Exactly as raced to victory by Duncan Hamilton and Ivor Bueb in the 12 Hours of Reims at Reims-Gueux on the 30th of June 1956, The Jaguar D-type was designed and constructed with one specific goal in mind: to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Although the C-type had decisively beaten Europe’s best at Le Mans in 1951 and 1953, the threat from Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz made it clear to Jaguar Team Manager “Lofty” England and engineer Bill Heynes that a new car was required. The D-type was the result – stronger, lighter and faster than the C-type, yet powered by a 245 bhp development of the same XK engine. This meant that private owners could easily buy and maintain these cars, which provided a useful back-up to the works team. The D-type proved extremely successful in its mission, becoming one of the most dominant cars in Le Mans history, with victory in three of the four years it competed between 1954-1957. The success of the D-type was not confined to the track either, eventually becoming the road-going XKSS and inspiring many of the most famous cars of all time in the legendary E-type.