PressClub South Africa · Article.
‘THE GREAT EIGHT PHANTOMS’ A ROLLS-ROYCE EXHIBITION ROLLS-ROYCE ANNOUNCES ‘FIELD MARSHAL MONTGOMERY’S PHANTOM III’ AS THE SECOND GREAT PHANTOM TO JOIN THE EXHIBITION
Thu Jun 15 01:00:00 CEST 2017 Press Release
At the end of July, ‘The Great Eight Phantoms’, a Rolls-Royce Exhibition, will gather together the greatest Phantoms from the last 92 years in Mayfair, London. The Exhibition will also welcome the next generation of this most celebrated luxury item, the new eighth generation Phantom.
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At the end of July, ‘The Great Eight Phantoms’, a Rolls-Royce
Exhibition, will gather together the greatest Phantoms from the last
92 years in Mayfair, London. The Exhibition will also welcome the
next generation of this most celebrated luxury item, the new eighth
generation Phantom. In the lead up to the opening of the Exhibition,
Rolls-Royce is announcing which Great Phantoms will journey to
London from around the world, telling the stories of these motor
cars, their fabled owners and the historical events they witnessed.
It is with great pleasure that the marque announces today that the
Rolls-Royce Phantom III of British Field Marshal Bernard Law
Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein will join the Exhibition.
Monty’s Triple
Although Field Marshal Bernard
Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein was nicknamed the
Spartan General due to his ascetic lifestyle, there was one area in
which he demanded the very best – his personal transport. And his
preference was for Rolls-Royce.
During World War Two, the Field Marshal had the use of three
Rolls-Royce Phantom IIIs.
The first of the Phantoms, a 1936 model coachbuilt by Freestone
& Webb, was owned by the head of English Talbot Motor Company,
Frederick Wilcock, before being requisitioned by the Ministry of War
Transport Section. Montgomery used it as his personal transport in the
run up to D-Day, and ferried Winston Churchill, General Eisenhower and
King George VI to D-Day planning sessions at his base in Southwick
House, Hampshire.
A keen believer in the power of the image, Montgomery used his
Rolls-Royce Phantom to communicate permanence, solidity and
reliability – a signal to his men that he was there to stay.
But it is the ‘Butler’ Phantom III, which will be present at the
Exhibition in London, which proved to be Montgomery’s favourite. This
particular Phantom was commissioned for Alan Samuel Butler, Chairman
of the De Havilland Aircraft Company, with bodywork by HJ Mulliner of
Chiswick. Its most striking feature was a front-sloping windscreen
that made the car 15 per cent more aerodynamically efficient than the
standard configuration. The motor car’s slippery nature was also
helped by the enclosed spare tyre and swept tail.
The ‘Butler’ Phantom III was Montgomery’s main official mode of
transport for many years visiting such eminent addresses as 10 Downing
Street, the War Office on Whitehall, the British Prime Minister’s
country residence Chequers, and military operations centres such as
Northwood in Hertfordshire and the NATO Supreme Headquarters Allied
Powers-Europe in Rocquencourt, near Versailles, France.
The Field Marshal kept the 'Butler' Phantom until 1962, by which
time it had also carried the Prime Ministers of Canada, Australia and
New Zealand, as well as taking Monty around the UK to historic
meetings, inspections and celebrations.
The ‘Butler’ Phantom III has recently undergone extensive
refurbishment at Rolls-Royce specialist P&A Wood in Essex, England.
‘The Great Eight Phantoms’ Exhibition will be the first and only
opportunity for members of the public to see this amazing Rolls-Royce
before it attends the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in the United
States in August, after which it will return to its current owner’s
private collection.
‘The Great Eight Phantoms’, a Rolls-Royce Exhibition, will take
place in Mayfair, London, at the end of July this year.
The BMW Group
With its four brands BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 31 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.
In 2016, the BMW Group sold approximately 2.367 million cars and 145,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax was approximately € 9.67 billion on revenues amounting to € 94.16 billion. As of 31 December 2016, the BMW Group had a workforce of 124,729 employees.
The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.
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