After World War One three friends who had been in the air corps together founded Moto Guzzi Falcone. Carlo Guzzi, Giorgio Parodi and Giovanni Ravelli planned the company together but Ravelli was killed in a flying accident. The other two men adopted the eagle symbol of the corps as their logo in honour of their friend.

In 1920 the first Moto Guzzi was produced. It featured a 500cc four stroke engine with a single cylinder. This engine layout was to remain on tehir road bikes for many years while they experimented with others on the race track.

In the 1928 Moto Guzzi produced it's first red bike, a colour which has become their trademark. The GT luxury had a unique sprung frame and was followed in 1931 by the Sport 15. The Condor, Dondolino, Gambalunga and Albatros racers of this period were also painted bright red.

In the 1950s the single cylinder layout was still going strong and the Falcone model could trace it's roots all the way back to the Normale of 30 years earlier. The Falcone had the lazy low rev power delivery which is still a hallmark of modern day Moto Guzzis.

The company continued to be successful on the track and in 1956 the 500cc v-eight designed by Giulio Carcano began to race. This 12,000 rpm eight cylinder engine produced 72bhp and propelled the bike to an incredible 178mph during the Belgian GP of 1957.

Moto Guzzi withdrew from racing in 1957, probably because of the cost of the exotic engines they produced.

In 1960 Moto Guzzi first produced the engine that has seen them through the last half century. The transverse 90 degree v-twin was originally used in a three wheeler and then a miltary motorcycle before making it onto the roads in 1967 in the V7. The V7 featured a shaft drive and the now familiar smooth power delivery and easy riding style. The V7 Sport came along in 1972 with improved handling and a top speed on 125mph. This was followed by the 850 Le Mans which had a small headlight fairing and more power.

In the 1960s the company went into receivership. It was bought by car tycoon Alejandro de Tomaso who owned it for the next two decades but failed to invest in it's future. The 90 degree v-twin engine continued to be used in tourers such as the California with occasional increases in capacity until it reached 1100cc.

The Daytona 1000 of the 1992 was a beautiful machine that seemed a suitable successor to the Le Mans models of the 1970s. Still built around the v-twin engine and with a shaft drive this bike was never going to compete with Japanese sportsbikes of the era on performance or sales but it found a loyal following amongst people who wanted a more relaxed riding experience and solid reliability as well as Italian style.

The latest V11 models continue to develop the traditional layout and feature some of the best suspension components around. With syling evoking past models there is still a place in the markets for Moto Guzzi's unique and beautifully engineered machines.