Arnold & Son

In 1755, English watchmaker John Arnold left England for the Netherlands to hone his watchmaking skills only to return after two years later speaking excellent German, which stood him in good stead later at the court of King George III and had established himself as a watchmaker of repute in London’s Strand by his mid-twenties. It is said that around 1762 Arnold encountered a certain William McGuire for whom he repaired a repeating watch. The latter gave him a loan, enabling him to set up in his watch business in Devereux Court, London’s Strand.

In 1808, Abraham Louis Breguet presented his first tourbillon escapement, mounted in one of Arnold’s pocket chronometers. Around 1843, after the death of John Roger Arnold, Arnold & Son is continued by Charles Frodsham, renown English watchmaker, until mid of the 19th century. After a relaunch in 1995, Arnold & Son became a fully integrated Swiss manufacture, developing and producing in-house all of its movements, perpetuating the legacy of John Arnold through mechanical features such as the true beat second or design elements.