Eterna’s Influential Ancestral Lineage
1856: Dr. Girard & Schild founded in Grenchen, renamed Schild Fréres & Co. when Adolph Schild joined the company following Joseph Girard’s departure and later renamed Eterna.
1896: Adolph Shild departs to form A.Schild SA (ASSA), becoming one of the largest movement manufacturers in Switzerland.
1926: ASSA combines with A.Michel AG and Fabrique d’Horlogerie de Fontainmelon (FHF) to form Ebauches SA; soon afterward in 1928 ESA acquired highly regarded chronograph movement specialist Venus, becoming a dominant force in the Swiss watchmaking industry.
1930: Omega and Tissot form Société Suisse pour l’Industrie Horlogére SA (SSIH), acquiring esteemed chronograph movement specialist Lemania Watch Co. in 1932, becoming another dominant player in the Swiss watch industry.
1931: ESA becomes a founding member of Allgemeine Schweizerische Uhrenindustrie AG, Société Générale de l’Horlogerie Suisse in French (ASUAG), combining with numerous independent Swiss watch and component companies.
1932: Eterna joins ASUAG (and thus is reunited with ASSA), splitting off its movement production to the newly formed ETA, with Eterna focusing on manufacture of completed watches.
1944: ESA (now with ASUAG) acquires Valjoux, further establishing its chronograph movement capabilities; by 1966 Venus ceased independent production, with Valjoux taking over manufacture of many famous Venus designs.
1981-82: SSIH sells Lemania to SSIH investors including Piaget, renamed Nouvelle Lemania; soon after Heuer is acquired by Piaget-Nouvelle Lemania until its sale to TAG in 1985.
1983: Swatch Group is formed by the merger of ASUAG and SSIH.
1991: Nouvelle Lemania is acquired by Investcorp and wrapped into Breguet Group (which Investcorp previously acquired in 1987).
1999: Swatch Group acquires Breguet Group, bringing Lemania together with Eterna and its various spinoffs (including ASSA, ESA and ETA), and of course fellow chronograph movement specialists Venus and Valjoux (which by this time had been united under ESA).
1995: FAP Beteiligungs GmbH purchases Eterna, which produces the group’s Porsche Design watches.
2012: Eterna is purchased by International Volant Ltd, a subsidiary of China Haidian, currently known as Citychamp Watch & Jewellery Group Ltd.
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