The History:

Six Fratelli (brothers), all young enough to accept advice from an intelligent and loving mother, created a tiny mechanical workshop in the Adriatic coastal town of Pesaro; the year was 1911. From this humblest of beginnings was to spring one of the most famous marques in Italian motorcycle racing history.

Initially, the workshop's activities were restricted to the repair of automobiles and motorcycles,  and anything else mechanical, even guns. Soon, however, the Benelli brothers began to carry out limited manufacturing on their own account. They started producing components for cars and aircraft, a process which accelerated with the outbreak of World War 1 in 1914. At the end of hostilities, in 1918, the brothers turned their engineering skills to a new field. In Italy, and throughout Europe, there was a rapidly growing requirement for cheap mechanical transport - a demand which gave rise not only to a number of ultra-lightweight motorcycles, but to various bicycle attachments (such as the Wall Auto Wheel in Britain). Thus, the Benelli's designed and built their first engine, a 98cc two-stroke unit, which was mounted in front of the steering column of an orthodox bicycle (a la Velosolex). Drive from this auxiliary engine was taken, by chain, to the front wheel. All very well, except for one tiny problem - the Benelli engine produced too much power for the hapless cycle. There was only one solution to the dilemma: design a fame which could cope with the power and, thus, the first real Benelli motorcycle was conceived. 

Introduced in 1921, a new Benelli sported a conventional frame and girder forks. The engine employed magneto ignition and transmitted its power via a separate, 2-speed gearbox and chain to the rear wheel.