英語流行話題閱讀:語境識詞4500 33 The Founder of Rolls-Royce (II)

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Unit 33

The Founder of Rolls-Royce (II)

About the same time, Charles Rolls was also in business for himself, like Royce, very successfully. But achieving this had been rather less of a struggle for Rolls than it was for his future partner. Rolls was born into the aristocracy, being the third son of Lord and Lady Llangattock. The landed gentry were never expected to work in those days and Rolls, like most young men in similar families, was reared for a life of ease and luxury. He was educated at Eton and Cambridge University where his natural talent for engineering work enabled him to gain a degree in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Sciences. It was while he was still at Cambridge that he began to take an interest in the fledgling motor industry. He went to France with his father and on his return bought himself a car, which soon made a name for himself with Rolls at the wheel. It was the first car ever seen at Cambridge. By the time Rolls graduated, he was probably the most skilful driver in the country. In 1902, Rolls had gone into business for himself selling motor cars and the firm, known as CS Rolls Co. quickly became a leading motor car distributor.

Rolls, however, still had two major ambitions. First he wanted his name to be associated with cars in the same way as Chubb's was with safes and Steinway's was with pianos. And, secondly, he wanted to find a British car as good or preferably better than the foreign cars he was then selling. But he very nearly missed his chance to achieve both these aims at once because when Henry Edmunds, a shareholder in Royce Ltd, told Rolls about Henry Royce's new 2 cylinder car, Rolls assumed that it would be as noisy and inefficient as all the other 2 cylinder cars on the road. He was, of course, wrong and Henry Edmunds persuaded Rolls to make the trip up to Manchester to see the car.

Rolls, Edmunds and Royce met at the Midland Hotel in Manchester and the meeting was an immediate success. Rolls tried the car and became a wholehearted enthusiast and he said afterwards that Royce "was the man I have been looking for years". An agreement was quickly reached giving Rolls exclusive sales rights for all the cars Royce could produce and the two men really got down to work. On December 23rd, 1904, a contract between the two companies was signed, including a clause stipulating that all the cars should be called "Rolls-Royce".

The story of the brand goes back 100 years and its name has become linked with that of Bentley Motors since the 1930s. But the greatest change in its long and illustrious history took place towards the end of the last millennium. The company had been owned by British defense group Vickers plc since 1980, and was sold to the highest bidder -- Volkswagen -- in 1998. The German car maker took control of Bentley and the factory in Crewe, Cheshire but the right to the famous Rolls-Royce name was retained by aero engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce plc.