About A. Lange & Sohne

For 100 years, A. Lange & Söhne pocket watches were among the most coveted timepieces in the world - until World War II when A. Lange & Söhne was forced into a 50-year hiatus. In 1990, immediately after Germany was reunited, Ferdinand Adolph Lange’s great grandson Walter Lange re-established the Lange Brand.

Today, Lange is again crafting horological masterpieces “Made in Germany” - indeed,
A. Lange & Söhne watches are now every bit as precious and unique as in the grand old days.

1845 Ferdinand Adolph Lange established Saxon precision watchmaking industry in Glashütte, near Dresden in Germany.

1898 Kaiser William II ordered a magnificent A. Lange & Söhne pocket watch: it was a gift to Sultan Abdul Hamid II on the occasion of a visit to the Ottoman Empire.

1924 Walter Lange is born in Dresden. He will follow the footsteps of his forebears and learns the art of watchmaking.

1945 On the last day of World War II, Lange’s main production workshops are bombed.

1948 The company is seized and expropriated by the communist regime. Walter Lange is forced to flee his homeland. The family business is transformed into a people’s collective, the Lange brand disappears, and “A. Lange & Söhne” becomes a legend.

1990 German reunification occurs on 3 October 1990. Walter Lange returns to Glashütte. On 7 December, he re-registered the traditional trademark of A. Lange & Söhne worldwide.

1994 The comeback: Germany re-established its reputation as a source of high-grade horology when the first Lange watches of the new era are presented in Dresden.

2000 Lange joins Richemont Group.

For the future: Actual Lange watches are created in the traditional high standards of the earlier generations of pocket watches made by A. Lange & Söhne.