The earliest record relating to the design and development of the Dart Turboprop is a technical drawing dated April 4 1945, before the hostilities of World War Two had ended, and the dust had settled, which was a very positive attitude for Rolls-Royce to take at that time.
Although the initial proposal for this engine originated at Barnoldswick, near Burnley in Lancashire, Ernest W Hives a director of Rolls-Royce decided that the project should be mainly based at Derby. Lord Hives became Managing Director in 1946 and Chairman in 1950 as Lord Hives of Duffield and retired in January 1957, having seen the Viscount enter service and the Dart become the most significant turboprop engine of its time and arguably of all time.
Initial detail drawings were issued to the production department on November 1 1945 and the final build of the RB.53 prototype as it was originally designated was completed on July 10 1946 resulting in an incredibly short manufacture and build time for such a revolutionary engine. The RB designation stood for R-R Barnoldswick.