A Brief History of Time in Switzerland
Rolex, Patek Philippe, Breguet, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, Blancpain, Jaeger-LeCoultre are just a few of the legendary brands that have helped make Switzerland synonymous with watches and Haute Horlogerie. So much so that buying a Swiss-made watch is practically a guarantee of quality in itself. But have you ever wondered how a small landlocked nation came to dominate the global market?
To understand the origins of Swiss watchmaking, we have to wind the clock back to the 16th century when French-born religious reformer John Calvin, along with highly skilled Huguenot refugees (many of whom were goldsmiths), sought safe haven in Geneva following a protestant uprising in neighbouring Catholic France.
Calvin’s influence and austere religious teachings effectively banned the wearing of jewellery in Geneva. Fearing financial ruin, Geneva’s jewellers and goldsmiths turned their attention to making watches, which were still allowed thanks to their all-important timekeeping function. The fledgling watchmaking industry flourished, and soon there were hundreds of artisans working in the city’s Saint Gervais neighbourhood. By the end of the 16th century, Geneva’s watchmakers had gained a reputation for manufacturing highly desirable timepieces, and in 1601 they formed the world’s first ever watchmaking guild.
From Geneva to Jura
Geneva’s increasingly powerful guilds were opposed to mechanised processes and prohibited the use of tools that would enable the mass manufacture of watches. In fact, the entire guild system was purposely designed to keep watch production low, quality high and prices exorbitant. Hampered by the guilds and fed up with the overcrowded conditions in Geneva, many watchmakers fled the city to set up in the mountainous Jura region, notably in the villages of Le Locle and La Chaux-de-Fonds (both designated UNESCO World Heritage sites).
One of these Jura trailblazers was a young Swiss goldsmith (or possibly a locksmith) called Daniel Jeanrichard (1665 - 1741), who is credited with coming up with the ground-breaking établissage or ‘division of labour’ system in which large tasks are broken down into a series of outsourced smaller ones. Jeanrichard trained local farm workers to make specific components, which were then collected by watchmakers to be assembled in a central workshop. Not only did this innovative system provide a welcome source of income for the agricultural workers during the bleak winter months, but also streamlined the watchmaking process.
The new system quickly spread throughout the region giving rise to dozens of new occupations – chain smiths, axle makers, hinge makers, escapement adjusters, makers of pinions, gongs, keys and other assorted watch parts – many of which have survived. At the time of Jeanrichard’s death in 1741, there were several hundred watchmakers working in Le Locle and La Chaux-de-Fonds, and the surrounding villages. Karl Marx described La Chaux-de-Fonds as a “huge factory-town” in his book Das Kapital in which he analysed the division of labour in the watchmaking industry of the Jura.
Jeanrichard is considered the founder of watchmaking in the canton of Neuchâtel, and his division of labour concept was undoubtedly a major contributing factor in the success of Swiss watchmaking. A statue paying homage to the pioneering watchmaker can be seen in Le Locle.
Mechanised production
By 1850 Switzerland was producing around 2,200,000 watches a year thanks to its highly efficient établissage system. Unfortunately, quantity did not go hand in hand with quality, and when the Swiss tried to conquer the American market by flooding it with cheap Swiss-made watches, they failed spectacularly. The Americans, who were enjoying their own watchmaking boom thanks to optimised production processes that ensured reliability, considered Swiss watches to be ‘trash’. But ever willing to adapt and learn, Swiss watchmakers adopted the same mechanised production systems as those used in the US. Had they not, Switzerland would probably not be the watchmaking powerhouse we know today.
Mechanised processes meant that large quantities of components could be precisely manufactured resulting in better reliability and accuracy. In 1868 Florentine A. Jones moved from America to Switzerland and founded the International Watch Company (IWC), combining Swiss know-how and modern American production techniques. It was also around this time that some Swiss companies started moving away from the établissage system by bringing all their production in house. Other companies focused on mass-producing ébauches (see photo), unbranded watch movements, to sell on to watchmakers who would then assemble the components into a completed watch, possibly before branding it themselves.
For over four hundred years Switzerland has managed to stay at the vanguard of watch production thanks to a combination of tradition and quality, but perhaps more importantly a willingness to embrace innovative technology and working methods. Today, the Swiss watchmaking industry is the country’s third largest exporter employing around 59,000 people, and accounts for 1.5% of the nation’s GDP. Switzerland is the world’s largest exporter of watches, and Geneva and Jura are still home to the majority of the country’s watch manufacturers.
Perfectly crafted translations for perfectly crafted timepieces
As Haute Couture is to fashion and Haute Cuisine is to food, Haute Horlogerie represents the very highest standards in its domain. Naturally, luxury watch brands requiring translation services expect those same exacting standards and quality.
Fortunately, TeasdaleTranslations is extremely knowledgeable about the workings of flying tourbillons, escapements, mainsprings and repeaters, as well as the need for exquisitely crafted translations that enhance and uphold a brand’s values while perfectly conveying its message in a language its customers understand.
If you would like to discuss a Haute Horlogerie French-English translation project, TeasdaleTranslations are on hand to answer your questions around the clock.