Watches are traditionally marketed to women as jewellery, but they’re more often sold to men as tools of adventure, action, danger and utility. And it doesn’t get much more Boy’s Own than the armed forces, even if the closest you’re likely to come to seeing action is The Bridge on the River Kwai.
You don't get far into watch history without discussing military history. Since the mid-19th century, forces around the world have relied on timepieces to coordinate tactical maneuverers and for navigation, diving and ranging estimates. As an entry point, it’s assumed that before any operation, the commanding officers would synchronise personal watches. Even so, eyewitness accounts of 18th and 19th century battles are notoriously difficult to reconcile. The first shots of the opening cannonade at the Battle of Culloden in April 1746 are variously reported to have been fired at just after noon, 1pm, 2pm and 2.30pm. Historians still argue about the order of events at the Battle of Waterloo, one of the most written-about actions in history. If you’re marching into combat, timing is crucial.
Though military watches vary hugely between nations and purpose of issue, they’re usually built with similar intent: to survive tough climates, shock, submersion, dirt and damage. Their dials are typically minimalist, luminous and easily legible, perfect examples of function inspiring form. Any watch today with a matte sandblasted finish isn’t made that way (only) because it looks cool: the finish originally served to stop it glinting in the sun, giving away troop positions.
While there is some evidence that women’s jewellery, dating back to the 16th century, included early timepieces intended to be worn on the wrist, wristwatches for men are a comparatively modern invention, their development largely linked to combat since the end of the 19th century. (Fumbling around for your pocket watch presumably not being entirely helpful while dodging enemy fire.) Governments have seldom used their own manufacturing capabilities to make forces’ watches: instead, they’ve issued manufacturers with design and performance requirements – so-called mil-spec documents.
Today’s brand catalogues are full of mil-spec watches, plenty of which continue the lineage of their highly decorated forebears, such as IWC’s Mark XVIII and Breguet’s Type XX pilot watches, and plenty more that tap into the current appetite for no-nonsense retro designs.
“You’re wearing something that represents a certain period and you feel some of that when you wear it,” says Ludwig Wurlitzer, founder and chief product officer of Chronext, the new and pre-owned luxury watch retailer. “Even though you may not go diving, you can still feel the Rolex Submariner or the Omega Speedmaster is built for that, and that’s awesome to a lot of people. I include myself.”
The Royal Navy was one of the first to use divers in offensive roles during wartime, completing reconnaissance and defensive missions. After World War II, the MoD knew its dive team needed a watch that was robust and reliable. Rolex was then the leader in waterproof watch technology, and the Navy acknowledged it with the first appearance of a military-issued Submariner. For a while, Rolexes were standard-issue.
Is there a difference between watches issued to soldiers and their civilian-inspired cousins on sale today? It depends on how you look at it.
“I think you can argue whether a modern Rolex Submariner is a military watch,” says Wurlitzer. “For me, it is. It directly descends from a military watch. It’s just that none of them are really used by the military any more because they don’t have the budget.”
Which helps to explain why, over the past 20 years, the collector’s market for authentic military timepieces has steadily grown, while watch collectors have continued to be more and more passionate about their modern day equivalents.
Rolex Submariner
Debuting in 1954, the next 65 years saw the Submariner improve its water resistance while offering subtle design tweaks (why mess with perfection?), date models and its own ‘spin-off’, the Rolex Sea-Dweller. Bonds Connery, Moore and the immaculately suited Timothy Dalton all wore Submariners, before 007 switched his allegiance to Omega. A design classic.
Oyster Perpetual Submariner, £5,750, watches-of-switzerland.co.uk
Breitling Navitimer 8 B01 Chronograph
A portmanteau of the words ‘navigation’ and ‘timer’, the Navitimer is a the don of pilot’s watches. Breitling are chronograph specialists and this is designed with the modern traveller in mind, with its effortlessly legible dials that transcend its utilitarian origins, while still evoking a bygone world.
Navitimer 8 B01 Chronograph, £5,900, watches-of-switzerland.co.uk
Bremont MB II Black
If you want to signal your no-nonsense, tough-guy chops, you could do worse than choose a watch that has been developed with the world’s foremost ejector seat company, Martin-Baker. The second hand mimics the ejection lever found in fighter cockpits, giving this watch its distinctive personality. Its black, hardened steel case and anti-reflective, scratch-resistant sapphire crystal lens underline its combat appeal.
MB II Black, £3,595, mrporter.com
Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch Professional Chronograph
Omega introduced its line of chronographs back in the late 1950s. Since then, hundreds of chronograph movements have been marketed under the Speedmaster name, prompting much fanboy one-upmanship and Instragram hashtagery. The Speedmaster Professional or ‘Moonwatch’ is both the longest-produced and most well-known, worn during the first US spacewalk and, as part of the Apollo 11 landing, becoming ‘the first watch on the Moon’. In 2019 it celebrated its 50th anniversary with a raft of special editions.
Speedmaster Moonwatch Professional Chronograph, £4,000, watches-of-switzerland.co.uk
TAG Heuer Aquaracer
#dontcrackunderpressure is the storied Swiss brand’s current hashtag, used to promote a line of models as well as their ambassadors, from tennis star Felix Auger-Aliassime to actor Chris Hemsworth. But it ties neatly into TAG Heuer’s military influences, somewhere being your best under duress is a prerequisite. Coated in black PVD, with a khaki dial and bezel alongside titanium housing, this Acquaracer has a 300 metre water resistance and a matching khaki-coloured textile strap, amping up its military bona fides.
Aquaracer Calibre 5, £2,350, jurawatches.co.uk
IWC Schaffhausen Pilot’s Watch Double Chronograph Top Gun Certanium
A pilot’s watch, and then some. Taking its name from the Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor Programme in the US Navy, it's designed from the most robust of materials to meet the needs of elite jet pilots. These include, but are not limited to, a matte black ceramic case (to ensure pilots are not distracted by sunlight reflecting off their watches), a titanium coating (to withstand extreme G-forces) and corrosion protection (from humid, salty sea air).
Pilot's Watch Double Chronograph, £11,890, watches-of-switzerland.co.uk
Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical
The classic soldier’s watch got a tactical update in 2019, with dial colours in black, green and white. With its dark display, light, luminescent numerals, Nato strap and water resistant to 50 meters, this is a faithful recreation that harks back to WWII, when Hamilton produced watches for the Allied forces, a commission it can be argued birthed the modern field watch.
Khaki Field Mechanical, £395, ernestjones.co.uk
Luminox Navy Seal Watch
The Californian brand is a hit with divers, elite forces and the US Navy Seals, for whom it produces watches. This model is a great example of what it does best, showcasing its ‘always visible technology’ – tritium gas inserts in the dial, capable of giving constant luminescence for up to 25 years.
Navy Seal Watch, £345, amazon.co.uk
Bell & Ross BR 03-92 MA-1 Limited Edition
Inspired by the iconic US Air Force’s MA-1 flight jacket from the 1950s, this limited edition version of the BR 03-92 is a streamlined take on Bell & Ross’ purest pilots watch, inspired by cockpit instruments, with its sandwich dial stencilled to reveal the orange luminescence beneath. Limited to 999 pieces, as of summer 2019.
BR 03-92 MA-1 Limited Edition, £2,900, mrporter.com
