ROLLS-ROYCE IN INDIA , BIRTH OF DAWN

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars owes much to India. The sub-continent has been the ultimate destination of many of the early cars, including the 40/50hp Silver Ghosts and Phantoms built during the first half of the twentieth century. The extremes of climate and terrain offered the perfect proving ground for that which was a relatively new form of machine and transport. To gain a reputation for unequalled reliability and luxury amongst the royalty and rich of India was praise indeed. The number of surviving Rolls-Royce motor cars from those pioneer days remain as a testimony to their success in that era.

The connections with Rolls-Royce in India could well have begun when the parents of the Hon. Charles Stuart Rolls, Lord and Lady Llangattock, attended the 1902/03 celebrations of the Coronation Durbar in Delhi, two years before the formation of Rolls-Royce Ltd. They must have told their son Charles, who was selling French cars in London at the time, of the burgeoning interest in motoring amongst the fabulously wealthy Indian potentates.

Amongst their many distinguished fellow guests at the Delhi Durbar were several motoring enthusiasts, such as Sir Charles and Lady Cayzer. Sir Charles had introduced the delights of motoring in his 1901 Arrol Johnstone to Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy, a leading Parsee and Bombay philanthropist, whilst visiting London.

Just previously, Charles Rolls’ friend and pioneer motorist Montague Graham-White had accompanied H.H. The Maharaja of Cooch Behar to India in November 1902, taking with him several cars, probably bringing the first automobiles to India.

A scant four years later, ‘The Motor Car in India’ was published in Bombay, and listed seventy car makers and their selling agents, including the first mention of a Rolls-Royce 30hp 4-cylinder car being available from C.S. Rolls & Co., 14 Conduit Street, London.

In 1907, an English businessman with interests in India took a 40/50hp to Bombay. The car christened ‘Pearl of the East’ was to participate in the 620-mile Reliability Trials, spread over six mountain passes of the Ghats between Bombay and Kolhapur. The Rolls-Royce performed without fault, and in winning its class was awarded the Mysore Cup. It also gained first prize at the Bombay Motor Show, with its detachable-top limousine coachwork by Joseph Cockshoot of Manchester. H.H. The Maharaja of Gwalior purchased the car and the resultant publicity did much to enhance the reputation and sales of the model that became widely known as the ‘Silver Ghost’.

Charles Rolls’ mother, Lady Llangattock returned to Delhi for the 1911 Durbar, at which King George V was crowned Emperor of India. At that time, Rolls-Royce had already established a keen following and eight identical Silver Ghosts with landaulette coachwork were ordered for use at the Imperial Delhi Durbar.

In the same year, a team of drivers from Rolls-Royce Ltd., Derby, was sent out to India with J. Inman Emery and S.G. Wheeler, to establish an Indian Repair Depot on Mayo Road (today Bhaurao Patil Marg), Fort, Bombay. Mr. Emery carried out an extensive publicity tour to Kashmir in a 1910 Silver Ghost trials car, which was fitted with ‘Roi-des-Belges’-style coachwork by Barker and named ‘Jewel of Asia’. In December 1912, G.C. Gnapp was appointed special representative in India for Rolls-Royce Ltd. With staff from the new Bombay Depot he conducted an extensive tour of northern India, in several trials cars, starting from Gwalior on the 14^th March 1913. From there the motor cars proceeded to Dholpur, Delhi, Patiala, Nabha, and Kapurthala. One such trials car was the Silver Ghost tourer that was bought by H.H. The Maharaja of Patiala. In “Indian Motor News” Gnapp wrote about his 1,600-mile trial: “Arriving at Patiala, I found His Highness already in possession of four Rolls-Royce cars. And on my return from Kapurthala I found this number increased to five, representing absolutely the finest fleet of cars in India.”

