Cadillac Fleetwood body style no 41 6219d custom cars for sale

Cadillac : Fleetwood Body style no. 41-6219D, custom "The Duchess" the King of England's 1941 custom-bodied, 1-of-1, Cadillac

$400,000

Birmingham, Alabama

One of the final one-off custom Cadillacs of the Classic EraBuilt at the behest of Alfred P. Sloan, Jr., for the Duke and Duchess of WindsorUnique Fleetwood bodywork and interior appointmentsA New York society mainstay for a decadeWell-known history with only four owners since newFreshly and beautifully restored to exacting original specifications “The Duchess” is a 1941 custom-bodied Cadillac with coachwork by Fleetwood, created by General Motors for King Edward VIII. But you must believe me when I tell you, that I have found it impossible to carry the heavy burden of responsibility, and to discharge my duties as King, as I would wish to do, without the help and support of the woman I love. – King Edward VIII Theirs became one of the most famous love stories of all time. Never before had a king given up his throne for a woman he loved. Edward VIII, King of Great Britain, Ireland, and the British Dominions, Emperor of India, abdicated his throne on December 11, 1936, to marry Wallis Simpson, an American socialite from Baltimore. The couple henceforth became known as the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and embarked upon nearly forty years of international jet-setting amidst the world’s most prominent people. Edward VIII, in particular, defined a gentleman’s style for his time. His clothing, pastimes, and habits were copied the world over, and his influence still reigns today, with men tying a “Windsor knot” in their neckties. Likewise, Wallis topped the international best-dressed list for decades, and her taste in jewelry and clothing captured the imagination of the world’s most famous designers. For more images and video, visit www.morganmurphy.co/duchesscadillac In 1938, King George VI, Edward’s brother and successor, appointed the Duke to serve as Governor of the Bahamas. Nassau proved the couple with a new venue for socializing and beautiful weather, but more importantly, it was a quick air trip from New York City, where they kept a suite at the Waldorf Towers on Park Avenue. During their visit to New York in late 1941, the Windsors were greeted by adoring crowds. They also took receipt of their new Cadillac from one of their society friends, Alfred P. Sloan, Jr., the powerful chairman and CEO of General Motors. It would carry them to the Empire State Building, and through a ticker tape parade down Wall Street. The New York Times dubbed it a “glossy new Cadillac.” It was so much more. Delivered in the waning days of old coachbuilding and the Classic Era, “The Duchess,” as it became known, was one of the final truly one-off, coachbuilt Cadillacs produced. A completely custom creation Not a single body panel on the Windsors’ car matched any other 1941 Cadillac. The hood, trunk, fenders, fender skirts, roof, and doors were all crafted by hand, and all interior appointments were hand-fitted. The fenders were and remain the car’s most notable feature. Beginning with a crest over the wheels, in the style of other 1941 Cadillacs, they extend and fade through the back of the body, predating Hooper’s coachwork on the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud by 15 years. The streamlined appearance was sufficiently striking that Buick would borrow the basic style of the design for its 1942 production models. The car’s custom roofline, which dips between the windows to form a wide center post, would appear on the production 1942 Cadillac Series 60 Special. Other unique exterior features included the Windsors’ “W.E.” monogram to the rear doors, unique stainless steel rocker moldings and drip rails, and no side or rear emblems. Cadillac’s iconic “Goddess” hood ornament was, on this car, plated in gold. Inside, the car was upholstered entirely in rose-colored custom broadcloth, extending even to the headliner and sun visors. The floors were covered in Wilton wool carpet, custom-dyed to match. Conveying the car’s ideal combination of masculinity and femininity, these light colors are set against custom-finished walnut caps for the doors, cabinetry, and divider window. Four brushed stainless-steel jewelry cases, each of them lined in velvet, served to carry the Duchess’s purchases prized jewelry. For the Duke, there were no fewer than three cigar lighters and two ashtrays, as well as a humidor and a custom rack for his favored Sasieni pipe. This was the very first Cadillac to be equipped with power windows, with the side glass hydraulically operated, and an electric center privacy divider. All windows are equipped with satin privacy curtains, which roll away from use when not in use, and the door handles and vent window cranks are crafted of custom Lucite. As the Duke was a well-known enthusiast of automobiles and aircraft, Cadillac expected that he would take the wheel of this car on occasion. As a result, unusually for a limousine of the time, the front compartment was detailed to be as elegant and opulent as the rear, including its own radio, with a manually controlled roof-mounted antenna and buttons preset to New York City AM stations of the era. The custom rear radio, shrouded in solid copper, enjoyed a vacuum-powered antenna, which could be raised or