Walter Owen Bentley, MBEThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions...
(16 September 1888 – 2 August 1971) was the founder of
Bentley MotorsBentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer of automobiles founded on 18 January 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley . Mr. Bentley had been previously known for his range of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later versions of the Sopwith Camel...
. He was often known as W. O. Bentley or just "W.O."
He attended
Clifton CollegeClifton College is an independent school in Clifton, Bristol, England, founded in 1862. In its early years it was notable for emphasising science in the curriculum, and for being less concerned with social elitism, e.g. by admitting day-boys on equal terms and providing a dedicated boarding house...
in
BristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, west of London, and east of Cardiff.With an estimated population of 416,400 for the unitary authority in mid-2007, and a surrounding urban area with an estimated 561,500 residents, it is England's sixth, and...
in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
from 1902 until 1905 when, at the age of 16, he left to start work as an apprentice railway engineer with the
Great Northern RailwayThe Great Northern Railway was a British railway company established by the London & York Railway Act of 1846.The main line ran from London via Hitchin, Peterborough, and Grantham, to York, with a loop line from Peterborough to Bawtry via Boston and Lincoln, and branch lines to Sheffield and...
at
DoncasterDoncaster is a large town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is located about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...
in
YorkshireYorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the British Isles. Because of its great size, functions were increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have been subject to periodic reform. Throughout these changes, Yorkshire has continued to be recognised as...
. During this time he also experimented with motorcycles, riding and racing Quadrant, Rex, and
IndianIndian Motorcycle is the oldest motorcycle marque brand currently in production in the United States of America. Indian motorcycles were manufactured from 1901 to 1953 by a company in Springfield, Massachusetts initially known as the Hendee Manufacturing Company but which was later renamed the...
models.
Walter Owen Bentley, MBEThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions...
(16 September 1888 – 2 August 1971) was the founder of
Bentley MotorsBentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer of automobiles founded on 18 January 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley . Mr. Bentley had been previously known for his range of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later versions of the Sopwith Camel...
. He was often known as W. O. Bentley or just "W.O."
Before Bentley Motors
He attended
Clifton CollegeClifton College is an independent school in Clifton, Bristol, England, founded in 1862. In its early years it was notable for emphasising science in the curriculum, and for being less concerned with social elitism, e.g. by admitting day-boys on equal terms and providing a dedicated boarding house...
in
BristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, west of London, and east of Cardiff.With an estimated population of 416,400 for the unitary authority in mid-2007, and a surrounding urban area with an estimated 561,500 residents, it is England's sixth, and...
in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
from 1902 until 1905 when, at the age of 16, he left to start work as an apprentice railway engineer with the
Great Northern RailwayThe Great Northern Railway was a British railway company established by the London & York Railway Act of 1846.The main line ran from London via Hitchin, Peterborough, and Grantham, to York, with a loop line from Peterborough to Bawtry via Boston and Lincoln, and branch lines to Sheffield and...
at
DoncasterDoncaster is a large town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is located about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...
in
YorkshireYorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the British Isles. Because of its great size, functions were increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have been subject to periodic reform. Throughout these changes, Yorkshire has continued to be recognised as...
. During this time he also experimented with motorcycles, riding and racing Quadrant, Rex, and
IndianIndian Motorcycle is the oldest motorcycle marque brand currently in production in the United States of America. Indian motorcycles were manufactured from 1901 to 1953 by a company in Springfield, Massachusetts initially known as the Hendee Manufacturing Company but which was later renamed the...
models. He completed his apprenticeship in the summer of 1910. He spent a brief period studying theoretical engineering at
King's College LondonKing's College London is a British higher education institution and co-founding constituent college of the University of London. Founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, its royal charter is predated, in England, only by those of the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge...
, and a period with the National Motor Cab Company where he was in charge of cab maintenance, Bentley in 1912 joined his brother, Horace Millner ("H.M.") Bentley, in a company called "Bentley and Bentley" selling French
DFPDoriot, Flandrin & Parant was a French car maker based in Courbevoie, Seine between 1906 and 1926.Auguste Doriot and Ludovic Flandrin had both worked for Peugeot and then Clément-Bayard before setting up their own car making company in 1906...
cars. Dissatisfied with their performance, W.O. designed new aluminium alloy pistons and a tuned
camshaftA camshaft is a shaft to which a cam is fastened or of which a cam forms an integral part.-History:An early cam featuring a camshaft was built into Hellenistic water-driven automata from the 3rd century BC. The camshaft was later described in Iraq by Al-Jazari in 1206...
for the DFP engine, taking several records at
BrooklandsBrooklands was a 2.75 miles motor racing circuit and airfield built near Weybridge in Surrey, England. It opened in 1907, and was the world's first purpose-built motorsport venue. The circuit hosted its last race in 1939, and was also one of Britain's first airfields...
in 1913 and 1914. During
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
, he was a captain in the
Royal Naval Air ServiceThe Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps to form a new service , the Royal Air Force...
