Louis George - Watchmaker To The King

Watchmaker To The King

Louis George was a talented watchmaker and artist. He did not just create watches but real gems of watch making. His posh watches enchanted the audience and recovered the respect of the Berlin nobility and solvent bourgeoisie. His business flourished and he was capable to open a second shop in the same street opposite the royal city palace.

Located at Berlin he provided watches for three generations of Prussians kings:

• Frederick II. (the Great) King of Prussia
• his nephew and successor Frederick William II. King of Prussia
• his nephew and successor Frederick William III. King of Prussia

Other German monarchs appreciated the masterly crafted clocks and watches too. A long case clock with an organ movement formerly owned by Georg I. Duke of Saxe-Meiningen is preserved on castle of Elisabethenburg at Meiningen. It can be visited at the art collection of the Meininger Museen at the Schloss Elisabethenburg Inventory-No. II 1908, height 2,93 m. approx. 1790; watch dial reads: „Ls. GEORGE HORLOGER DU ROY“ / „A BERLIN“. The curator M. Ruszwurm reports that clock is equipped with a precious flute watch (also called organ watch).

A console clock with an attached flute work is exhibited at the Schloss Sanssouci at Potsdam.

• Louis George long case clock of Georg I. Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

• Clock dial of a Louis George console clock at Sanssouci

• Louis George alcove clock with an attached bronze flute work, auctioned 2005 in Paris

• Table flute clock by Matthias Naeschke

• Louis George lever watch, face

• Louis George lever watch, back

• Louis George pocket watch, made in Berlin about 1810, photo: Dr.Ilk, Munich, Germany

• Enty of the address of Louis George at the Berlin address book of 1769