Robert Hyde Greg

Who was Robert Hyde Greg?

Robert Hyde Greg, was an English industrialist, economist and antiquary.

Born in Manchester, the son of Samuel Greg, the creator of Quarry Bank Mill, he was brother to William Rathbone Greg and the junior Samuel Greg. His mother, Hannah, was a descendant of Philip Henry. He attended the University of Edinburgh and, after the obligatory Grand Tour of the antiquities of Continental Europe, joined his father's textile manufacturing enterprise.

He was active in Manchester intellectual life as a member of the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society and was a founder of the Mechanics' Institute. He was an active member of the Liberal Party and the Anti-Corn Law League. Though he was elected to Parliament for Manchester in 1839, it was without his consent and he resigned in the following year. He was an opponent of factory reform, trades unions and worker health and safety legislation.

He died at Norcliffe Hall, Styal, Cheshire and is buried at the Dean Row Unitarian Chapel, Wilmslow.