Rolls-Royce is counting down "The Great Eight
Phantoms" as the company prepares to unveil the all-new model next month.
The latest Phantom to be added to the list is a Phantom III used by Field
Marshal Bernard Montgomery.
Dubbed the "Butler," the car was
Montgomery's favorite and was originally commissioned by Alan Samuel Butler who
was the Chairman of the De Havilland Aircraft Company. The car features
bodywork by HJ Mulliner and has a distinctive front-sloping windshield.
Montgomery kept the car until 1962 and it has
carried a handful of world leaders including the Prime Ministers of Australia,
Canada, and New Zealand. Montgomery also used the model to visit various
locations including 10 Downing Street, the War Office on Whitehall, and the
NATO Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) building in France.
The Butler was one of three different Phantoms used
by Montgomery during the second world war and his first was a 1936 Phantom III
that was owned by the head of the English Talbot Motor Company. The car was
requisitioned by the Ministry of War Transport Section and it carried Winston
The new Rolls-Royce Phantom will be unveiled on July 27th and it will once
again aim to become the most elegant and luxurious vehicle in the world.