The Royal Visit to India of H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, in 1921/22, encouraged many of the Princely States of India to order a number of Rolls-Royce motor cars for the occasion. Several princes ordered five or more Silver Ghosts, namely the Nawab of Rampur and the Maharajas of Bharatpur and Patiala. On his visit to Patiala State in February 1922, the Maharaja himself drove the Prince of Wales in his Silver Ghost. With its high-flared wings and pointed wheel discs, this polished-aluminium skiff torpedo body was surely one of the most flamboyant examples of Barker coachwork seen on a Rolls-Royce chassis.

The Maharaja of Patiala went on to own a total of forty-four Rolls-Royce motor cars before his death in 1938 – certainly the company’s best pre-war client. Such was his enthusiasm for the marque, His Highness employed G. Harold Whyman, who had worked in the Rolls-Royce Derby repair department as chief engineer, a position he held for six years.

Another famous Rolls-Royce owner was Sir Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji, Maharaja Jam Sahib of Nawanagar, also known as ‘Ranji’, one of the world’s greatest cricket players and, later, a ruler of his native state in India. He owned eight Rolls-Royces as part of his impressive fleet of 450 automobiles!

In pre-war British India the majority of coachwork for the Rolls-Royce chassis was supplied by Barker or by Hooper & Co. and to a lesser degree by Windovers. Coachwork was also erected by acclaimed Indian coachbuilders in Calcutta such as Dykes & Co. and Steuart & Co., who held the Royal Warrant to the Viceroy, the French Motor Car & Electric Co. and Simpson & Co. of Madras, to name but a few.

The Rolls-Royce chassis, with its inherent strength and rigidity enabled these coachbuilders to produce bodies that catered for many different tasks. Formal limousines, rakish tourers, open tiger-shooting cars, transport for wives, for servants, even religious artefacts. Some designs were bold, some subdued and some garish, but all built with care and attention that gave a long life of service to be enjoyed by their owners.

The Rolls-Royce sales department recorded a vast array of special silver and gold fittings, for delivery to ‘Indian’ cars. Purdah glass in the formal limousines, sirens, thermos flasks, Stephen Grebel hunting lamps, gun racks, ivory steering wheels and control knobs, were some of the special requests that Rolls-Royce and their coachbuilders were happy to comply with. Even a servant’s seat was occasionally fitted to the near side running board. The variety and choice of accessories was amazing and no trouble was spared in providing the customer with his every requirement. It was usual to finish the bonnet in polished aluminium to prevent the blistering heat from cracking the paintwork, with louvers often specified to assist the escape of engine heat. The finishing touches of flag staffs and emblazoned heraldry added to the individual character of the impressive appearance of the car.

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, the respect and enthusiasm for Rolls-Royce cars remained strong, the large 40/50hp cars being joined by the smaller 20hp of 1922 and its successors, ending with the Wraith of 1938. In 1931, Rolls-Royce bought Bentley Motors Ltd. The name of Bentley was appended to a smaller, faster, generally more sporting car than other Rolls-Royce models. It was a success with customers who wanted a more ‘personal’ vehicle to add to their garages.

As the threat of World War II became a reality, the importation of cars ceased and the Bombay and Calcutta depots were sadly closed. Post-war India emerged into a different climate with Independence proclaimed in 1947. Sales of the new models made a good start, with the Gaekwar of Baroda ordering six Bentleys and the Maharaja of Mysore, acquiring nine Bentleys and eight Rolls-Royce Silver Wraiths. But times were changing, and the wealth of India was being redistributed.

After the war, it was the men of commerce and industry who would be the new owners of motor cars from Rolls-Royce. However, expensive cars were low on the list of priorities, whilst the new India was emerging. It is only now that the rewards of perseverance, dedication, vision and sheer hard work are enabling the men and women of India to realize their intuitive appreciation for craftsmanship and design without compromise, in the ownership of the Rolls-Royce Phantom.

The Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost was the ideal luxury car for the India of nearly a century ago, and the Goodwood-built Phantom continues that enviable reputation for the India of today. No expense had been spared and no compromise made to produce a car that both inspires and cossets its driver and passengers. The engine is virtually silent in operation, yet will accelerate the car faster than many sports cars. The braking system will reduce speed with a feeling of effortless and certain control. Likewise, the steering system gives the driver a sense of total command of the car, whatever the speed or road surface. An almost uncanny intimate awareness of the road surface is transmitted to the steering wheel, without any sensation of roughness or vibration at all. The superb interior with infinitely variable seat positions, climate control and entertainment facility, make traffic jams lose their irritation and high-speed touring becomes a pastime to anticipate with delight.

The Phantom is a car for all seasons, both in terms of climate and driving usage. It is doubtful if any other car can match it for being the perfect chauffeur-driven limousine. Sir Henry Royce is recorded as having said, almost a century ago, “The quality remains, long after the price is forgotten.”

The introduction of Ghost in 2009 saw Rolls-Royce Motor Cars revive a tradition that began with the seminal trials seamlessly completed by ‘The Pearl of India’ and its contemporaries in the early twentieth century. Built to strike the perfect balance between driver dynamic and peerless Rolls-Royce comfort, Ghost has won the favour of a new breed of customer, in doing so capturing the imagination of the Indian elite. Designed as a vision of simplicity, Ghost appeals to an owner who wishes to experience their motor car both as driver and passenger. Powered by the acclaimed Rolls-Royce 6.6 litre twin turbo charged V12 engine, the driver is spirited away in a hallmark surge of effortless power. A combination of cutting edge suspension, chassis and brake technology ensures the car remains poised when faced with India’s most challenging road conditions. This perfect balance of ride comfort, power in abundance and sumptuous luxury epitomises the attributes that endeared the Maharajas to the legendry models of the pre-war era.

Standing with the marque’s pinnacle, Phantom, the success of Ghost emphatically signals the return to something of a spiritual home for the world’s finest maker of luxury cars.

In 2013, the most powerful and dynamic Rolls-Royce built to date – Wraith - was launched in India. The expansion of the model range has coincided with an expansion in the number of authorised Rolls-Royce dealerships in India to five. Commencing with Navnit Motors in Mumbai (2005), the brand expanded with Select Cars in New Delhi (2008) and Chandigarh (2012), Kun Motoren in Hyderabad (2011). 2012 also saw the appointment of Navnit Motors as dealer for Ahmedabad (2012).

BESPOKE ROLLS-ROYCE MOTOR CARS

1934 Rolls-Royce Phantom II ‘Star Of India’

Rolls-Royce cars were favourites of the Maharajahs of India. The rulers of the pre-independence were inclined to spend on clothes, jewellery, royal palaces and fine motor cars. And so it was in 1934 that His Highness Dharmendrasinhji Lakhajiraj, the Thakore Sahib (Lord) of Rajkot, decided to replace his 20-year-old Rolls-Royce with a new one – not just any Rolls-Royce, but with one that has become renowned as the “Star of India,” named for the famous 563-carat star sapphire. This car was also known as The Phantom-II 40/50 HP Continental, an “all-weather convertible”.

Other famous Rolls-Royce convertibles in India

·         The 1920 Silver Ghost (55CW) Barker Tourer.  Built for Prince Jaisinhrao, it is finished in French grey with dark green lines with dark green leather.

·         1929 Phantom II (70WJ) Barker Tourer: Finished in ivory and blue with blue leather upholstery, this was an India Trials Car sold to Prince Pratapsinhrao.  It includes a recess for a revolver in the off-side front door

1938 Phantom III (3-DL-96) Park Ward Tourer:  Originally supplied to the Yuvaraja Saheb Mallendra Sinhji of Morvi. Its second owner was The Prince of Baroda. The Rolls-Royce Phantom III was the final large pre-war Rolls-Royce,  replacing the Phantom II. It was the only V12 Rolls-Royce until the 1998 introduction of the Silver Seraph