The clocks of despots and dictators
In the ABCs of great despotisms, the cult of the leader plays a not insignificant role. It goes without saying that the outfit of the dictator-in-waiting has to fit harmoniously with the staging. In addition to the carrot and stick, a stylish timepiece on the wrist is a significant boost for one's charisma points. And what better way to keep the clique's spirits high than a small gift from one's personal watch collection every now and then? All the more clever when personal and state property are one and the same anyway.
This list, which is of course free of political views and is limited solely to the choice of watch, is intended to touch on which watch was able to gain the trust of the individual despots.
Cuban Communists and Rolex: Fidel Castro & Che Guevara
Fidel Castro didn't hold back: a Cohiba casually tucked into the corner of his mouth and two Rolex watches on his wrist, his left one, of course. Legend has it that a Day-Date kept time in Havana, and a Submariner in Moscow.
Incidentally, his companion Che Guevara is said to have bagged the somewhat more practical GMT Master. The Cuban proletariat would probably have preferred something to eat. Let them drink mojitos!
Eastern Bloc Bolsheviks as Datejust fans
In any case, the crown on the dial of all Rolex watches seems to have survived the revolutionary iconoclasm without major damage. Soviet General Secretary Brezhnev owned a Datejust, as did his spiritual brother Erich Honecker. Even Mao Zedong is said to have been the proud owner of two watches of this model. Once at the helm of power, the contradiction between communist aspirations and capitalist reality suddenly no longer seems entirely irreconcilable. It's somehow strangely obvious that they all preferred the gold version.
Soviet General Secretaries: from H. Moser to Poljot
Brezhnev's predecessor, Khrushchev, was somewhat out of step here, however. He preferred to wear his Soviet-made model on his right wrist. And only when absolutely necessary, since wristwatches – in his opinion – disrupted circulation. But an extended wristband would have been fine, Comrade General Secretary!
As for Stalin's watch, things are a bit more complicated. At least we haven't been able to find any evidence that the Soviet dictator ever wore a wristwatch. However, he did initiate the founding of Poljot (Sturmanskie) and is said to have personally overseen the design of the watch dials.
Since wristwatches were still not very fashionable even among revolutionaries of his time, the old Bolshevik Lenin treasured a pocket watch from H. Moser & Cie. Presumably a legacy from his stay in Switzerland, where he had to hide from the Tsar's henchmen. Whether he already had the watch when he traveled to Russia with the help of Germans loyal to the Kaiser to unleash communism there is unknown.
GDR despot Honecker's personal watch production
If Honecker did not want to curry favor with the Soviet general secretaries by strapping the popular Rolex Datejust around his wrist, he and his watch friends from the Central Committee of the SED also resorted to domestic models.
For example, the VEB Glashütter Uhrenbetriebe (formerly Lange & Söhne, and after the fall of the Wall: Glashütte Original) had to produce a special limited collection, which the party's gentlemen could use for state visits and for themselves (for example, via so-called "honorary gifts"). Such a one-party rule was quite clever in that respect.
Hitler's favor and favorites
Rumor has it that the "GröFaZ" wore a newly launched Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso on his non-outstretched arm. However, a similar but more German model from A. Lange & Söhne seems more plausible to us. It was one of several small gifts he couldn't refuse. Watchmaking legend Alfred Helwig didn't shy away from personally presenting the dictator with a watch and naming the so-called "Hitler Tourbillon" after him.
Hitler himself also enjoyed giving away models from A. Lange & Söhne or Deutsche Uhrenfabrikation (DUF), engraved with his own signature and dedication in despotic restraint. His mistress Eva Braun also made a splash with an expansionistically brilliant watch from "Eszeha," a brand owned by the Scheufele family, which today stands behind Chopard.
Saddam Hussein's tryst with Rolex
Haitham Wihaib, former chief of protocol for Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, tells the following story: His job was to cover his boss's tracks after the president had spent a few hours with one of his mistresses. To his surprise, he found the dictator's Rolex Day-Date lying next to his bed. After a quick dash to the dictator's Mercedes to return the watch, the dictator promptly handed over the diamond-studded gold Day-Date. Saddam Hussein had evidently had a rather satisfying day. The watch is said to be worth GBP 100,000, although it will not be his last.
Muammar al-Gaddafi: Green Book, Green Patek
Muammar al-Gaddafi was certainly familiar with the game of tyranny: The revolution against the royal family had been won, and the ideology had been spread among the people with his green book full of collected teachings. Now all he had to do was create a good atmosphere here and there with small donations from his watch collection.
After selling off the oil that had been declared state property, Gaddafi was occasionally allowed to give a Patek Philippe to select subordinates (which later went under the hammer at Christie's for $193,750). For everyday wear, however, Gaddafi favored a Rolex Daytona or a bicolor Datejust.
North Korea's Kim family and their watches
The three Kims from North Korea may agree on the cult of their own persona, but their fashion sense varies from generation to generation. Sure, a classic suit or military garb is always acceptable for a lifelong dictator. However, Grandpa Kim Il-Sung seems to have stuck with a gold Omega Constellation, while grandson Kim Jong-un maintains his old contacts from his school days in Switzerland and usually wears a relatively simple Movado Moderna.
No matter how beautiful the watch on the wrist is, the hands of the despots listed here remain bloody
Source: montredo.com