabled the creation of very lightweight, functional, and comfortable camping furniture.
　　What is next for the camping chair? Change is the only constant we can predict. Humans are restless creatures. Companies compete and keep innovating. People's desire to use functional, comfortable and lightweight chairs is not going to go away. The camping oracle predicts that there will be more easy-to-pack chair and sunshade designs in the coming years. Let's wait and sit (now and then). https://www.realgroupchina.com