France · Patented 1801 (An 10 of the French Republican calendar); commonly cited as French patent/brevet of 7 Messidor An 9 (26 June 1801)
Tourbillon Regulator
Partially verifiedThe tourbillon remains one of the most prestigious high-complication mechanisms in fine watchmaking, though its practical benefit to a wrist-worn (constantly reoriented) watch is debated among modern horologists.
The tourbillon mounts the escapement and balance in a rotating carriage, typically completing one revolution per minute, so that positional errors caused by gravity average out rather than accumulating in any single vertical position.
Breguet's brevet describes the mechanism and its purpose of correcting positional errors specifically for watches carried upright in the pocket, where the classical positions are limited compared with a wristwatch.
How to verify this yourself
The original brevet is referenced in French patent-history literature under the Republican calendar date; researchers should consult INPI's historical patent record and the Breguet company's own published archive rather than relying on secondary date conversions, since Republican-to-Gregorian date conversions in circulation vary slightly between sources.
Manufacturers known to have used it
- Breguet
- many contemporary haute horlogerie manufacturers under licence-free modern implementations
Photographs
Photographs are illustrative examples of the type, not necessarily the exact object described. Verify details against the source file page.
Sources & references
- Daniels, G., The Art of Breguet
- Breguet company archive, published historical materials
Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.