It is said that, in 1896, the Daimler firm established its first contacts with the English court. Invited by the house engineer, JS. Critchley, the Prince of Wales, future Edward VII, was enthusiastic about a test And he would repeat, already in the same palace, in 1899, with a three-liter 4-cylinder driven by John Walter Edward Douglas-Scott-Montagu, second Baron of Montagu of Beaulieu, well-known journalist and sportsman of the time, parliamentarian, close friend of the Prince of Wales and father of the founder of the famous museum that bears his name. Convinced, the future king ordered his first car, a two-cylinder Daimler with a phaeton body made by Hooper. And so this story begins, with Daimler as the only manufacturer to deliver cars to the five monarchs of the United Kingdom since 1901: Edward VII, George V, Edward VIII, George VI, and Queen Elizabeth II.
Even Rolls-Royce had to settle for second place for a time. After his marriage to Princess Elizabeth in 1948, Prince Philip of Edinburgh opened Rolls’ door with an order for a private car, a Phantom IV. Delivered in 1950, it became part of the official fleet in 1952 when Princess Elizabeth became queen. Despite this, the Daimler Straight Eight remained a favorite among the reigning monarchs of the time, such as Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, Mohammed Zahir Shah of Afghanistan, Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia or Prince Rainier of Monaco. .
This Daimler supremacy changed with the next generation of cars. The Rolls Phantom V prevailed, with commissions from five reigning monarchs: Elizabeth II, Hussein of Jordan, Emperor Hirohito of Japan, Hakim Isa ibn Salman Al Khalifa of Bahrain, and Emir Sabbah III of Kuwait, while the Daimler DR450 It was handed over to King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand and King Hussein of Jordan, the latter a passionate car enthusiast.
A total length of 5.5 meters and 8 seats
The Renaissance
But William Lyons, the creator of the Jaguar firm, wanted to regain the ‘throne’, and had the new Daimler DS420 launched the same year as the new Rolls-Royce Phantom VI, reestablishing Daimler’s supremacy in the royal courts, beginning with King Frederick IX of Denmark. The Danish monarch used the first Daimler limousine, actually a pre-production unit, on his visit to London in April 1968, and then commissioned a production model, in black paint, delivered in March 1970, thus starting a true story. of love at the Danish court for this model, to which we will return later.
To know the genesis of this Daimler DS420, we must go back to 1960. That year, Daimler is acquired by Jaguar, in turn bought by British Motor Corporation in 1966, and converted into the British Leyland conglomerate in 1968. BMC and Jaguar already had their own limousines before merging: the Vanden Plas Princes and Daimler DR450, respectively. To avoid internal competition, it was decided to make a single model, under the Daimler logo. Most of the engineering is done by Jaguar, whose 420 G model serves as a starting point. The lines are developed by the bodybuilder Vanden Plas, in a typically British style, especially regarding its rear with its countercurves and a prominent trunk, reminiscent of the ‘Razor Edge’ style of the 1940s.
In a first stage, it is Vanden Plas, in Kingsbury (London), who makes the Daimler limousine. And when it closes its doors in 1980, production continues in new specially fitted out premises at the Jaguar factory in Browns Lane, Coventry. A team of fifty people produced between four and five cars a week. And each of them had its peculiarities, depending on the demands of its buyer. The first order for the new model by a monarch was promoted by Daimler in a supplement to its sales catalog, which featured King Frederick IX’s new car in front of Christiansborg Palace.
Prince Rainier III of Monaco also received a DS420 in 1970, and he even personally picked up the car at the factory, to then be flown to Nice. Painted in a mix of gold, silver and pale green, it served the prince as a representation car until his death in 2005 and is on display today at the Monaco Automobile Museum.
The love of the Queen Mother
But the biggest fan of the DS420 was undoubtedly Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, mother of the current Queen Elizabeth II of England. Between 1970 and his death in 2002, he used five DS420s (delivered in 1970, 1978, 1983, 1986, and 1992, respectively). He even personally traveled to select the specific details and elements at the factory. All were painted in the royal black and burgundy color scheme. And at the express wish of the Queen Mother, after her death the last of them was given to the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust (JDHT), which today is in charge of its exhibition, either in the Gaydon museum or in classic meetings.
