This small, integrated, and family owned company may be new to the field of producing watches but they are far from being ``wet behind the ears``. Jerome de Witt is not only the great-grandson of King Leopold II of Belgium, he is also a fifth-generation descendant of Emperor Napoleon`s brother King Jerome of Westphalia, who was historically recognized as a watch connoisseur.

The imperial family was renowned for their impeccable taste in timepieces. Napoleon began the family`s fascination with watches in 1798 prior to embarking on his Egyptian Campaign. Napoleon purchased 3 timepieces--a repeater watch, a traveling clock with an almanac and a perpetual repeater watch--from a watchmaker by the name of Abraham-Louis Breguet. Returning to France, the future Emperor brought one of the timepieces that had been damaged in battle back to the watchmaker asking for a replacement, and thus began a longtime collaboration between Breguet and the imperial family. The very first wristwatch in history was created by Breguet for Napoleon`s sister, Caroline Murat Queen of Naples.

Many of these incredible early timepieces eventually made their way into King Jerome`s hands, and like his prominent forefathers, Jerome de Witt began showing a passion for watchmaking at a young age, a dream that he has pursued and developed into an amazing timepiece that launched in 2003. Though young at the age in the world of watchmaking as a company, one might say that watchmaking is quite literally in Jerome`s blood. He has definitely made his ancestors proud.


King Jerome Bonaparte of Westphalia and Queen Catharina courtesy of Wikipedia