The Triumph Cycle Company was officially founded in 1887 by a German named Siegfried Bettmann. Although born in Germany, Bettmann had actually relocated to Coventry England when he was 20 years old. This is where he established his company.

One of the first notable motorcycles built by the British company was the Triumph Tiger. Originally designed in 1937, the motor on the original Tiger had a power output of 498 cc and was capable of traveling 90 miles per hour. The original Triumph Tiger went on to become the standard for just about every motorcycle built in the following 40 years.

In 1956, a rider named Johnny Allen set a new speed record while riding a Triumph. The place was the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah and the speed was 214 miles per hour. When Triumph released the Tiger T120 three years later, the bike was renamed the Triumph Bonneville in honor of the record-setting performance.

The Triumph Daytona is another motorcycle named in honor of a major racing event. The first Triumph Daytona was the Triumph T100R, which was originally sold in the 1960s. Today, with an engine capacity of 955 cc, the Triumph Tiger is still a force to be reckoned with.

The company lists the modern-day Tiger in its Urban Sports category and reviewers seem to agree with this classification. In fact, the Tiger has been described as 'the big touring motorcycle that can go anywhere.' The Triumph Motor Company also manufactured small cars, the most notable of which is the Triumph Spitfire (1962-1980).