Longines, founded in 1832 by Auguste Agassiz in Saint Imier, Switzerland. Initially, Agassiz joined Comptoir Horloger Raiguel Jeune, a watch parts sales company that later changed its name to Comptoir Raiguel Jeune & Cie.
Aguste Agassiz, Founder of Longines. Image from Longines
In 1847, Agassiz became the owner of the company, and he changed the company name to Agassiz & Compagnie. Agassiz's nephew Ernest Francillon joined the company. In the 1850s, Francillon took over his uncle's company and changed the company's vision to focus on watch production and design.
The name Longines is adapted from the road name in Saint-Imier, where its manufacturing company is located. When Francillon took over the company, he set his manufacturing plant in an area locals call Longines (meaning long meadows).
During the first half of the 20th century, mainly producing chronograph watches for military pilots and the unique “weem hour-glass,” Longines company is often associated with aviation. The latter was developed by Philip Van Horn Weems, who proposed using an “angular degrees calibrated bezel,” which helps to calculate the longitude in flights.
Pilot Charles Lindbergh used this watch on his early transatlantic flight. The transatlantic flight in 1927 turned Charles Lindbergh into the most famous pilot in history. Lindbergh later designed the hour-angle watch for Longines, ideally to help pilots calculate the longitude during a flight. (The original Angle Hour worn by Charles Lindbergh is an oversized watch that is so valuable that it could reach US$50.000 in the auction.)
Charles Lindbergh's Design for Longines Hour Angle
Over the years, Remakes of the hour angle have been produced, but the 90th anniversary Lindbergh hour angle watch is remarkably one of a kind, keeping its original size design. The hour angle is Designed with a titanium case with a contemporary silver with black color.
1937 Lindbergh Hour Angle watch Image from Watches by SJX
Longines wears the emblem of an hourglass and wings as a symbol of quality in maintaining the tradition of Swiss watchmaking. The brand and logo registered with the world intellectual property organization since July 19, 1880.
As of today, the Longines logo recorded as the oldest logo. In 1970, Longines made a significant breakthrough by creating a wristwatch with the world's first LCD screen named the Feuille d'Or.
Longines oldest Ads, 1916. Image from Montres plubliques
In 1984, Longines History noted that Longines produced high-accuracy quartz clocks with an accuracy of +/-12 seconds per year. On February 19, 2001, Longines recorded successful production of 30 million hours. Longines, known as a watch brand close to sports. Starting in Athens in 1896, Longines attended 14 Olympic events as one of the official partners.
In addition to the Olympics, Longines also supports various other sporting events such as Basketball, Tour De France, Tennis, American Football, Formula one, Ice skiing, and gymnastics.
Currently, Longines is a part of the Swatch group company. Within the swatch group company, Longines placed as a luxury brand. Over the years, Longines has received numerous accolades and awards at various European watch events.
While Longines manufactured most of their movements, their most significant accomplishment is their “caliber 13ZN chronograph” movement in the 1880s and the longines master collection. As of today, longines chronographs is still regarded as one of the most incredible chronograph movements of all time. (Watch collectors highly seek many vintage watches, with the rarest having the highest price in the auction house.
In mid-1971, it was the year of the quartz crisis, when Longines was acquired by ASUAG and soon the swatch group. Since then, the brand has its movement manufacturing folded into ETA (the primary supplier of ebauche movements). The swatch group currently owns Swiss ETA.
**Updated 17.July.2022
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