Ferdinand Berthoud Paris watches age determination

Engraving / Number (Example)	Time / Order	type
“Ferdinand Berthoud No. 1-20”	ca. 1760–1770	Early marine chronometers for the French Navy
“Nos. 50–100”	ca. 1775–1790	Observatory Chronometer
“No. 100+”	from 1790 to 1807	Late works, mostly produced by a workshop, some signed by nephews
“Berthoud Frères”	1807 – 1830	Successor business under Louis Berthoud & Frères

 

Swiss/ French watchmaker in Paris

Ferdinand Berthoud was born on March 19, 1727, in Plancemont near Neuchâtel , Switzerland. His father, Jean Berthoud, was a bricklayer, carpenter, architect, and lawyer. He had three brothers who worked as watchmakers: Jean Henry Berthoud , Jean Jacques Berthoud , and Pierre Berthoud .

Berthoud's Apprenticeship

At the age of fourteen, he began an apprenticeship with his brother Jean Henry , who was already working as a watchmaker in Couvet at that time. He remained there for four years until he went to Paris in April 1745. His start in the French capital was made easier by the fact that his brother Jean-Jacques had already been living there since 1742.

Berthoud in Paris

His work attracted the attention of Julien Le Roy , with whom he then collaborated for many years. Around 1745, he opened a workshop on the Rue Harlay. From 1756 onward, he specialized in the construction of precision watches and, around 1771, independently developed the chronometer escapement with rocker arm and spring winding . Abraham Louis Breguet likely also worked for him.

In 1764, he was appointed Horloger de la Marine Royale (Horloger of the Royal Marine) due to his marine chronometers, such as his early marine watches No. 3 and No. 6. Ferdinand Berthoud was sent to London by order of King Louis XV in 1763 and 1766 to uncover the secrets of Harrison's H4. Harrison was also a singular inventor, but unlike Berthoud, he was not at all inclined to share his findings with others.

However, one must not overlook the nerve-wracking disputes that Harrison had to fight with the Board of Longitude. Nevertheless, Berhoud's first trip to England was not entirely successful, as Harrison, although permitting the investigation of his He built clocks H1, H2, and H3, but kept his H4, which formed the basis for the prize money he was ultimately awarded by the Longitude Commission, under wraps. It was only on a second trip to London in 1766, which brought him together with Thomas Mudge , among others, that he was able to gather further information about this work, which also influenced his own developments.

It was only in 1766 that he received the official commission from Louis XV and his Minister of the Navy, César Gabriel de Choiseul-Chevigny, with the fine title Duc de Praslin, whose family name is actually the origin of the praline known today, to build watches equivalent to those of England.

Berthoud's main achievement lies not only in the construction and development of the French marine chronometer , he wrote his magnificent textbooks on watchmaking (including Traité des horloges marines, Essai sur l'horlogerie, De la mesure du temps, Traité des montres à longitudes) and produced a large number of fascinating large and small clocks, among which are exactly 21 weight-driven marine chronometers .

In 1770 he was appointed " Horloger mécanicien du Roi et de la Marine " (Watchmaker to the King and the Navy). Later he became a member of the "Institut de France" and the " Royal Society ". On July 17, 1804, he was made a Knight of the Legion of Honour .

Ferdinand Berthoud was married twice, first to Elisabeth-Henriette Chatry de la Fosse and later to Marie-Adélaïde Dumoustier. Marie-Adélaïde Dumoustier was a daughter of Gabriel-Etienne-René Dumoustier (1730-1802) , an uncle of Elisabeth-Henriette Chatry de la Fosse.

Ferdinand died childless after a short illness on June 20 , 1807 , in Groslay near Paris. A primary school in Paris is named after Ferdinand Berthoud, as are streets in Couvet, Argenteuil, Groslay, and Besançon.

Summary