In-Depth
Your Guide to the “Dirty Dozen” – Including the Only British Member, VERTEX
Simple
timekeepers that have played a critical role in the successful execution of
British military operations.
01/08/2019
By Tom
Mulraney
In our
modern age of smartphones and wearable tech, it’s easy to forget just how
indispensable the humble mechanical wristwatch once was. Yet even a brief foray
into the world of military watches is enough to provide a vivid reminder.
Rugged, reliable and entirely fit-for-purpose, these simple timekeepers have
played a critical role in the successful execution of military operations that
dramatically shaped the course of modern history. Particularly during World War
II, the period which we will be focusing on for the purpose of this article.
Arguably the best-known such watches from this era are those of the British
Military. More specifically, the Dirty Dozen.
Chances are
you’re already familiar with the Dirty Dozen, or have at least heard the name.
That’s probably because the “Dozen” is amongst the most sought-after series by
military watch collectors. If you’re not familiar with the name though, allow
me to provide a brief introduction. The use of wrist-worn watches in military
conflict really began in World War I. Pocket watches – the popular choice of
men of the day – proved too cumbersome and time-consuming to use in the
trenches. Not to mention the distraction of fumbling around with the dust
cover, etc. could inadvertently expose your position to enemy snipers.
The initial
– albeit rudimental – solution soldiers came up with was to strap their pocket
watches to their wrists for easier access. This soon evolved into the “trench
watch”, which basically used a small pocket watch case with wire lugs soldered
on either end so a strap could be attached. The designs were not standardised,
and the soldiers typically had to purchase these watches themselves. Meaning
they were not issued by the government.
The design
of these watches continued to evolve throughout the war based on the feedback
from the constant “field testing” they were subjected to. For example, white
dials with black numerals were soon inverted as it became clear that white text
against a black background was more legible. Likewise, luminous paint –
containing radioactive radium – was introduced to enable reading in low-light
conditions.
Vertex
Dirty Dozen military WWII watch
The “field”
military watch evolved drastically with WWII – as an example, this Vertex
“Dirty Dozen”
By World
War II, the wristwatch was well and truly established as an essential part of a
gentleman’s daily attire. Assuming he could afford one, of course. Pocket
watches still persisted – even within the military – but their popularity
continued to wane. As you might expect, the wristwatch played an even more
significant role in the Second World War than it did in the First. Yet there
wasn’t a great deal of standardisation in the design of these watches until the
early 1940s.
THE DIRTY
DOZEN
According
to the history books, in 1943 Commander Alan Brooks (later to become Field
Marshal) recognised the value of having a general-use timepiece for the armed
forces. Until then almost all service watches were personal civilian items.
Given that this “general-use” timepiece was destined for a very active war
zone, the MoD set specific criteria for how it should look and function. These
included:
- Black dial with Arabic numerals, subsidiary seconds at 6 o’clock and railroad-style minutes
- Luminous hour and minute hands plus luminous hour markers
- Movements with 15 jewels, 11.75 to 13 ligne in diameter
- Shatterproof Perspex crystal
- Waterproof to the standards of the era
- Precision movements that had to be regulated to chronometer criteria in a variety of conditions
- Rugged case capable of diminishing the impact of shocks
- Water-resistant crown of good size
- Vertex Dirty Dozen military WWII watchVertex Dirty Dozen military WWII watch
The
military code for these watches was W.W.W. (Watch, Wristlet, Waterproof). They
were also required to be engraved in three places with the Broad Arrow or Pheon
(which denotes property of the British Crown.) On their casebacks was the
descriptive code W.W.W. Two serial numbers could be found as well, one being
the civil serial number of the manufacturer and the second a military one which
started with a capital letter.
As part of
its brief, the British MoD clearly stipulated that these watches were
explicitly meant for ‘General Service.’ This did not mean that each soldier
would be eligible for one; it was and certainly remains over-the-top to provide
a watch regulated to chronometer standards for every soldier. With the term
‘General Service,’ the British meant that these watches would be issued to
special units and tasks respectively such as artillery members, staff members,
engineers and personnel of the Communications Corps.
Dirty Dozen
military WWII watch
At the
time, British watch factories already had their hands full with the
manufacturing of munitions and weapons. So, requisition officers were sent to
Switzerland to find companies that could fulfil the order. In the end, twelve
companies would be selected: Buren, Cyma, Eterna, Grana, Jaeger-LeCoultre,
Lemania, Longines, IWC, Omega, Record, Timor, and Vertex. (Although Vertex was
technically a British watch company, it had Swiss Manufacturing plants.)
About
145,000 W.W.W’s were delivered to the British military by all 12 manufacturers.
The table below from Konrad Knirim’s book British Military Timepieces provides
an overview of how many watches were contributed by each maker:
As you can
see, some – such as Grana and Eterna – produced relatively low volumes. This
makes it particularly challenging for collectors trying to find nice examples
of each to complete their “Dozen”. A task that is made infinitely more
difficult by the fact that these watches were serviced, let’s say without the
greatest of care, by the R.E.M.E (Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers)
who often chopped and changed parts between the various models. On the other
hand, spending a lifetime searching and collating a complete set must be a very
rewarding experience indeed.
No comments:
Post a Comment