, where he played a major role in improving the design and manufacture of
ClergetThe Clerget was an early rotary aircraft engine. Manufactured in both Great Britain and France, it was used on such aircraft as the Sopwith Camel....
engines for the
Sopwith CamelThe Sopwith Camel was a British World War I single-seat fighter biplane introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It had a combination of a short-coupled fuselage, heavy, powerful rotary engine and concentrated fire from twin synchronized machine guns...
and the
Sopwith SnipeThe Sopwith 7F.1 Snipe was a British single-seat biplane fighter of the Royal Air Force . It was designed and built by the Sopwith Aviation Company during the First World War.-Design and development:...
aircraft. These were known as the
BR1The Bentley BR.1 was a British rotary aircraft engine of the First World War. Designed by the motor car engine designer W. O. Bentley, the BR.1 was built in large numbers, being one of the main powerplants of the Sopwith Camel.-Design and development:...
(
Bentley Rotary 1) and
BR2The Bentley BR.2 was a British rotary aircraft engine developed during the First World War by the motor car engine designer W. O. Bentley from his earlier Bentley BR.1...
and were made by
HumberHumber is a British automobile marque which could date its beginnings to Thomas Humber's bicycle company founded in 1868. In 1931 it was taken over by the Rootes brothers to become part of the Rootes Group. The range focused on luxury models, such as the Humber Super Snipe.Thomas Humber went to...
. For this he was awarded an
MBEThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions...
, and an award of £8,000 from the Commission for Awards to Inventors.
Bentley the manufacturer
After the war, he founded his own motor car company,
Bentley MotorsBentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer of automobiles founded on 18 January 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley . Mr. Bentley had been previously known for his range of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later versions of the Sopwith Camel...
, in 1920. W.O. designed a high-tech four-cylinder engine and sturdy chassis, the
Bentley 3 LitreThe 3 Litre was the sports car that put Bentley on the automotive map. It was a large car compared to the tiny, lightweight Bugattis then dominating racing, but its innovative technology and strength made up for its weight...
. Its durability earned widespread acclaim. The 3 Litre won the
24 hours of Le MansThe 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, Sarthe, France...
in 1924 and following models repeated this each year from 1927 through 1930. His motto was, "To build a good car, a fast car, the best in class." His racing manager was an old school friend, Richard Sidney Witchell. Bentley set many records at Le Mans:
"Bentley Boy"The Bentley Boys were a group of wealthy British motorists who drove Bentley sports cars to victory in the 1920s and kept the marque's reputation for high performance alive...
Woolf BarnatoJoel Woolf Barnato was a British financier and racing driver, one of the "Bentley Boys" of the 1920s. He achieved three consecutive wins out of three entries in the 24 Hours of Le Mans race.-Biography:...
was the only driver to win on all three times he entered, giving him the highest victory percentage. Bentley's racing success failed to keep the motor car company afloat, and W.O. was forced to sell a majority share to raise cash. The "Bentley Boys" came up with the money, with Woolf Barnato, heir to Kimberley diamond magnate
Barney BarnatoBarney Barnato , born Barnet Isaacs, was a British Randlord, one of the entrepreneurs who gained control of diamond mining, and later gold mining, in South Africa from the 1870s.- Background :...
, becoming the majority shareholder. W.O. stayed on to design another generation of cars, the six-cylinder 6½ Litre, but his control was slipping. Against his wishes, Barnato allowed the supercharged "
BlowerThe Bentley 4½ Litre is a British sports car built by Bentley Motors. Its supercharged variant is also known as the Blower Bentley. Famous for his statement "there's no replacement for displacement", Walter Owen Bentley upped the displacement of the Bentley 3 Litre in 1926 to produce the 4½ Litre...
" version of his 4½ Litre car to be built, but durability was poor and the car failed on the track.
