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Société Anonyme des Anciens Etablissements Hotchkiss et Compagnie was a French arms and, in the 20th century, automobile manufacturer first established by
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
gunsmith
Benjamin B. Hotchkiss Benjamin Berkeley Hotchkiss (October 1, 1826 – February 14, 1885) was one of the leading American ordnance engineers of his day. American career Hotchkiss was born in Watertown, Connecticut, and moved to Sharon, Connecticut in childhood; ...
. He moved to France and set up a factory, first at
Viviez Viviez is a commune in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie region in southern France. Viviez-Decazeville station has rail connections to Brive-la-Gaillarde, Figeac and Rodez. Population See also *Communes of the Aveyron department ...
near
Rodez Rodez ( or ; oc, Rodés, ) is a small city and commune in the South of France, about 150 km northeast of Toulouse. It is the prefecture of the department of Aveyron, region of Occitania (formerly Midi-Pyrénées). Rodez is the seat of the ...
in 1867, manufacturing arms used by the French in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, then moving at Saint-Denis near
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
in 1875. It was merged into and succeeded by
Thomson-CSF Thomson-CSF was a French company that specialized in the development and manufacture of electronics with a heavy focus upon the aerospace and defence sectors of the market. Thomson-CSF was formed in 1968 following the merger of Thomson-Houst ...
, now
Thales Group Thales Group () is a French multinational company that designs, develops and manufactures electrical systems as well as devices and equipment for the aerospace, defence, transportation and security sectors. The company is headquartered in Paris' ...
.


Arms

An example of the company's output was the Hotchkiss revolving cannon (see picture from a privately circulated book dated 1874 by Alfred Koerner, later chairman of the company). The cannon had five barrels each able to fire 43 shells a minute a distance of one mile; it was made in four sizes from 37 mm to 57 mm, the largest intended for naval use. At the turn of the twentieth century, the company introduced the gas-actuated
Hotchkiss machine gun The Hotchkiss machine gun was any of a line of products developed and sold by Hotchkiss et Cie, (full name Société Anonyme des Anciens Etablissements Hotchkiss et Cie), established by United States gunsmith Benjamin B. Hotchkiss. Hotchkiss moved ...
, a sturdy and reliable weapon which was widely used during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and thereafter by the French Army.


Cars

At the start of the twentieth century the company started building cars. Information provided by the company for the International Universal Exhibition of 1900, at which it displayed a variety of cannons, said the St Denis factory employed around 400 staff and had 600 machine tools. The first Hotchkiss car, a 17  CV four-cylinder model, appeared in 1903. The badge for the marque consisted of a pair of crossed cannons—a salute to the company's first products. A factory fire nearly killed all projects. Despite this, a six-cylinder model followed in 1906. During World War I, they mass-produced the
Hotchkiss M1914 The Mle 1914 Hotchkiss machine gun chambered for the 8mm Lebel cartridge became the standard machine gun of the French Army during the latter half of World War I. It was manufactured by the French arms company Hotchkiss et Cie, which had been es ...
machine gun, tank parts and other weapons. In 1933, they developed the
Hotchkiss H35 The Hotchkiss H35 or was a French cavalry tank developed prior to World War II. Despite having been designed from 1933 as a rather slow but well-armoured light infantry support tank, the type was initially rejected by the French Infantry becaus ...
tank. Post war came a luxury model called AK (6.6-litre) but only one was built. In 1920, there was an unsuccessful attempt to build Hotchkiss cars by a British arm of Hotchkiss in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
—only a prototype was made. A refined model named AM was in production between 1923 and 1928. A new six-cylinder model, named AM 80 came in 1928. The company made several successful racing cars. Hotchkiss racers won the
Rallye Automobile Monte Carlo The Monte Carlo Rally or Rallye Monte-Carlo (officially ''Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo'') is a rallying event organised each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco. The rally now takes place along the French Riviera in Monaco and southeast ...
in 1932, 1933, 1934, 1939, 1949 and 1950. The Hotchkiss 680 was an important model between the wars—it had a six-cylinder, 3-litre engine. In 1937, the company merged with
Amilcar The Amilcar was a French automobile manufactured from 1921 to 1940. History Foundation and location Amilcar was founded in July 1921 by Joseph Lamy and Emile Akar. The name "Amilcar" was an imperfect anagram of the partners' names. The b ...
. J. A. Grégoire joined the company as a designer. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the 680 continued. The first new car post war was a 13 CV four-cylinder model. From 1947, two-litre flat-four models are frequently called Hotchkiss-Grégoire. In 1954, Hotchkiss purchased French manufacturer
Delahaye Delahaye was a family-owned automobile manufacturing company, founded by Émile Delahaye in 1894 in Tours, France. Manufacturing was moved to Paris following incorporation with two unrelated brothers-in-law as equal partners in 1898. The compa ...
, closing down their automotive line but continuing to produce Hotchkiss-Delahaye trucks for a few months before eliminating the Delahaye name completely. After 1954, Hotchkiss manufactured
Jeep Jeep is an American automobile marque, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with remaining assets, from its previous owner American Moto ...
s under licence from
Willys Willys (pronounced , "Willis" ) was a brand name used by Willys–Overland Motors, an American automobile company, founded by John North Willys. It was best known for its design and production of World War II era and later military jeeps (MBs ...
. In 1956, Hotchkiss merged with French weapon manufacturer
Brandt Brandt may refer to: Places United States * Brandt, Ohio, an unincorporated community * Brandt, South Dakota, a town * Brandt Township, Polk County, Minnesota Elsewhere * Mount Brandt, Queen Maud Land, Antarctica * Brandt Cove, South Georgia Is ...
, producing jeeps at their factory near Paris for the French military until 1966. The firm was merged into
Thomson-Houston The Thomson-Houston Electric Company was a manufacturing company which was one of the precursors of the General Electric company. History The Thomson-Houston Electric Company was formed in 1882 in the United States when a group of Lynn, Massa ...
in 1966 and in 1970 stopped producing vehicles. In the early 1970s, the Hotchkiss marque disappeared, as the French conglomerate came to be known as . This, in turn, was nationalized in 1982 to form
Thomson SA Thomson may refer to: Names * Thomson (surname), a list of people with this name and a description of its origin * Thomson baronets, four baronetcies created for persons with the surname Thomson Businesses and organizations * SGS-Thomson Mic ...
.


