Gregory Breitling (left) and Grégoire Rossier (right).
Our house is located in a region that my father Willy fell in love with, the first time he drove through it with his car in 1937, a wonderful place. At that time, the executives of watchmaking companies were buying their summer homes on the shores of Lake Neuchâtel. My father, having his office in Geneva, preferred the shores of Lake Geneva, and that’s how he bought this plot to build the family summer house. He loved it immensely, and in the 1940s, he expanded the property to include, among other things, a private harbor. He practiced sailing, fishing, and discovered the beginnings of water skiing. Each year, I looked forward to leaving the cold climate of La Chaux-de-Fonds, where we lived, to spend two months at the house on the shores of Lake Geneva. How sad it was to return to La Chaux-de-Fonds in September!
Views of the Breitling family’s property.
Yes, my father would ask us for our opinion on certain models in development, and we didn’t always agree. I remember, for example, that we had a negative opinion about the Navitimer 816/1806, later nicknamed the “pizza” because of its gigantic 48-millimeter diameter. Despite this, given his strong personality, he produced it anyway because he often told us that large-diameter watches could be popular.
He was afraid of the rise of the electronic watch. And I remember one of his comments, which is so relevant today: “As long as the battery problem isn’t solved, this watch will have no future.”
My father was passionate about watchmaking; his company was his entire life! He was constantly disappointed that people didn’t understand the high cost of servicing their watches, even though he explained that a watch was constantly running at a high frequency, drawing a parallel with a car traveling the equivalent of several laps around the world continuously.
He also had a passion for anything that flew, and when the first satellite, Sputnik 1, was launched, he inquired what time of night it could be observed. When the sky was clear, we used a telescope from our house to follow this tiny white dot, similar to a star but moving from north to south. It was a wonder! Similarly, we would listen to the famous beep-beep emitted by Sputnik on the radio. As previously mentioned, following this crucial moment in space history, my father created a table clock shaped like Sputnik and called it “Baby Moon”.
I would like to share an anecdote that shows just how much of a visionary my father Willy was. When the first James Bond films were released starting in 1962, he had the idea to use the cinematic medium and the image of a secret agent to promote his brand. He contacted the production team, who agreed to have part of the plot of the 1965 film Thunderball highlight two Breitling watches: a Navitimer and a modified Top Time equipped with a Geiger counter. I remember this period well because I was in boarding school in Lucerne, and my father told me, “You must go see this film”, but it wasn’t easy for me to go out, except with written parental permission!
Baby Moon Desk clock, created by Willy Breitling and inspired by the Sputnik satellite.
Indeed, as we have already explained, we were too young, and the quartz crisis, along with my father’s illness, led to a different outcome. However, my father was determined that the brand should not be forgotten because he had devoted so much energy to it… which ultimately cost him his life.
My father Willy received a request from NASA astronaut Scott Carpenter to create a chronograph specifically designed for the upcoming Mercury-Atlas 7 mission, with the following features: a movement and dial displaying 24 hours instead of 12 (because the concept of day and night is relative in orbit), a special bezel for manipulation with gloves, a simplified slide rule, and an expandable steel bracelet to allow it to be worn over the spacesuit. Naturally, the Navitimer chronograph was used as a basis, as the slide rule had appealed to Carpenter. One day, he informed us: “Kids, I’ve received an extraordinary request – to create a special watch for the next mission of the Mercury program.” He had about six months to create it, and he was very concerned about the challenge he had to meet, repeatedly saying, “I hope I’ll be able to do it.” This Navitimer 24-hour prototype (it wasn’t called the “Cosmonaute” yet) was finally delivered to NASA a few days before the launch of Aurora, which took place in May 1962.
Indeed, it’s not conventional; it went through an unfortunate episode. After the mission was completed, the Aurora spacecraft landed far from the intended splashdown point, and Scott Carpenter quickly exited through the escape hatch at the top of the capsule, jumped into the sea, and then climbed into his lifeboat. For his mission, he had two important items that were not waterproof: the watch and the Leica camera.
