Automobiles Delaunay-Belleville was a French luxury automobile manufacturer from Saint-Denis, France, north of Paris. At the beginning of the 20th century they were among the most prestigious cars produced in the world, and perhaps the most desirable French marque.
Julien Belleville had been a maker of marine boilers from around 1850. Louis Delaunay (1843-1912) joined the firm in 1867 and married Delaunay's daughter changing his name to Delaunay-Belleville and succeeded Julien to become in charge of the company.[1] S.A. des Automobiles Delaunay-Belleville was formed in 1903 by Louis Delaunay and Marius Barbarou. Barbarou's family owned the boiler making company St. Denis in Belleville, with boiler design influences inspired by the company. Marius had experience working for Clement, Lorraine-Dietrich and Benz and was responsible for design and styling. The first car was exhibited at the 1904 Paris Salon and in 1906 SA des Automobiles Delaunay Belleville was formed to look after car manufacture.
Most of the models were powered by inline-six engines, with a few four cylinder engines. A pressurized system of pumps and oil ways for lubrication was one of the first of its kind, most cars of the day having a drip system.
The Delaunay-Belleville were favorite automobiles of Russian Tsar Nicholas II. Other royal owners included King George I of Greece and King Alphonso XIII of Spain. Jules Bonnot, the famous French anarchist gangster, used a Delaunay-Belleville for his first hold-up.
By the late 1920s the Delaunay-Belleville had lost its prestige and converted to truck and military vehicles production. In 1936 the previously separate car company was merged with the Delaunay Belleville parent. Production of the Delaunay-Belleville RI-6 continued through the late 1930s and was revived after the war. This was a six-cylinder engined car in most respects copied from the 13CV Mercedes-Benz 230, featuring independent suspension all-round, Cotal preselector transmission and a front grille design apparently copied from the 1939 Buick.[2] However, the business was in decline: anyone buying a RI-6 in the 1940s would have done so in the knowledge that after-sales service might disappear soon.[2] Six cars were completed in 1947 and this sank to four during the first part of 1948.[2] The company continued to advertise new cars for sale until 1950, but the factory was sold to Robert de Rovin in 1948 and thereafter used to make minicars.[2]