Field Marshall Montgomery, Churchill, King George VI and General Eisenhower all sat in a stunning Rolls-Royce that will auction early next month.
The green 1936 Rolls Royce Phantom III goes to auction at Historics on May 3 with an estimate of £115,000 to £130,000.
The new owner can fire up the electric lighter that was specially installed to allow Winston Churchill to smoke his cigars in the back seat.
The car was requisitioned for military service at the start of the war from its original owner, Frederick Wilcock, CEO of the Talbot Motor Company, who bought it in 1936.
Field Marshall Montgomery used it as a staff car for most of the war. It was nicknamed the “Green Car”.
The car was the height of luxury in 1936. Image courtesy of Historics.
Bernard Montgomery was a professional soldier who served in World War I, the Irish War of Independence, and across the British Empire between the wars.
At the outset of World War II he served in France and Belgium.
By 1942 he was leading the Eighth Army in north Africa where he won a notable success at the Battle of El Alamein.
He returned to the UK, from the invasion of Italy, in 1944 to become the leading British officer in Operation Overlord, the plan to invade occupied France in the D-Day landings.
Through that period he was driven in this car, along with those he met with.
Witness to history. Churchill, the King, Eisenhower, all sat in these seats. Image courtesy of Historics.
Churchill was in it often enough to demand a lighter. Eisenhower, who went on to become 34th President of the United States, worked closely with Monty on the D-Day attacks.
Historics Auctioneers say: “It is an extraordinary piece of history, with direct connections to some of the most iconic figures of the Second World War, including Field Marshal Montgomery and Winston Churchill.”
After VE Day, the US Army Air Force Chief of Staff, General Carl Spaatz, used the car.
It was sold in the 1950s to a rubber planter in what is now Malaysia.
Documentation includes this letter demanding the car be sent for inspection for use by “an Allied government”. Image courtesy of Historics.
The car is a notable vehicle in its own right, famed for its powerful V12 engine.
Historics say: “Known for its smoothness, near-silent operation, and extraordinary torque, the Phantom III set a benchmark for luxury motoring in its day.”
Only 710 of the model were built, and fewer than 300 are thought to survive today.
The new owner of the vehicle will get an extensive file of paperwork including registration documents and the letter requisitioning the car for war service.
It has been recently serviced and can be driven away from the sale. In recent years, the car has been driven at commemorations of World War II anniversaries.
It was last sold in 2017 at Bonhams, when it hammered for £143,750. With this sale perfectly timed to coincide with the 80th anniversary of D-Day it seems likely to challenge its estimate this time.
