Breitling Chronomat

Amidst the turmoil of World War II, watch manufactures across the globe halted production of civilian timepieces to manufacture military watches for the warring nations' armed forces. These watches, with spartan exteriors and no-frills movements, were designed with one purpose in mind: to withstand the shocks and strains of battle. However, while brands concerned themselves with outfitting the armies of the world, there was a brand that dared deviate from the norm. Breitling, established in St. Imier in 1884, has long made chronographs their speciality. By the 1930s the brand was manufacturing wrist chronographs—including some for the air forces of the UK and Canada. Breitling is so well-known for these pilot's watches, that one oft forgets that the brand produced anything else. In 1941, Breitling filed a patent for a unique watch that would herald the shape of things to come. The Chronomat, first released in 1942—at the height of the Second World War—coupled chronographs, Breitling’s