BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
As 2025 draws to a close, we can look back on a year of watch brand/watch anniversary celebrations and think about all that we’ve seen. Lots of things have happened this year, and there have been loads of releases to talk about, but Breguet’s watches have been some of the real highlights, so it was great to get hands-on with most of their lineup.
What you’ll see below is a set of “mini hands-on” articles on the watches I have seen in person. Not all of the watches were available, which is why things like the Classique Régulateur à Pivot Magnétique, the Classique Double Tourbillon Haute Joaillerie, the Expérimentale 1 watch and those fabulous minute repeating watches we looked at recently are not here – although we’ve written about nearly all of them separately. Also, if you missed it, you can find my hands-on of the Classique Souscription ref. 2025 here.
Tradition Seconde Rétrograde ref. 7035
This new version of the Tradition followed in the footsteps of the Classique Souscription in May. Following the Souscription’s release, the cards were on the table, and we knew that Breguet was doing a lot more than just writing ‘250th anniversary’ on the same old watches it had made before. Ironically, the Tradition Seconde Rétrograde 7035 is a version of the Tradition Seconde Rétrograde Breguet had been making before, but a lot more work has gone into it than one might expect.
The movement is made of Breguet gold and provides an elegant backdrop for the modern-day icon that is the Tradition. The calibre 505SR’s layout is based on pocket watch movements made by Abraham-Louis Breguet, which is why the front has that distinctive appearance featuring the escapement, wheels, and mainspring barrel on show beneath the elegant blue time dial. If you’re a fan of Breguet’s Tradition watches, then you’ll likely be a fan of this, as it wears beautifully and looks attractive, again, thanks to that unique layout.
The blue leather strap is of very high quality, and at 38mm x 12.6mm it’s a proper dress watch through and through, though with plenty of character. These are limited to just 250 examples at a price of $56,800 a piece.
Type XX Chronographes (ref. 2075BH/99/398 and 2075BH/G9/398)
Stepping away from the firm dress watch formality and into the realm of “elegant kinda dressy sports watches” – if such a category exists – we have the two Type XX Chronographe watches released in May as well. These watches are built on the Type XX piece introduced in 2023, which replaced the elegant but ancient Type XX before it.
The Type XX with the black dial (ref. 2075BH/99/398) is the more classical aviator’s Breguet watch. Despite a relatively small case size of 38.3mm x 13.2mm, the watch is extremely legible, as one would expect from a pilot’s watch. The silver dialled version (ref. 2075BH/G9/398), a 250-piece limited edition, is a little less readable at a glance but still an attractive watch. Both pieces come with a Breguet gold case and a supple leather strap, which is black calfskin leather on the black dial variant and a very appealing gradient blue calfskin leather on the silver version.
Both watches feature manually wound movements based on the self-winding calibre 728, introduced in 2023. The black dial version features the calibre 7279, with a 15-minute chronograph counter, while the silver dial version features the calibre 7278, with a 30-minute chronograph seconds display. I like the harkening back to originality done here, but as there are no other subdials tracking hours or anything else, Breguet probably should have put the calibre 7278 with its 30-minute chronograph subdial in both watches. Both movements feature Breguet gold plates with an engraving of the Breguet No. 19 aeroplane, which made the first Paris-to-New York flight in 1930. These movements both have 5Hz beat rates with 60-hour power reserves, as well as flyback chronographs, giving them specs very similar to Blancpain’s Air Command watches. I did ask about this, and according to a watchmaker from Breguet whom I spoke to, they are separately developed movements, albeit with similar numbers. The price of the non-limited black dial variant is $43,500, and the limited-edition silver dial variant costs $45,200.
Marine Hora Mundi ref. 5555
Perhaps my favourite of Breguet’s complications that doesn’t involve a tourbillon is the Hora Mundi. I can’t think of a reason why I’d need a watch that can instantaneously switch between two times in two time zones at the press of a buttery-smooth pusher. I’m no jetsetter, but I’ll be damned if I said I didn’t want one. The Marine Hora Mundi ref. 5555 takes what I love about the Hora Mundi watches and kicks it up a notch.
At 43.9mm x 13.8mm, it’s the biggest of the pieces we’re looking at today, so it’s not for the faint of heart. Luckily, it comes on a particularly wide navy blue alligator leather strap, which is very comfortable and helps to spread the mass evenly (I didn’t bring my scales with me, but I imagine it weighs between 180 and 200 grams). The dial’s design is based on NASA’s ‘Black Marble’ photo, taken of Earth at night as seen from space. Phosphorescent enamel paint is hand-applied to the dial to recreate the glow of the cities, and it really does work well when seen in person.
The self-winding calibre 77F1 is visible through the caseback, though it looks pretty small compared to the Breguet gold case (which is 100m water-resistant). 384 components go into the 77F1, most of them to do with the watch’s ability to instantaneously flick between the home time and a different time zone, which you program into it. The watch then “remembers” the other time zone, and when you use the pusher at 8 o’clock on the case (which just so happens to be about the smoothest pusher ever on a watch), it switches the hour hand, the city display ring, the day/night indicator, and the date if applicable. It’s not a new complication from Breguet, but to this day it’s one of their most intriguing. Limited to 50 pieces, one costs $116,200.
Classique Tourbillon Sidéral 7255
Saving my favourite for last, we have the Classique Tourbillon Sidéral 7255. This watch is exquisite to look at in photos and even better in person. The aventurine enamel dial in dark blue sparkles like the night sky and works so well when combined with the colour of the Breguet gold case, hands, and indices.
The main draw is the apparently floating ‘mystery’ tourbillon at 6 O’clock, called so because there appear to be no bridges or other devices supporting the intricate workings of the tourbillon. This is, of course, clever engineering at work rather than dark magic. Breguet uses a transparent piece of sapphire crystal as a component connecting the tourbillon assembly and the rest of the calibre 187M1. The movement itself is 4.8mm thick and yet has a power reserve of 50 hours, and the case measures 38mm x 10.2mm, meaning it can be worn anywhere, and it’s easy to read the time on it too. Despite this, it still feels like a larger watch than it is, which appeals to me. If you’re a bit like me and you’re a little forgetful, you won’t have any trouble finding this piece, as the escapement is surprisingly audible. It’s not disturbingly loud, unless you’re very sensitive to the sound of ticking clocks, but you can hear it running.Â
These are limited to 50 pieces and are priced at $226,000 each.Â
I’m really pleased that Breguet went above and beyond for their 250th anniversary. Judging by the releases that we’ve seen and the positive messages coming from CEO Gregory Kissling, we could be witnessing the rejuvenation of one of the greatest names in horology. I hope the brand will continue its inventive streak following the release of the Expérimentale 1 piece, which was just spectacular. I’ve said it before, I know, but Breguet’s lineage traces back to one of the most influential and important horologists to have ever lived, so they need to continue paying tribute to that by taking mechanical watchmaking forward with new concepts and new inventions. Of course, doing all that isn’t cheap, so they also need to make sure their watches are attractive both to their current clientele who might be looking to buy again and to newer buyers who seem to be chasing trends and Instagrammable moments. Luckily, those buyers also tend to like authenticity in the products they’re looking at (although not always in themselves), and Breguet’s long history is a treasure trove to be dived into.
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