A one-horse chaise A three-wheeled "Handchaise", Germany, around 1900, designed to be pushed by a person A chaise, sometimes called chay or shay, is a light two- or four-wheeled traveling or pleasure carriage for one or two people with a folding hood or calash top. The name, in use in England before 1700, came from the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

word "chaise" (meaning "

chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vari ...

") through a transference from a sedan-chair to a

wheeled vehicle A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction with axles, allow heavy objects to be ...

Design

The two-wheeled version, usually of a chair-backed type, for one or two persons, also called a '' gig'' or '' one-horse shay'', had a body hung on leather straps or thorough-braces and was usually drawn by one

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million ...

; a light chaise having two seats was a ''double chair''. A ''chaise-cart'' was a light carriage fitted with suspension, used for transporting lightweight goods. A '' bath chair'' was a hooded and sometimes glassed wheeled chair used especially by invalids; it could be drawn by a horse or pushed by an attendant. Other types of chaise included: * '' post chaise'' : designed for fast long-distance travel * '' curricle'': two-wheeled, usually drawn by two horses * ''calesín'': small, one-horse, hooded, a seat behind for the driver, used in the Philippines * ''shandrydan'' or ''shandradan'': with a hood During the winter of 1791/92, in the opening phases of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

, Henrietta Ponsonby, Countess of Bessborough, noted the lack of ostentation in the streets of Paris, where a few drove themselves about in "little open chaises like the cabriolet but with one horse."Janet Gleeson, ''Privilege and Scandal: The Remarkable Life of Harriet Spencer, Sister of Georgiana'' 2006:130.

References

{{reflist Carriages

Design

See also

References