According to the testimony of Carpenter’s daughter, when her father jumped into the sea, he prioritized protecting from the water the precious Leica, which contained the photos taken during the mission, rather than the watch, which remained submerged for several seconds during the time between the jump into the sea and climbing into the lifeboat. The watch, having suffered water infiltration, stopped a few hours later. Carpenter sent it back to Breitling, who, instead of attempting to repair it, sent him a brand new identical model. The watch you see today is exactly as it was when my father retrieved it more than 60 years ago.
The Navitimer 24-hour prototype commissioned by Scott Carpenter and worn on board the Aurora spacecraft for the Mercury-Atlas 7 mission. The internal parts of the watch have oxidised considerably, creating this unearthly layer of rust, reminiscent of the surface of a distant planet.
An identical model to Carpenter’s one was given to all the astronauts. Here, John Glenn’s.
Indeed, following the malfunction of Carpenter’s watch, Breitling, through Wakman, the Breitling importer for the USA, gave the other astronauts an identical 24-hour Navitimer… and it still wasn’t called the “Cosmonaute.” I was fortunate enough to acquire John Glenn’s example a few years ago.
My father wanted to give a name to this prototype, one that would be linked to the purpose for which it was created. Logically, he wanted to name it “Astronaut,” but unfortunately, that name was already trademarked by the Bulova company. So, he decided to name it “Cosmonaute”.
What I find fantastic is that Georges Kern and his team have brilliantly succeeded in capturing the DNA of the Breitling brand in the current models: Premier, Top Time, SuperOcean, and Navitimer. It’s a brilliant achievement that touches my soul and my heart, as it brings back memories. This tribute is exactly what my father wanted.
Navitimer B02 Chronograph 41 Cosmonaut, on black leather strap.
Yes, certainly some models will be on display, and I am very proud and happy about it. For us, it represents a culmination, especially since I vividly remember when I did my internship at Breitling at the age of 15, my father showed me watches created by his father and grandfather, as well as some of his own creations, and he told me: “As soon as I create my next factory, I will include a museum in it.” This wish is soon to be fulfilled, what a joy, thanks to Georges!
There are several: Grandpa Gaston’s personal watch, one of the first wrist chronograph watches, perhaps the only one in gold.
Among my favorites is the unique watch created “by Willy for Willy”, a rose gold chronograph derived from the Premier model, with a unique dial design. Willy wore it during parties at the holiday home, while here he usually wore his SuperOcean chronograph.
My father gave me a split-seconds chronograph for my 20th birthday, a very fragile function, therefore he told me to take good care of it… I listened to him because I think I only wore it twice.
The most emblematic is a gold watch with a cloisonné enamel dial depicting the family coat of arms. This dial is the work of the expert hands of Marguerite Koch, who also made a very small number of similar Rolex watches, one of which recently sold for CHF 272,000 at Christie’s. This Breitling with our coat of arms was made in three copies. An exclusive watch that I wore, like my father, for special occasions.
Single-pusher chronograph in gold from 1925, personal watch of Gaston Breitling, son of the founder Léon Breitling.
Credit: davidquattrocchi.ch.
Red gold chronographe from the 1940s, unique piece, Willy Breitling’s personal watch.
Credit: davidquattrocchi.ch.
Split-seconds chronograph in mint condition, as it was only worn twice by Gregory Breitling, who received it from his father Willy for his 20th birthday.
Credit: davidquattrocchi.ch.
Gold watch with a cloisonné enamel dial depicting the Breitling family coat of arms. Only three were ever made.
Credit: davidquattrocchi.ch.
On a daily basis, I mainly wear a yellow gold Chronomat from the 1940s, the first chronograph with a slide rule. It’s a favorite watch because my father Willy was wearing this watch when he met my mother Béatrice.
This yellow gold chronograph is called Chronomat, a contraction of the words chronograph and mathematician, representing the first watch equipped with a slide rule thanks to its rotating bezel.
Credit: davidquattrocchi.ch.
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