Launched in 1911 and run for most years since, the Monte Carlo Rally has long been recognised as one of the toughest endurance races in the world.

In the early years it was primarily an amateur event where keen racing enthusiasts from across Europe (and sometimes beyond) would drive their cars along difficult roads throughout the day and night and in often treacherous conditions, to finish along the exotic Monaco waterfront.

The initial idea was that creating such a tough event would enable manufacturers to test the durability of their cars and latest technologies in a multitude of challenging conditions, and over the years the winners have included many of the world’s leading manufacturers, such as Renault, Fiat, Ford, Jaguar and Lancia. But smaller companies, such as, Amilcar, Hotchkiss and Delahaye, amongst others, also succeeded in the earlier years .

Mini Coopers
But it was the 1960s when this great event truly came to life. In 1960 itself, it was a Mercedes Benz 220SE which was declared the overall winner at the end of the complicated scoring procedure, but much of the rest of the decade the event was to be dominated by the small, agile British Mini Coopers.

Disqualification
Even though the car itself was only launched towards the end of 1959, primarily as a cheap form of urban transport, already by 1967, it had won the Monte Carlo Rally three times, starting with Paddy Hopkirk’s success in 1964, with co-driver, Henry Liddon. In addition, in 1966, Mini Coopers finished first, second and third only for all three cars to be controversially disqualified by zealous officials for dubious headlight infringements which almost caused an international incident. So annoyed were the BMC's team managers by the decision that they threatened never to return to the race again, while the host, Prince Rainier, also walked out in disgust before the prizes were given out.

The other winners in the 1960s included Porsche, Saab and Panhard, clearly demonstrating the range of cars which competed. But each year, usually fewer than half the cars which set off from the various European starting points actually made it to the finish. In 1965, the conditions were so tough that only 35 of the initial 237 entrants actually passed the finish line in Monte Carlo, making the achievements of the winning cars even more remarkable.

Ultra professsionalism
By the end of the 1960s, the amateur spirit of the earlier events had by and large been overtaken by the ultra professionalism and marketing might of the factory teams who all employed the leading rally drivers and mechanics of the era to maximise their chances of success -especially as the dawning of television coverage meant the leading cars were starting to be seen in the livings rooms of new car buyers.

But the memories of the small Minis, and the other makes which managed to negotiate the gruelling course at breakneck speeds throughout the day and night, will unquestionably live forever in the minds of those who witnessed at first hand this great spectacle of man and machine against the elements.

The Monte Carlo Rally in the 1960s

To view the film, scroll to the bottom of the page

The winning Mercedes Benz 220SE arrives at the finish, 1960

The winning drivers in 1960 were Germans Walter Shock and Rolf Moll

Conditions in the mountain stage
of the event are often treacherous

High banks of snow along narrow mountain roads provide one of the toughest challenges

Huge crowds line the roads
as the cars drive into Monte Carlo

Smaller cars often have a major advantage on the parts of the course where aglity is more useful than speed

Finnish driver Timo Makinen competed in a works Austin Healey 3000 in the 1963 event

Timo Makinen and Paul Easter won
the event  in a Mini Cooper in 1965

Rauno Altinen and Henry Liddon won the 1967 Monte Carlo Rally in a Mini Cooper

In 1966, the "winning" Mini Cooper was disqualified for dubious headlight irregularities

Paddy Hopkirk and Henry Liddon
won the 1964 race in a Mini Cooper

The 1964 winning Mini Cooper is now
housed at the Gaydon Motor Museum

Multimedia stories from history

Film now showing
Newsreel of the1963 Monte Carlo Rally

Motoring through history
Follow the evolution of the motor car with a free, online, informative illustrated history of the automobile, go to:
www.motoring-history.com

Film provided courtesy of www.auto-history.tv

Duration of video: 1 mins. 20 seconds

(c) Universal Motoring History Enterprises