The House of Lanson was founded in 1760 by François Delamotte, an influential character in Reims society. The joint owner, alongside his wife, of a not-insubstantial vineyard in Cumières and Ay, he decided to found his own Champagne house – one of the very first ever to exist. In 1798, Nicolas-Louis Delamotte, his younger son, took over from his father. Having been admitted as a knight of the Order of Malta at a very young age, he decided to use the Maltese Cross as the House’s emblem. Now revised, the Lanson cross has become the icon of the company. The House developed steadily and won increasing numbers of admirers among connoisseurs, including crowned heads – The House of Lanson has been the official supplier to the British court since 1900, when Henri Marie Lanson was awarded the title of “Purveyor of Champagne to Her Majesty” by Queen Victoria. Later, Lanson also became the only Champagne of the principality of Monaco. In recognition of this honour, the House developed a special design including Monaco’s symbolic chess-board pattern.