THOMAS TOMPION

ENGLAND, 1639 – 1713

Horologist Thomas Tompion, known as the ‘Father of English Clockmaking’, was a pioneer in the field of timekeeping. He developed the recoil escapement for clocks and the cylinder escapement for watches, and his work greatly improved English clockmaking. Such was Tompion’s ground-breaking expertise, he was hired as the clockmaker for the new Royal Greenwich Observatory in London in 1676. During his lifetime, Tompion’s renowned workshop in Fleet Street produced around 650 clocks and 5,000 watches, and he also enjoyed the patronage of King Charles II, King William III and Queen Anne.