History/Breguet, Abraham-Louis
Abraham-Louis Breguet
Abraham-Louis Breguet or Bréguet (10 January 1747 – 17 September 1823), born in Neuchâtel in Switzerland, made many innovations in the course of a career in watchmaking in France. He studied watchmaking in France and in England and invented different escapement methods, including the tourbillon, re-winding mechanisms, and the overcoil. His watches and clocks are widely regarded as some of the most beautiful and technically-accomplished and he is considered by many the founding father of modern horology.
In 1775 he founded the Breguet watchmaking firm in the Île de la Cité in Paris. In 1815 he gained an official appointment with the French Navy.
Breguet passed away in Paris in 1823.