This was rejected by an auction house and was to be returned to its owner, but I had the opportunity to view it and thought it was in reasonable condition to acquire. Its serial number W 122158 (on the right top of the frame, under the right end of the carriage) indicated that it was probably manufactured in 1951.
With a new ribbon in place it was apparent that there were some key alignment problems and a need for cleaning.
Comments on the design
The compact design of the machine set it apart from most other portables of the time and made it popular with journalists and others needing to record events on the move. It is 26cm wide and deep and 7 cm tall (with the handle retracted) and weighs just 3.9kg.
The cover snaps easily onto the typewriter base and is released by pressing the two buttons on the top of the lid. The hinged covers for the ribbon spools seem to be no more than aesthetic additions and could rattle if they came loose while typing.
The line space lever (22) folds flat against the lever arm (21) which is then pushed against the left hand platen knob and locked in place with the small chromium plated small knob (8). The mechanism also brings into action a stop which allows the carriageway to be positioned centrally.
History of the Empire Aristocrat
The Aristocrat was made under license from Hermes by British Typewriters Ltd. The licence was negotiated by Bill Mawle, sales manager for the Imperial Typewriter Company, who bought the British rights to the design for £3000.
George Salter had produced the first English typewriter in 1892, the Empire. In 1935 it sold the sales and manufacturing rights to its typewriter business to British Typewriters Ltd, who set up in the abandoned warehouse in Victoria Street, West Bromwich to produce a new typewriter known as the Baby Empire, with the slogan ‘No Higher Than A Matchbox’.
From 1939 the factory was converted to manufacturing parts for the war effort. Production of typewriters resumed in 1946 and the Empire Aristocrat model was introduced in 1948. It was offered with a choice of Pica or Elite font. Early models did not have self-reversing ribbon.
The Empire Aristocrat was a popular choice in the 1950s and was used by several notables including Shelagh Delaney for the script of ‘A Taste of Honey’ and Sir John Hunt who took this portable writer on his 1953 expedition.
A version with 18-carat gold key rings and typebars was presented to Princess Elizabeth on May 5, 1949 with the thought that it might help Prince Charles learn the alphabet from the keyboard (see the presentation below). Apparently, the Princess replied “What a good idea”. I contacted the Royal Archives to ask if they could trace this machine, and received the following reply in September 2023 from the Digital Archivist ‘ I have been unable to find any mention of the Empire Aristocrat typewriter amongst the papers that we have in relation to the visit to the British Industries Trade Association, at Olympia, on 5 May 1949, and therefore I am afraid that we are unable to be of much assistance. I have contacted colleagues in the Royal Collection Trust, but unfortunately, they have been unable to find any reference to this typewriter‘. I trust that other valuable items have not gone astray.
The last Aristocrat was bult in 1960 after the company was bought out by SCM Smith Corona in 1958.
Sources of Information
From the West Bromwich Local History Society about British typewriters
About George Salter and Company
Empire Aristocrat Typewriter Review
Review of Empire Aristocrat and Baby Hermes on YouTube
Review of 1956 Empire Aristocrat
From the West Bromwich Local History Society about British typewriters
About George Salter and Company
Empire Aristocrat Typewriter Review
Review of Empire Aristocrat and Baby Hermes on YouTube
Review of 1956 Empire Aristocrat
Repairing a draw string on an Aristocrat
Empire Aristocrat Manual. Sourced from here