Tanks

The ''Char léger modèle 1935 H'', Commonly known as the Hotchkiss H35 was a
light tank A light tank is a tank variant initially designed for rapid movements in and out of combat, to outmaneuver heavier tanks. It is smaller in size with thinner armor and a less powerful main gun, tailored for better tactical mobility and ease of ...
produced by the company in the mid 1930s. Initially designed by Hotchkiss in 1933, it was put into service in 1936. An estimated 1,200 vehicles were built between September 1936 and June 1940, however it remained in service with multiple countries as late as 1952. Unlike many other vehicles of the time, the H35 was not made of riveted rolled homogenous armoured plates - rather, it was almost entirely
cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...
. This gave it increased structural strength, especially against HE (
High Explosive An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An exp ...
) rounds. A spiritual successor to the
Renault FT-17 The Renault FT (frequently referred to in post-World War I literature as the FT-17, FT17, or similar) was a French light tank that was among the most revolutionary and influential tank designs in history. The FT was the first production tank to h ...
, the tank was intended for a very similar role: a cavalry tank, lightly armoured, nimble, and supported by infantry. For the time, it had formidable armour and proved combat effective against German armour during the
Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...
. It was almost entirely immune to frontal fire from the
Panzer II The Panzer II is the common name used for a family of German tanks used in World War II. The official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' II (abbreviated PzKpfw II). Although the vehicle had originally been designed as a stopgap while la ...
and could only be effectively neutralised by more formidable
Panzer III The ''Panzerkampfwagen III'', commonly known as the Panzer III, was a medium tank developed in the 1930s by Germany, and was used extensively in World War II. The official German ordnance designation was Sd.Kfz. 141. It was intended to fight oth ...
s and IVs. Due to a weak main armament, many Hotchkiss H35 tanks were converted into the Hotchkiss H39 - with a slightly more powerful 37mm cannon, a more powerful engine and slightly more armour on the turret. Several Hotchkiss tanks were captured by Nazi Germany and converted to
Panzerjäger ''Panzerjäger'' (German language, German "armour-hunters" or "tank-hunters", abbreviated to ''Pz.Jg.'' in German) was a branch of service of the Nazi Germany, German Wehrmacht during the World War II, Second World War. It was an Anti-tank war ...
() assault guns.


Hotchkiss drive

The name of the Hotchkiss firm was given to a form of
power transmission Power transmission is the movement of energy from its place of generation to a location where it is applied to perform useful work. Power is defined formally as units of energy per unit time. In SI units: :\text = \frac = \frac Since the develo ...
from a vehicle's engine by shaft to the differential on its rear axle, which through leaf springs both locates the rear axle and transmits drive forces.


References

{{Reflist


See also

*
Panhard Panhard was a French motor vehicle manufacturer that began as one of the first makers of automobiles. It was a manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its final incarnation, now owned by Renault Trucks Defense, was formed ...
Defence companies of France Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of France