When Rolls met Royce

The year was 1904. Mr Charles Stewart Rolls just met Mr Frederick Henry Royce and together they decided to embark on a journey that would change the automobile industry forever. 

 Coming from completely opposing social backgrounds, this partnership was the most unlikely for the time; Charles Rolls came from an aristocratic family and Frederick Royce’s came from a working class background.


Together they started working on the first Rolls Royce, the Rolls Royce 10HP which was unveiled in December that same year.

2 years later Rolls Royce Limited was born. The need for new premises was apparent: they opted for a site in Derby (England, UK), which was chosen because of the cheap electricity. The production started in 1908. Royce’s main task was building the cars and it was Rolls’ job to sell them.

Mr Rolls had a real passion for thrill seeking, which lead to his death on the 12^th July 1910 in a tragic Biplane accident. He was the first Briton to die from a flying accident; he was only 32 years old when he died.

As was common in those days, one of the main and most exciting ways to promote cars was by entering them in races.

In 1921 a new factory opened, this time in the states, in order to meet demands. The factory was based in Springfield, Massachusetts.  the factory only operated for 10 and had to close down due to the Great Depression.

One of the main changes happened in 1931 when Rolls Royce acquired their formal rivals; Bentley. The Depression made it impossible for Bentley to continue manufacturing cars.

From 1931 until 2002 it was very noticeable that Bentley was made by Rolls Royce because they were identical except for the radiator grill and some little details.

1933 brought another tragic day for Rolls Royce with the death of Mr Royce, who died at the respectable age of 70 in his own house. After his death the Rolls Royce emblem changed from red to black, not due to his death but because he believed that this would give the car a slicker and smoother look.

After the Second World War ended, Rolls Royce got back to building cars; during the Second World War Rolls Royce were obliged to build Airplane engines. This gave birth to the 1946 Silver Wraith!

This article was put together by Cedric Jans from Phantom Scotland; experts in luxury car rentals.

http://www.phantomscotland.co.uk