Sale of Bentley Motors
The Wall Street Crash affected Bentley's business greatly, especially as the company had just launched the
8 LitreThe 8 Litre was the largest and most luxurious Bentley luxury car made prior to the purchase of the marque by Rolls-Royce. It used a massive 8 L straight-6 engine and rode on a long 144 in or longer 156 in wheelbase, making it the largest car produced in the United Kingdom up to...
as a grand car for the ultra-rich. After unsuccessful attempts to save the company, Barnato and Bentley were forced to sell their company. The company of D. Napier and Son had manufactured cars in England until 1925 when they had shifted focus to aero engines; they were now anxious to return to the motor car market and entered friendly negotiations to purchase Bentley, and W.O. began work designing his next car for the new company. In November of 1931, the British Central Equitable Trust, an anonymous holding company, turned in a surprise last-minute bid to purchase Bentley, out-bidding Napier. This holding company turned out to be a front for arch-rival
Rolls-RoyceRolls-Royce Limited was a British car and, from 1914, aero-engine manufacturing company founded by Charles Stewart Rolls and Henry Royce on 15 March 1906 as the result of a partnership formed in 1904. In 1971, Rolls-Royce was crippled by the development of the advanced RB211 jet engine, resulting...
, who had been disturbed by the 8 Litre's encroachment upon the market turf of their
Phantom IIThe Phantom II replaced the New Phantom in Rolls-Royce's offerings in 1929.-Description:It shared the 7.7 L pushrod-OHV straight-6 engine from its predecessor, being the last large six-cylinder Rolls. The engine was unitary with a 4-speed manual transmission...
. W.O. remained with the company until 1935, working on the
3½ LitreThe 3½ Litre was presented to the public in September 1933, shortly after the death of Henry Royce, and was the first new Bentley model following Rolls-Royce's acquisition of the Bentley brand in 1931...
and other models; but Rolls-Royce closed the racing department, and Bentley eventually decided to go.
After Bentley Motors
Bentley moved with the majority of the racing department staff to
LagondaLagonda is a British car manufacturer, founded as a company in 1906 in Staines, Middlesex by the American Wilbur Gunn . He named the company after a river near the town of his birth Springfield, Ohio...
, which had recently been saved from
receivershipReceivership is used to denote a situation in which an institution or enterprise is being held by a receiver. In law, a receiver is a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights." Various types of receiver...
by Alan Good. There, Bentley again went racing, and his
LagondaLagonda is a British car manufacturer, founded as a company in 1906 in Staines, Middlesex by the American Wilbur Gunn . He named the company after a river near the town of his birth Springfield, Ohio...
MG45 Rapide won Le Mans in 1935. His 4480 cc
V12A V12 engine is a V engine with 12 cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of six cylinders, usually at a 60° angle to each other, but in some cases at a wider or narrower angle, with all 12 pistons driving a common crankshaft....
engine was a masterpiece of engineering, developing 180 hp (134 kW).
After
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Lagonda was bought by
David BrownSir David Brown was an English entrepreneur, managing director of his family firm David Brown Limited and one time owner of shipbuilders Vosper Thornycroft.-Early life and David Brown Ltd.:...
, who combined it with
Aston MartinAston Martin Lagonda Limited is a British manufacturer of luxury sports cars, based in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The company name is derived from the name of one of the company's founders, Lionel Martin, and from the Aston Hill speed hillclimb near Aston Clinton in BuckinghamshireFrom 1994 until 2007...
. Brown had purchased Lagonda largely to gain Bentley's engineering expertise, and immediately placed his 2.6 L
straight-6The straight-six engine or inline-six engine is a six cylinder internal combustion engine with all six cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft...
engine under the bonnet of his
DB2The DB2 is a sports car sold by Aston Martin from 1950 through 1953. It was a major advancement over the 2-Litre Sports model it replaced, with a dual overhead cam straight-6 in place of the previously-used pushrod straight-4. The engine was larger, too, at 2.6 L, and the car was designed as...
. This durable DOHC engine would continue in use at Aston through 1959. Bentley remained as an engineer at Aston Martin for a time, moving to
Armstrong SiddeleyArmstrong Siddeley was a British engineering group that operated during the first half of the 20th century. It was formed in 1919 and is best known for the production of luxury motor cars and aircraft engines.-Siddeley Autocars:...
where he designed a twin overhead cam 3 litre engine before retiring.
Personal life
W.O. married three times. In 1914 he married his first wife Leonie Gore; she died in 1919 in the
Spanish fluThe 1918 flu pandemic was an influenza pandemic that spread to nearly every part of the world. It was caused by an unusually virulent and deadly influenza A virus strain of subtype H1N1. Historical and epidemiological data are inadequate to identify the geographic origin of the virus...
epidemic. Next he married Poppy (Audrey Hutchinson) in 1920; they divorced soon after the company was sold in 1931. He married Margaret in 1934. He had no children. Bentley died in 1971 as a revered patron of the Bentley Drivers' Club. His widow Margaret lived until 1989.
Trivia
Bentley Motors uses the licence plate "1 WO" for each new model car upon their premiere disclosure to the press in honour of W.O.
External links