What is the Marine?

Normally, tracing the lineage for a collection should be straightforward and yield a crisp, singular, answer to the question of when it debuted. Depending upon how you look at it, examining the history of Breguet’s Marine collection yields not one but two answers. One answer is 1815, for it was in that year that founder Abraham-Louis Breguet was appointed by King Louis XVIII as Horloger de la Marine (“Watchmaker to the [French] Navy”). At the time that was the single most prestigious honor that could be bestowed upon a watchmaker, since but one person could hold that position. Indeed, in the recommendation to the King, the Navy observed that “M. Breguet…is the only watchmaker recognized by public opinion”. With that appointment, Breguet in service to the crown, became the supplier of marine clocks for use by the French fleet. Breguet and later his son, Antoine-Louis, would go on not only to produce many such clocks, but also to incorporate within them systems to enhance precision such as double winding barrels, détente escapements, and creative suspension constructions.

This chapter of Breguet’s history forged a strong bond between the house and the maritime world. Consider for a moment what a marine clock represented. It was more than a timepiece. Arguably, for 19th century sailing vessels the marine clock was one of the two most vital pieces of equipment on board. The other was the sextant. These two instruments were essential for navigation. Without them a vessel would - in effect - be sailing in the blind. The sextant was key to determining latitude; a precision clock indispensable for determining longitude. As a powerful and effective navy and vibrant maritime commerce were of towering importance to the wealth and prestige of a nation, being the King’s nominated maritime clock maker brought the house of Breguet to the centers of France’s royal maritime power.

Breguet’s links to the maritime world date back to 1815 when Abraham-Louis Breguet was appointed by the King of France to be Horloger de la Marine (Watchmaker to the French Navy). Only one watchmaker at a time could be given that honor.

AN ACCURATE SHIP’S CLOCK.

AN ACCURATE SHIP’S CLOCK.

Occupying the prestigious position as “Horloger de la Marine” (watchmaker for the navy) Abraham-Louis Breguet produced many high precision ship’s clocks. With the same creativity and inventiveness that distinguished its watches, the Breguet house enhanced the precision of their clocks by incorporating such innovative features as double winding barrels, détente escapements, and innovative suspension systems.

From this intimate relationship between Breguet and the maritime world emerges the second answer to the question as to the origins of the Marine collection. It was in 1990 that modern Breguet introduced the first wristwatch collection to bear the moniker “Marine”, connecting these then new wristwatches to the house’s marine clock heritage. This first Marine wristwatch collection evolved over time to include two complications, a world time and a chronograph. A 2005 refresh introduced a bolder aesthetic, a broader range of complications, and women’s models.

Over the last few years, Breguet has broadened the Marine range even further. Just as historical Breguet’s entry into the marine chronometer domain, far from compromising the house’s devotion to sophisticated groundbreaking watchmaking advances, in fact, added to its list of achievements, the same can be said for this newest generation of Marine wristwatches. Not only do they fully express Breguet’s technical prowess, the new collection has been the stage for important technical debuts. Examples: a running equation of time, an extra flat tourbillon, a unique implementation of two time zones as examples. Of course, traditional small complications: simple date, chronograph, alarm are all well represented. Uniting all of the models are designs which emphatically express sophisticated sport.

Beginning in 1990, Breguet added the Marine to
its wristwatch collections. Since then, Breguet has steadily expanded the collection with a broad range of complications.