British (English) School - Robert Hyde Greg (1795–1875), of Norcliffe - 1452860 - National Trust

Robert Hyde Greg (24 September 1795 – 21 February 1875), was an English industrialist, economist,

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifacts, archaeological and historic si ...

, and - briefly - a Member of Parliament. Born in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, he was the son of

Samuel Greg Samuel Greg (26 March 1758 – 4 June 1834) was an Irish-born industrialist and entrepreneur of the early Industrial Revolution and a pioneer of the factory system. He built Quarry Bank Mill, which at his retirement was the largest textile mi ...

and Hannah Lightbody, the creators of

Quarry Bank Mill Quarry Bank Mill (also known as Styal Mill) in Styal, Cheshire, England, is one of the best preserved textile factories of the Industrial Revolution. Built in 1784, the cotton mill is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a ...

, a pioneering factory of the early Industrial Revolution. His family were Unitarians, part of the prosperous dissenting community that characterised the entrepreneurial class of factory owners. He was brother to

William Rathbone Greg William Rathbone Greg (1809 – 15 November 1881) was an English essayist. Life Born in Manchester, the son of Samuel Greg, the creator of Quarry Bank Mill, and Hannah Greg, he was brother to Robert Hyde Greg and the junior Samuel Greg. ...

and the junior

. He attended the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1 ...

and, after the obligatory

Grand Tour The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tut ...

of the antiquities of

Continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...

, joined his father's textile manufacturing enterprise. He was active in the city's intellectual life as a member of the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society and was a founder of its Mechanics' Institute. He was an active member of the Liberal Party and the Anti-Corn Law League. Though he was elected to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

for

in 1839, it was without his consent and he resigned in the following year. He was an opponent of

factory reform The Factory Acts were a series of acts passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom to regulate the conditions of industrial employment. The early Acts concentrated on regulating the hours of work and moral welfare of young children employed ...

, trades unions and worker health and safety legislation. He died at

Norcliffe Hall Norcliffe Hall is a large house encompassing 20,254 square feet near the village of Styal, Cheshire, England. It stands to the west of the village and to the north of Styal Country Park. It was built in 1831 for Robert Hyde Greg, the owner of ...

, Styal,

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county tow ...

and is buried at the Dean Row Unitarian Chapel, Wilmslow. Greg was also a slaveholder; tenant-in-common of Cane Garden, St Vincent Island, with 82 enslaved people.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Greg, Robert Hyde 1795 births 1875 deaths Businesspeople from Manchester Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Manchester UK MPs 1837–1841 Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies Alumni of the University of Edinburgh English industrialists English Unitarians 19th-century English businesspeople