The watch company LeCoultre was founded in 1833 by the brothers Charles Antoine LeCoultre and François Ulysse LeCoultre in Le Sentier in the Vallée de Joux. The former was a brilliant craftsman who invested all of his energy into developing new manufacturing processes and production methods. His Millionometer of 1844 made it possible for the first time to measure mechanical components to the thousandth of a millimeter. His crown winding mechanism, developed in 1847, dispenses with the winding key then required by all other watches. At the 1st World Exhibition in London, LeCoultre won his first gold medal with a pocket chronograph, thanks to this new invention.