Additional Infos

Notes on photos of Rolls-Royce and Bentley motor cars

in the book „STARS AND CARS OF THE 50’s“ and on this website

by Klaus-Josef Rossfeldt, Germany

An example:

Sir Winston Churchill, Emery Reves, (Churchill’s U.S. publisher). Departure at Nice Airport after illness of Churchill during his holidays at Reves property in Roquebrune 1958.

1948/49 Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith, Touring Limousine by Park Ward to Design No. 45, reg’d GE 50941, CH

Park Ward built coachwork to that Design No. 45 only in 1948/49. Rolls-Royce had acquired shares in Park Ward during the 30s and eventually taken over the coachbuilder completely prior to World War II, hence during the post-war period the coachbuilder was a wholly owned subsidiary of the motor car manufacturer. Although as per factory documents 66 cars were made to this pattern none from this considerable number is listed as having originally been exported to Switzerland. Emery Reves was a literary agent (had founded ‘Cooperation Publishing Service’ in 1933) who made a fortune after World War II from brokering the memoirs of Churchill and of Eisenhower, Montgomery and other wartime leaders. He acquired the Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith, #WZB29, that originally had been delivered to Baron Louis-Marie-Charles-Vanderheiden á Hauzeur, Président-Directeur der Companie Royale Asturienne des Mines (died 1952) and was registered 26. July 1949 in the name of his wife Baronne Vanderheiden á Hauzeur. As per Swiss Custom documents Reves imported 16th December 1954 the Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith into Switzerland where it became registered 25th Mai 1955 with a Geneva number-plate. After the death of Reves’ widow the car was found in the garage of Reves’ Swiss residence in 2014 and sold via auction to a new owner 8th May 2015.