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What's a watch fit for a king? As the newly ascended King Charles III has shown over the past few days of public mourning over the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, it might not always be the watch you expect. But for the new king, who's always been stylish, with a taste for the artisanal, the watch he's been wearing just makes sense.
While making public appearances to celebrate Elizabeth's life and mourn her death, King Charles III has been wearing his Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Chronograph. It's a watch we've spotted on the new king before – for example, at the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. While Parmigiani Fleurier might not be a household name the same way, say, Prince William's Omega Seamaster is, it's a fitting, deep-cut choice from one of this generation's true master watchmakers.
Parmigiani Fleurier is a young brand, launched in 1996, amid the flurry of neo-vintage and independent watchmaking that collectors have come to love. Watchmaker Michel Parmigiani is a bit like horological royalty himself. He got his start by opening his own restoration workshop in 1976 – that's basically in the middle of the Quartz Crisis, if you're keeping track – thinking that, if this newfangled technology is going to destroy the watchmaking craft like the doubters thought it might, then someone better preserve the significant pieces of generations past.
Luckily, the doubters were wrong – and Parmigiani's reputation as a master watchmaker was firmly established. He restored watches and clocks for some of the world's most important collections, from the hallowed halls of the Patek Philippe Museum to the humongous pocket watch and automaton collection of Maurice-Yvez Sandoz.
In 1996, with the support of the Sandoz Family Foundation, Parmigiani finally launched his own brand, Parmigiani Fleurier. Today, the brand is still held by the foundation.
Enter King Charles III. Like any good royal, Charles has always been interested in the finer things.
"I have always believed in the 'buy once, buy well' philosophy," Charles told The Telegraph in 2020. This quote came on the well-heeled heels of the introduction of his new fashion line, The Modern Artisan Project. A charitable endeavor, the project gave textile students from the United Kingdom and Italy the opportunity to produce a "sustainable menswear and womenswear collection." The profits of the program were directed to programs dedicated to developing traditional textile skills, with all of the pieces in the collection designed by students. The collection wasn't cheap – $1,000 for a cashmere jumper, that kind of thing – but that wasn't really the point. The goal of the prince's project was all about preserving this artisanship and craftsmanship for the next generation. Sound a bit like Parmigiani's original goal in 1976?
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When Parmigiani Fleurier launched, this ethos of making things the "right way" permeated the company. Parmigiani didn't just establish a brand. Since 1996, an entire "Watchmaking Centre" has been established around the Parmigiani Fleurier brand, focused on doing everything in-house, with the support of the Sandoz Family Foundation. The emphasis has been on vertical integration, with movement manufacturer Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier sitting as the crown jewel of this Watchmaking Centre (the foundation has also established separate specialized manufacturers for balance wheels; cases; dials; and other micro parts. Having the support of a presumed multi-billion-dollar foundation is nice). Back in 2015, we got a look inside Parmigiani Fleurier and Vaucher Manufacture.
Charles' choice from Parmigiani Fleurier is the Toric Chronograph, released in the early 2000s. According to the brand, he purchased the watch in Switzerland in the early 2000s, probably in Klosters, the Swiss resort the royal family often visited during the winter holidays.
The watch itself is gorgeous, emblematic of early Parmigiani. There's the hand knurling on the bezel, a signature of the brand since its beginning (and still executed on modern watches like its Tonda PF collection), inspired by ancient Greek columns.
The chronograph is fascinating because it features a Zenith El Primero movement, representing the era of Parmigiani before it had fully built up that Watchmaking Centre. This early Toric Chronograph features the Zenith caliber 400z, but of course, Parmigiani has added some traditional finishing to make the movement its own. Most notable is the luscious gold guilloche rotor. The movement also features a column wheel and lateral clutch for the vintage chronograph nerds out there. Put simply, it's the best of vintage chronographs, with flourishes of high-end independent watchmaking you'd expect from a guy like Parmigiani.
The case is made the old-fashioned way; you'll find Swiss hallmarks under the lugs denoting the workshop that produced the case, welded on the lugs, and completed the hand finishing and polishing.
Prince Charles Wearing His Parmigiani Fleurier Chronograph At The Royal Wedding
Back in 2018, we – and the 29 million others watching – spotted Prince Charles, at the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, wearing his Parmigiani Fleurier Chronograph. It was as timeless a choice then as it is now.
The dial is engine-turned, with dressed-up furniture and finishing to make it a chronograph fit for a royal. Sure, that date window at 1:30 is a bit odd, but look at the old-fashioned font in that date window – it's just so good, I'll give the quirky El Primero date position a pass.
A quick search reveals Maissen Klosters as an authorized dealer of Parmigiani Fleurier in the luxe resort town of Klosters, where the king is thought to have purchased his Toric Chronograph. The shop also sells the larger brands you'd expect – Rolex, Patek Philippe, you know the drill – so if Prince Charles had these same options when he strolled into the shop back in the early 2000s, his choice exhibits a certain level of taste, an ability to look past those Crowns and Calatrava Crosses to a deeper cut.
A Military-Issued Postscript
Looking through photos of Charles enjoying holidays at Klosters, I came across a great photo (above) of a younger Prince Charles wearing what looks like a military-issued "Fab Four" chronograph from Hamilton (this photo dates to 1981). From 1971 through 1976, Prince Charles served in the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. In the early 1970s, four watch companies – Hamilton, CWC, Newmark, and Precista – began supplying simple, Valjoux-powered chronographs to the British military. Newark and Precista weren't produced until the '80s, while Hamilton and CWC both began supplying these chronographs in the early 1970s when Prince Charles might've been issued his. To me, the brand signature on Charles' chronograph looks slightly longer, so my guess is that his is a Hamilton, but if you think differently let me know in the comments.
Chronographs Fit For A King
We've seen King Charles III wearing all kinds of other watches, too – dressy Cartiers, Pateks, and Reversos – but this pair of chronographs hints at the taste of a true enthusiast, an embodiment of his "buy once, buy well" philosophy. One chronograph was military-issued to him as a young prince; the other he bought decades later while on holiday with his family in Switzerland. It's almost a collection that's downright relatable.
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You can learn more about Parmigiani Fleurier online.
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