Since Hans Wilsdorf founded the company we now know as Rolex in 1905, Rolex watches have become synonymous with prestige, luxury and sophistication.

Let's have a look at the watchmaker's major milestones over the past century:

1905 - German-born Hans Wilsdorf founds a London company specialising in the manufacture and sale of watches.

1926 - Rolex develops and patents the first airtight, dustproof and waterproof watch and names it the Oyster.

1927 - The Rolex Oyster crosses the English Channel unscathed on the wrist of a young swimmer named Mercedes Gleitze

1931 - Birth of the Perpetual Rotor, a self-winding mechanism that revolutionises watches with the first automatic winding mechanism later found in every modern automatic watch.

1945 - The Oyster Datejust, the first watch to display the date automatically, is created.

1953 - Rolex creates the diving watch - the Submariner.

1954 - The Oyster Perpetual LadyDate is introduced.

1955 - The Oyster GMT Master is designed for Pan-Am pilots, making it possible to read time in any two time zones.

1956 - The Oyster Day-Date is created.

1960 - Rolex "Deep Sea Special" is plunged 35,787 feet (10,910 metres) into the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean.

1967 - The Oyster Sea-Dweller, waterproof to a depth of 2,000 feet (600 metres), is introduced.

1971 - The Oyster Explorer II is designed.

1978 - The Oyster Perpetual Date Sea-Dweller is tested waterproof to a depth of 4,000 feet (1,220 metres)

1988 - The first Cosmograph Daytona is fitted with a perpetual rotor.

1992 - A new model is added to the Oyster Professional range - the Yacht-Master.

2003 - Submariner celebrates its 50th Anniversary. Rolex marks the occasion with a special commemorative model with a green bezel and black dial.

2005 - Inspired by an original 1920s model, the Rolex Prince debuts.