Since 1950, at the Swedish court, a Daimler limousine bodied by Hooper has been in service. When it came to replacing it, the DS420 was chosen. The black Daimler was finished in October 1987 and was subsequently handed over to King Carl XVI Gustaf. It is still in service today, but for minor official engagements, the Swedish monarch uses more modern saloons.
One of the DS420s of the English royal house with its characteristic burgundy and black paint.
King Hussein of Jordan commissioned a Daimler limousine in 1970. It was painted sand and served various functions, including taking the current King Abdullah II to school when he was young. It is currently on display at the Royal Amman Automobile Museum. King Yahya Petra of Malaysia was the first Far Eastern monarch to order the Daimler limousine, in 1977. He was followed in 1981 by the Sultan of Brunei, who had his in England, to use when traveling in the UK.
1984 was to be a special year for Daimler. With eight commissions from reigning monarchs around the world, the Straight Eight record was already broken. That year Queen Elizabeth II commissioned her first DS420 to serve primarily as transportation for her son, Prince Charles, and his young wife Lady Diana. Like the models supplied to the Queen Mother, it was painted black combined with royal burgundy.
In 1987, on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the reign of Elizabeth II, it was decided to rejuvenate its fleet of automobiles. The two Vanden Plas Princess limousines were retired, as did the Rolls-Royce Phantom IV Landaulet. Rolls-Royce delivered a Phantom VI with standard limousine bodywork and Daimler a DS420 Limousine with the update presented that year. The latter was initially intended to be used by Prince Charles and his wife Diana, as well as their sons, Princes William and Harry. But it also served Sarah Ferguson in official acts, and even the queen herself: you could tell who was inside by the shield she carried on the ceiling, behind a blue light. This 1987 Daimler would be the first to incorporate some aesthetic changes that characterized the last generation that was supplied to a royal court. In August 1988, Queen Elizabeth ordered her third DS420 limousine, to replace the 1984 one. Apart from a small detail inside, it had an identical configuration to the 1987 model.
The DS420 in landaulet bodywork, with the rear uncovered
The end
In the 90s the production of the DS 420 was gradually reduced until its cessation in 1992. Of the last four units produced, one was the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust, another for the Queen Mother, and a pair with identical equipment for Elizabeth II. Daimler’s limousine had outlived its rival Rolls-Royce Phantom VI by a year. Both models could no longer cope with the new demands in terms of crash tests and emissions regulations.
But the real wishes were different. Thus, both the 1992 models and the 1988 model are still serving Queen Elizabeth, or have been used at the weddings of Prince Edward, Prince William, Prince Harry and Princess Eugenie. There are even occasions when royals have been able to drive you, such as Prince William or Princess Anne.
Passion at the Danish court
After the death of King Frederick IX in 1972, both his daughter and successor, Queen Margaret II of Denmark and the dowager Queen Ingrid, wanted the use of the Daimler; and so another DS420 was ordered, delivered in 1974. It was identical to the first except for a small change in the design of the rear side windows. Queen Ingrid opted for the newer car and used it both privately and for official duties. A typical workday began with her grandchildren escorting her to school before heading to her public engagements. By 1986, the time had come for one of the two frequently used limousines to be replaced, but the newer car was replaced, not the older one, probably for sentimental reasons, allowing the Dowager Queen Ingrid to continue with the Daimler. that her husband, King Frederick IX, had commissioned. Queen Margaret II of Denmark would have liked a DS420 too, but where to get one after the end of production? Monarchs are not usually customers in the second-hand car market. But the Danish monarch was lucky to find a flawless specimen, just a few kilometers long, that a Swedish importer had kept in reserve since 1987. This 1987 Daimler limousine, which was probably originally intended for the King of Sweden, was delivered to the Queen of Sweden. Denmark in 1994.
The driver sat at the wheel, although some members of the royal houses also like to drive personally
Furthermore, the Daimler DS420 can claim a special royal record. The rear compartment allows up to six passengers, thanks to its carriers or small folding seats. There is no other car that has had the honor of transporting six members of a reigning royal family at the same time, except the Daimler limousine. For example, both children of Queen Margaret II of Denmark have four children and can be seen traveling together with their parents in the back of the Daimlers. Although they have also provided and do serve in embassies, courts, hotels, or wedding companies, if there is a model that can claim the name “Royal”, that is the Daimler DS420, today a much appreciated classic.
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