Auguste Agassiz began working in Saint-Imier, Switzerland, for a Comptoir (a trader of watch parts in 1832, and began the legacy of Longines when he and two associates took over the business the following year. The brand wouldn't be officially registered until the 1880s, after expanding their business, helping to industrialize Swiss watchmaking culture, and producing their first movements.
In 1919, Longines was named the official supplier for the International Aeronautical Federation, a move that would link the company to aviators for decades to come. Four years after Charles Lindbergh's non-stop transatlantic flight of 1927, the company began to produce the watch designed by the aviator for air navigation -- the Lindbergh Hour Angle Watch, which is still produced today.
The company's first digital watch, the 1972 Longines Liquid Crystal Display, was also an industry first, and in 1979, they introduced the Feuille d'Or, a quartz watch just 1.98mm thick. Longines has had a hand in timekeeping for aviation competitions, baseball and basketball, equestrian sports, Formula One racing, tennis, and the Tour de France.
The brand was acquired by the Swatch Group in 1983. Their lines include the DolceVita and PrimaLuna collections, the Longines Master Collection, the diving watches of the HydroConquest line, and the Heritage Collection.
