Ferdinand Berthoud was one of the most well known antique clock makers famous not only for his extraordinary time pieces but also for his “marine clocks”. He was, perhaps, one of the most influential clockmakers of his time, whose creativity and vast knowledge regarding a variety of things made him an important part of the horological circles of his era. Before becoming the influential clock maker that he still was till the present, he first became an apprentice to his brother, who was a pendulum maker. He was also a disciple of Julien Le Roy. He studied in Paris and later gained fame through his inquisitive mind regarding all things mechanical.
He was the first to try to incorporate the use of precious stones such as sapphires and rubies to his watches to add more style and uniqueness to his time pieces. Aside from watches, he also invented the self-compensating balance wheel, among others. He also made his own chronometer in 1754 and later on one of the few who tried (and almost succeeded) in determining the longitude of the world at sea. Although he failed by doing so a couple of times, his perseverance and determination to reach his goal made him close to reaching it and being successful towards the task.
He was also the author of some experimental researches such as The Essay in Clock making in 1763, The Treatise on Marine Clocks in 1773 and The History of Time Measurement in 1802. He served as clockmaker to the Navy in 1763 and was nominated later on as clockmaker to the King. He then became a Member of the Institute in 1795 as well as a part of the Royal Society in London. Perhaps what was most known among his achievements was his being Knighted of the Legion of Honour during the reign of the famous Napoleon 1.
Little is known about his personal life; what were greatly put into spotlight were his contributions not only to the arts (clockmaking) but also to the government and the navy. And although he did not succeed in his quests of the determining the longitude at sea, he was able to give his full potential by creating time pieces and machines that exceeded most of the timeworks of his generation.
He was later on succeeded by his more talented nephew, Pierre-Louis Berthoud, who was also a gifted and famed chronometer of his time. He served as his nephew’s inspiration to move forward into achieving his goals, which was (not surprisingly) somewhat similar to his uncle.
To some, he was a famous clockmaker who made tons of people happy by the clocks and watches that he created. To the members of horological circles and important congregations concerning clockmaking or otherwise, he was a person driven by his initiative to create “simple machines” that would be of use not only for the masses but would also serve its greater purpose of determining and trying to understand better the world in which we live.