lowered with the touch of a chrome knob on the rear seat armrest. Reportedly, even the Cadillac’s mechanical components were individually selected from the factory, to be “the best of the best” and to assure reliability and smoothness of operation. This car came from the factory with nearly every advanced feature that General Motors could offer in 1941. There were sealed-beam headlights with blacked out surrounds, safety glass, fully automatic heating, directional signals, power windows, power antenna, hydraulic brakes, independent front suspension, automatic thermostat shutters, ride stabilizers, and fully automatic Hydra-Matic transmission. Provenance According to Roy Schneider’s Cadillacs of the Forties, The Duke of Windsor paid an astonishing $14,000 for the completed limousine, an extravagant sum in 1941. It would be his first Cadillac, but not his last. He would use it for eleven years. During that time, it was often photographed with the couple, appearing regularly in newspaper clippings and newsreels. In 1952, the Duke traded the Cadillac in on a new custom-built Cadillac. It was resold by General Motors to Charles Beswick, a noted dealer of luxury cars in Springfield, Massachusetts. The Springfield Daily News reported on the transaction in its July 17, 1952 edition, stating that the car showed 19,246 miles, and gushed that its finish looked, “twice the quality of newer cars.” Beswick resold the Cadillac to early collectors Vernon and Bevline Bradley of Springfield, who added some 50,000 miles before selling it through a New York Times advertisement in 1964. William J. Edmonds III, a Cadillac collector from Fort Worth, Texas, was the new owner, and maintained the car largely in storage until its acquisition by Morgan Murphy in 2009. At that point, the process of extensively documenting and then restoring the long-lost “Duchess” began. Before embarking on an exhaustive, 20,000-hour restoration involving more than 200 specialists, Murphy, a longtime journalist and member of Cadillac & LaSalle Club (see www.morganmurphy.co) painstakingly researched the history of the Duchess, combing records from General Motors, Cadillac, the Royal Archives, the University of Oxford, the Associated Press, Time Life, The New York Times, and Paramount Pictures. The resulting documentation is nothing short of astounding—not only did Murphy locate the car’s original build sheet, confirming its matching numbers and provenance, but he also found images and film footage of the couple in the car the very day it was delivered. Subsequently, Murphy has spoken to every owner of the Duchess since the Duke’s ownership. Current Condition Today, the car operates as it did originally. The six-volt starter gently fires the V-8 to life, without the aid of modern fuel pumps, and the engine idles at a near-silent 400 rpm – so quietly that one can only hear the fan blades. The 90-degree crankshaft and harmonic balancer, along with cylinders balanced down to .005 grams, gives the Cadillac unprecedented smoothness. The interior was carefully brought back to its ornate original specifications, with seats and carpets painstakingly matched to the original material, and identical in their color, feel, and quality. The black finish has been carefully recreated to original specifications, and all chrome replated to show standards. As with all aspects of the Cadillac’s restoration, the chassis and mechanical components were finely detailed. The wheels are shod in Firestone wide whitewall tires, as specified for this car originally; original tags hide behind the seat cushions. Even the light bulbs have period-correct markings, and electrical components are properly serial-numbered, with cloth-covered wire. The clocks, radios, windshield washers, heating systems, fans, and lighting all use original mechanisms and bulbs. Even individual screws and bolts were saved whenever possible, replated, restored, then positioned back into their original holes. Whenever possible, original parts were used; “New Old Stock” components were the next best option, followed by having parts recreated from scratch. “The Duchess” is accompanied by copies of original historic photography, showing the Cadillac as it was freshly completed. General Motors extensively photographed the car, both in the studio and in front of 854 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, showing the car’s custom bodywork and interior fittings in exquisite detail. Also accompanying are copies of its original build sheets, showing the car accounted to “A.P. Sloan, Jr., New York, N.Y.” and that its construction was handled by the factory engineering department. The car’s data tag on the firewall, engine number, and frame number all match the original build sheet, and have never been altered in any way. A fully unique, one-off commission by General Motors’s legendary leader for the cream of 1940s society, “The Duchess” is more than a car. It is a part of New York City social history, and a bespoke design as tailored to the style of its original owners as their legendary wardrobe. Engine no. 8363211 Body no. 5986 Body style no. 41-6219D. 150 bhp, 346 cu. in. OHV V-8 engine, transmission, independent coil spring front suspension, Hotchkiss semi-floating rear axle, and four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes. 136 in. wheelbase

Trim Body style no 41 6219D custom