Alexandre Darracq

Alexandre Darracq (10 November 1855 – 1931) was a French investor, engineer, cycle manufacturer and automobile manufacturer. By 1904, Darracq was producing more than ten percent of all automobiles in France and he sold a substantial part of his business to British investors. He became fascinated by the possibilities of a rotary valve engine, put it into production and although it became a disaster for Darracq & Cie, persisted in installing it in Darracq products. He was obliged to retire in June 1912 aged 56. After the Armistice of Compiègne, his name was dropped from his Suresnes factory's mass-produced products.

In 1906 he founded Società Anonima Italiana Darracq (S.A.I.D.) in Milan, Italy, which became [Società] Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili (A.L.F.A.) in 1910 and eventually Alfa Romeo.

Sewing machines and cycles Born Pierre Alexandre Darracq in Bordeaux, France, of Basque parents, he trained as a draftsman at the Arsenal in Tarbes, in the Hautes-Pyrénées département. He later worked at the Hurtu factory manufacturing sewing machines. Darracq designed a machine that won a gold medal at the 1889 Paris exhibition. He established the Gladiator Cycle Company in 1891. He sold his very successful company in 1896 for a substantial amount

Darracq raised substantial capital through share issues with Cavaliere Ugo Stella, managing director of S.A.I.D and subsequently A.L.F.A., with Adam Opel in Germany and in Vitoria in the Basque region of Spain.

After personally insisting the new 1911 model employ the Henriod rotary valve engine, Alexadre Darracq resigned.

Later life and death In mid-1912, Darracq resigned, having earlier sold out to British investors, and pursued other interests including running the Casino at Deauville. After World War I, he retired to the French Riviera where he joined with Belgian investors that took over the troubled luxury Hotel Negresco in Nice.

He died in 1931 at his home in Monte Carlo and was interred next to his wife Louise (1850–1920) in the family mausoleum in the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.