Robert Gregson - Description and Career

Bob Gregson, the big-boned, burly landlord of the Castle, Holborn, known as "Bob's Chop-house," was a familiar figure in the sporting world. When captain of the Liverpool and Wigan Packet, he established his reputation in Lancashire as a fighter. He stood 6
feet 2 inches in height, and weighed 15 stone 6 pounds. "Rob" Gregson was a formidable fighter, whose fame came to rest, upon the fact that he was the keen competitor of two champions. He was twenty nine years of age and had been captain of a Liverpool packet before bringing his tremendous strength and endurance forward to support a claim for pugilistic honours. His Lancashire supporters had picked him out as the best available rival to Gully and in his first attempt to win the title he amply proved himself a dangerous customer able to take any amount of punishment. In May 1808, the gentlemen of ‘the Fancy’, the fraternity of moneyed, often aristocratic patron-gamblers and rough-hewn fighters at the heart of contemporary pugilism, gathered with more than a thousand other enthusiasts to watch a title fight for the "Championship of All England" held in Sir John Sebright’s park in Hertfordshire. The protagonists were John Gully, the reigning champion, and Bob Gregson, the ‘Lancashire Giant’, fifteen stones in weight and over six ft tall. The quantity of carriages, and persons upon horseback, travelling in haste to arrive at the destined spot, beggared all description, from the splendid barouche to the jolting taxed-cart, all were seen in rapid motion – at length arriving in the park belonging to the above Baronet, and a good piece of ground secured for the purpose, a forty foot ring was soon formed, and well secured by pedestrians and horsemen. Gregson forced him to the ropes and when the champion made a final stand succeeded at last in planting one of his terrific left handers to the side of Gully's head Gully staggered into a clinch and tripped, pulling Gregson with him. In the struggle they fell through the ropes and landed outside the ring. Gregson came to the murk for the eighth round bent upon revenge, a fearsome, battered, raging figure. He flung upon his man with a fury that Gully could not meet and drove him at will. Gregson was nearly blind as he advanced for the eleventh round. In the seventeenth round Gregson again yielded to anger and started a wild battering attack. The next ten rounds were short and were simple successive sappings at Gregsons fortitude and great courage. At the opening of the twenty seventh round Gully bored in and suddenly clipped a swift swing under the left ear. Gregson went down. The battle had lasted one hour and a quarter. In after years he was widely known in London sporting circles as the landlord of "Bob's" Chop House, which was long the headquarters for fight, followers.