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Longines Flagship Classic 26mm Ladies Watch
Ref. L42744876
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Stepping up in the same colour and case shape
The Flagship line dates to 1957, when Longines introduced it as a dress collection built around slim, refined proportions — and the brief has not shifted since. This 26mm version carries that continuity quietly: an automatic movement in a case of this diameter is a considered choice rather than a given, and the L592 delivers it with a silicon balance-spring that resists magnetic fields far better than a conventional hairspring, along with a 45-hour reserve that keeps it running through a long weekend unworn. The mother-of-pearl dial shifts with the light in the way only natural shell does, and the twelve diamond hour markers are graded Top Wesselton, which means they read as genuinely white rather than warm. At 26mm the watch sits neatly on a finer wrist without disappearing; the multi-link steel bracelet tapers to match, and the triple-folding safety clasp closes with the kind of positive click that stops second-guessing whether it is properly shut.
- Reference
- L42744876
- Brand
- Longines
- Case size
- 26mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Mother-of-pearl
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- L592
- Functions
- Date
- Water resistance
- 30m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Silver
- Clasp
- Folding clasp
- Retailer
- Goldsmiths
Learn more about Longines
Auguste Agassiz began trading watches in Saint-Imier in 1832, but the modern company dates from 1860, when his nephew Ernest Francillon built a factory in the meadows beside the Suze — the longines of the local dialect — and consolidated the scattered outworkers of the region under one roof.
Longines registered its winged hourglass in 1889. It is the oldest watch trademark still in continuous use.
The company's identity was built on precision and on timing things in public. It supplied chronographs for the first modern Olympic events it timed in 1896, timed the 1912 Federal Gymnastics Festival with a broken-wire mechanism accurate to a hundredth of a second, and developed the photo-finish camera and the quartz timing devices used across twentieth-century athletics.
Its aviation associations are equally deep. Longines instruments were carried by Charles Lindbergh across the Atlantic in 1927, and the Hour Angle watch, designed to Lindbergh's own specification to simplify longitude calculation, remains in the catalogue. Amelia Earhart and Howard Hughes both navigated by Longines.
The house was among the most decorated at nineteenth-century observatory trials, holding numerous precision records. Since joining the Swatch Group in 1983 it has occupied the accessible-heritage position: exclusive ETA-based movements, archive-driven designs through the Heritage line, and volume that makes it one of the group's most important brands.
- 1860
- Ernest Francillon builds the factory at Les Longines.
- 1889
- The winged hourglass is registered — the oldest watch trademark in use.
- 1912
- Broken-wire timing achieves hundredth-second accuracy.
- 1927
- Lindbergh crosses the Atlantic with Longines instruments.
- 1983
- Becomes part of the Swatch Group.
Manufacturer’s guarantee
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
No. At 30m it will survive rain and handwashing, but not submersion of any kind.
Will the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Does it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as women's.
Cheapest place to buy
Goldsmiths is the only UK retailer we track stocking this reference, so there is nothing to compare it against today.
Who are Goldsmiths?
Goldsmiths has been selling watches in Britain since 1778 and is part of the Watches of Switzerland Group, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange. They are an authorised dealer, so a watch comes with the manufacturer’s own warranty.
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