The brand of 555 cigarettes appeared in London on 10 March 1896. The digits (a series of triple numbers from 111 to 999) forming another part of the trademark were registered under the registration number 290529 in the UK on February 18, 1907. All of these numbers were used as different stamps, each of which was a different mixture or mixture of tobacco: for example, 444 were made from Macedonian leaves, and 777 were made from Turkish tobacco. The numerical ranges of 555 cigarettes weren’t the only options available on the market at the time. Other brand names included My Darling and Astorias, available in export catalogs. In addition to the cigarette business, cigars and tobaccos were available in the State Express range. But by far the most successful of these was Virginia’s State Express 555 tobacco blend, introduced in 1896, which became Ardath’s flagship brand.
Ardath Tobacco Company Limited was originally located at 62 Leadenhall Street in London and was called La Casa de Habana (House of Havana) until 1895, when it changed its name to the modern version. It is said that Sir Albert Levy received the name Ardat from the book of the same name, written by Marie Corelli. The title of the book is formed from numerous references in The Books of Ezra (in the Apocrypha) on the Field of Ardat.
The name of the company was changed in 1901 to the Ardath Tobacco Company and was split in 1925 after the sale; British American Tobacco acquired Ardath’s overseas rights, while Imperial Tobacco Group retained the rights to sell in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The 555 cigarettes brand proved to be a boon for BAT, where it enjoyed huge success in China before the rise of communism there (although it has since been reintroduced). Ardath brands continued to be sold in the UK; they got a royal warrant from King George VI in 1946 and then from Queen Elizabeth II.
In 1961, British American Tobacco bought out Imperial Tobacco’s stake in Ardath, thus gaining full control over the Ardath trademarks.