Watchmaking has come home...
We were lucky enough to be at the official launch of Bremont's game changing watch at the Royal Maritime Museum, Greenwich, and as always, they didn't disappoint.
It has always been Bremont’s ambition to bring the art of industrial high-end watchmaking back to Britain, and the Limited Edition Bremont Longitude marks a significant milestone in this journey. The Longitude watches use the first of a new series of ENG300 movements made in Henley-upon-Thames.
The Bremont Limited Edition Longitude pays tribute to Great Britain’s role in clock and watchmaking, and contribution to time, astronomy and navigation by incorporating original brass from the historic Flamsteed Meridian Line at the Royal Observatory Greenwich. The Flamsteed Meridian Line marks the historic position where the first Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, made his observations to discover Longitude and laid the foundations for accurate timekeeping and navigation. The Longitude also houses the brand’s first manufactured movement from its new ENG300 movement series.
Bremont launches the ENG300 movement series.
To fine tune the movement’s accuracy, traditional adjustment screws are used on the free sprung balance wheel, a more difficult method of rate adjustment, but also more precise, and links back to early marine chronometry. Further design changes include revisions to the escapement, the automatic winding bridge jewels and a modified wheel bridge amongst others.
The original brass from the historic Flamsteed Meridian Line at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, London, can be seen forming a ring in the back of the Longitude timepiece, engraved with the serial number of the watch. With a power reserve of 65 hours, this special timepiece has its power reserve indicator at the 6 o’clock position resembling the Royal Observatory Greenwich’s red time ball, a simple yet ingenious visual device that gave nineteenth century sailors accurate time. The Longitude also features a big date function and an off-set seconds hand at 9-o’clock.
History of The Flamsteed Meridian Line.
• Seventeenth century seafarers faced many dangers as they sailed on new trade routes. The inability to establish longitude caused navigational uncertainty that cost both lives and money. Determined to find a solution, King Charles II founded the Royal Observatory Greenwich in 1675. The first Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, was charged with ‘perfecting the art of navigation at sea’.
• Astronomers believed lunar distances or the positions of Jupiter’s moons could be used to determine longitude. Using these methods required an accurate map of the stars. Flamsteed devoted himself to this enormous task, using a telescopic instrument to chart nearly 3,000 stars.
• Flamsteed’s work laid the foundations for accurate timekeeping and navigation. At Greenwich, the brass Flamsteed Meridian line marks the historic position where he made his observations.
• Every day at 13:00 a large ball dropped from a mast on top of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich to signify the local time to Sailors and Londoners alike.
• Once longitude had been found, it was time to fix the Prime Meridian. By the late eighteenth century, the majority of vessels were using charts based on the Greenwich Meridian Line.
The International Meridian Conference in 1884 agreed that the world should adopt Greenwich as the centre of time and longitude zero.
The Bremont Longitude is available to order in limited numbers. You can view the Longitude on our Bremont website shop.