TUDOR

TUDOR

1926 : "The Tudor" brand was registered by the Swiss watchmaking company "Veuve de Philippe Hüther" on behalf of Hans Wilsdorf

The very first watches produced in the 1920s and 1930s simply bore the name TUDOR, as a kind of birth certificate. A few rare models associated the name TUDOR with Rolex, corresponding to the fact that Rolex originally guaranteed the technical and aesthetic quality of TUDOR, which the brand later went on to develop autonomously.

1936 : Hans Wilsdorf himself took over "The Tudor" brand

It was around 1936 that a graphic symbol first appeared, the delicate TUDOR rose, emblem of the long-reigning English dynasty to which the brand owes its name. The rose was shown on a shield, as if to symbolize the invincible union of strength and beauty.

1946 : The company "Montres Tudor SA" was established in Geneva on 6 March

"For some years now I have been considering the idea of making a watch that our agents could sell at a more modest price than our Rolex watches, and yet one that would attain the standards of dependability for which Rolex is famous. I decided to form a separate company, with the object of making and marketing this new watch. It is called the Tudor Watch Company."

This announcement was made on 6 March 1946 by Hans Wilsdorf who, having created Rolex in the first decade of the 20th century, was already a leading figure in the upmarket Swiss watchmaking world. It marked the birth of both the TUDOR brand and its production and communications strategy.

The TUDOR brand, was originally represented by a decorative rose, the famous symbol of a once long-reigning dynasty in England, the Tudors, who inspired Hans Wilsdorf to give their name to his new company. This famous name, however, never led the company to rest on its laurels. From the very beginning, this was a story of technical developments, like the waterproof Oyster case and the adoption of a self-winding movement, which were not relegated to mere functionality, but turned into stylish features of watches designed in both performance and appearance for modern, dynamic men. With Rolex to usher it into the world and accompany its first steps, the TUDOR brand very quickly carved out a niche for itself, quite
independently of the brand with the five-prong crown.

1947 : Launch of the TUDOR Oyster model

In 1947, just a year after TUDOR was officially launched, the brand name on the dial was accompanied by the rose alone, highlighting TUDOR's consummate elegance and style.

1948 : First exclusively TUDOR advertising campaign

1952 : Launch of the TUDOR Oyster Prince collection, accompanied by a press campaign that was very intense, strong and original for the period.

The advertisements not only showed and described the watches, as was customary at the time, they also underlined the qualities of resistance, reliability and precision, with both detailed text and illustrations. These illustrations depicted men at work wearing a TUDOR in extreme conditions, doing strenuous work on a road or in a mine, for instance, and not strictly in sports settings, such as motorcycling, playing golf or riding horses, which were also effective test situations but far more conventional. The images, together with the, by then, widely recognized soundness of the product, helped give TUDOR watches a style and personality associated with concepts of modernity and reliability, and launched it well beyond the particular context in which it was being shown.

It is significant that 30 TUDOR Oyster Prince watches were included in the British scientific expedition to Greenland organized by the Royal Navy in 1952.

1957 : Launch of the TUDOR Advisor model

1964 : Production (for two years only) of a TUDOR Prince Submariner for the US Navy

In the wake of its technological triumphs and the success of its image, brought about by its participation in the Polar explorations, the TUDOR brand in the 1960s became involved in a project to develop a professional underwater watch that could become a piece of official military equipment. A TUDOR Prince Submariner was produced for the US Navy from 1964 to 1966, followed in the early 1970s (and until 1984) by the "Marine Nationale" model, which was officially adopted by the French Navy.

And so for TUDOR began the era of stylish watches of a more technical design, inspired by professions regarded as dangerous. They were therefore endowed with particular functional features - for example, divers' models with date or chronograph function - and a style that radiated strength, security and reliability.

1969 : Launch of the TUDOR Prince Submariner and TUDOR Prince Date-Day models

Between 1969 and the present day, as the requirements of classical aesthetics were definitively met and TUDOR production focused increasingly on technical aspects, the rose disappeared from the shield, which remained on the dial in pride of place, a powerful symbol of resistance and reliability.

1970 : Launch of the TUDOR Oysterdate Chronograph

1971 to 1977 : TUDOR Oysterdate Chronograph

1977 to 1996 : TUDOR Oysterdate Chronograph (Automatic-Chrono Time)

1991 : Launch of the TUDOR Monarch collection

1996 to 2006 : TUDOR Prince Date Chronograph (Automatic-Chrono Time)

1999 : Launch of the TUDOR Hydronaut collection

2007 : International relaunch of the TUDOR brand with new products (Tudor Classic and Tudor Hydronaut II collections) and a new communications campaign

2009 : Presentation of the new range, with new TUDOR Hydronaut II, TUDOR Hydro1200, TUDOR Glamour and TUDOR Grantour. TUDOR begins collaboration with Porsche Motorsport, as "Timing Partner".

The spirit of the TUDOR Oysterdate Chronograph foreshadowed TUDOR's present collaboration with Porsche Motorsport as its "Timing Partner". This role is reflected in the Grantour collection, shown for the first time at Baselworld 2009, the year that saw a complete rethinking of the TUDOR brand, resulting in the new series of watches and the advertising campaign: "Designed for Performance. Engineered for Elegance."

TUDOR's communication has evolved since the advertising campaigns of the 1980s featuring distinctive details from knightly armour to communicate resistance, also achieved in the change of logo from rose to shield. This repositioning of the brand, yet again emphasizing the marriage of performance and style, continues to be evident in the new designs for 2010.

2010 : Launch of new TUDOR Heritage Chrono and TUDOR Glamour Double Date models

The TUDOR Heritage product line represents a further exploration of the most markedly sporty TUDOR collection. This began last year with the new Hydronaut II and Grantour series, and was directly inspired by the mythical TUDOR Oysterdate Chronograph of the 1970s.

TUDOR Glamour Double Date is a new interpretation of the classical elegance already seen last year in the TUDOR Glamour Date and TUDOR Glamour Date-Day models, a subtle revisiting of 1960s style.