Bugatti Type 57

Information

The chassis number was originally used for one of the three Bugatti Type 57G 'tank' race cars. Once the car was destroyed, it was again used for a customer Type 57 Atalante - this car. The Atalante was sold new to Frenchman Robert Benoist, winner of the 1937 24 Hours of Le Mans in one of said 'tanks'.

Benoist was an officer in the Armée de l'Air (air force) and, once the country became occupied by the Reich and Paris' government evacuated, was ordered to report to an air base close to the city of Blois. He was, however, given permission to make this journey in his personal Bugatti Type 57 Atalante.

On 14th June, Paris became occupied by the Reich, and Benoist was ordered further south to Tarbes. Progress was slow due to traffic and a dashing sports car (driven by an officer in the Armée de l'Air!) soon attracted the attention of the Wehrmacht. Benoist was soon ordered to join the Germans' convoy.

The next day, still in convoy, Benoist spotted his escape. As the convoy slowed to pass an obstruction, he raced down a small side lane, completely to the surprise of the Germans. He made his way to a friend's country estate, where he knew the car could be hidden away in a barn.

Despite this, Benoist later fled to Britain, where he joined the SOE (Special Operations Executive). He became a Captain in the British Army and was tasked with assisting the French Resistance. Benoist then returned to France, until his capture by the Gestapo in June 1943. He, however, leapt from their vehicle and was smuggled back to Britain via the underground.

Benoist returned to France in October 1943, where he remained (along with a brief stint back in London) until he was arrested on 18th June 1944. He was executed on 14 September 1944 in Buchenwald concentration camp in Germany.

The Type 57 Atalante survived, and passed through a Belgian dealer to the United States in 1958. The car has been in the ownership of a single family since.