John Gully and the Prizefighters of Bath

John Gully was born on 21 August 1783 at The Crown Inn, Wick, near Bristol, where his father was the landlord. During Gully's boyhood, the family moved to Bath, where his father became a butcher, and he was brought up in his father's trade. After his father's death, the business gradually declined, and at the age of twenty-one, Gully became an inmate of the Kings' Bench Prison, London. He had for some time taken an interest in prize-fighting matches, and this led in 1805 to his receiving a visit from an acquaintance, Henry Pearce, the ‘Bristol Game-Chicken’, the champion of England. The two men had a ‘set-to’ which so impressed the onlookers that several prize fight promoters paid Gully's debts and took him to Virginia Water, where he was trained for a more serious fight with Pearce. The contest took place at Hailsham in Sussex on 8 October 1805 before a huge crowd, among whom was the Duke of Clarence (afterwards William IV). After a fight of seventy-seven minutes, during which there were sixty-four rounds, Gully, who was nearly blinded, gave in.

Ill health forced the ‘Bristol Game-Chicken’ to retire in December 1805, and Gully was regarded as his legitimate successor, although he was never formally nominated champion. No challenger for his title came forward for two years. At length, he was matched to meet Bob Gregson, the Lancashire heavyweight, for 200 guineas a side. His opponent measured 6 feet 2 inches in height and was famously strong, while Gully himself was 6 feet tall. The fight took place on 14 October 1807 at Six Mile Bottom, on the Newmarket road. This encounter was remarkable for its brutality; both men became quite exhausted, but in the thirty-sixth round, Gully landed a blow which prevented Gregson from continuing. Captain Barclay took the winner off the ground in his carriage and drove him in triumph onto the Newmarket racecourse the next day. Gregson, not being satisfied, again challenged his opponent. This match, which was for £250 a side, took place in Sir John Sebright's park, near Market Street, Hertfordshire, on 10 May 1808, the combatants being watched by about a hundred noblemen and gentlemen on horseback and in carriages. The crowd was so great that it was rumoured the French had landed, and the volunteers were called out. The two men fought in white breeches and silk stockings, without shoes. After the twenty-seventh round, Gregson was too exhausted to continue. In this contest, which lasted an hour and a quarter, Gully, who had commenced with his left arm in a partially disabled condition, showed a complete knowledge of prize-fighting and a remarkable quickness of hitting.

In June 1808, with Tom Cribb, Gully took a joint benefit at the Tennis Court in London when he formally retired from the ring. By this time, he had become the landlord of The Plough Inn, 23 Carey Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London. He began devoting himself to the business of a betting man and became, in 1812, the owner of horses of his own, Cardenio being his first. He moved around this time to Newmarket and became more seriously involved in racing in 1827 when he gave Lord Jersey 4000 guineas for his Epsom Derby winner, Mameluke. He backed his purchase for the St Leger that year, but James Robinson on Matilda took the race, and Gully lost £40,000. In 1830, he became a betting partner with Robert Ridsale when their horse Little Red Rover ran second to Priam for the Derby. Their best year, however, was 1832, when they won the Derby with St Giles, and Gully took the St Leger with Margrave, making £50,000 on the former and £35,000 on the latter race. However, having fallen out with Ridsale in the hunting field, he horsewhipped him, which led to his having to pay £500 damages for assault. In partnership with John Day, Gully won the Two Thousand Guineas 1844 with Ugly Buck. In 1846, he took both the Derby and the Oaks (with Pyrrhus the First and Mendicant), an event previously accomplished only once, when Sir Charles Bunbury's Eleanor carried off both prizes in 1801. Gully was again the winner of the Two Thousand Guineas with Hermit in 1854, and in the same year, he won the Derby with Andover, having the bookmaker Henry Padwick for his partner in the latter horse. During this period as a racehorse owner and gambler, Gully purchased Upper Hare Park, near Newmarket, from Lord Rivers, but he subsequently sold it to Sir Mark Wood. He then bought Ackworth Park, near Pontefract, Yorkshire, becoming MP for that pocket borough from 10 December 1832 to 17 July 1837. Politically, he described himself as a reformer, supporting the ballot and shorter parliaments. In 1835, he brought a legal action against the editor of The Age for slander in connection with the Pontefract election. He unsuccessfully contested the seat again in June 1841. Having amassed a considerable fortune from his racing interests, he also acquired a degree of respectability. In 1836, he was presented at court. He married twice and had twelve children, with each wife. His first wife was the daughter of a London publican; his second, Mary, survived him.

Having sold Ackworth Park to Kenny Hill, Gully took up his residence at Marwell Hall, near Winchester. He had, however, invested his winnings in coalworks in the north and in land. He purchased a number of shares in the new Hetton Colliery, which he held until they had risen to a high premium. About 1838, he was involved in setting up the Thornley collieries and had a share in the Trindon collieries. In 1862, he became sole proprietor of the Wingate Grange estate and collieries. By this time, he had moved to Cocken Hall, near Durham. He died at the North Bailey in Durham on 9 March 1863 and was buried at Ackworth, near Pontefract, five days later.

Horse Racing in the Complete Sportsman of 1764

Of Horse Racing.

0f Horse Racing.

As to the method of ordering running-horses, or what is called keeping, it will be found under the article running-horses, and therefore we will only here suppose a horse set to run for a plate, and that the hour of starting is at hand, when the drum beats or the trumpets found, according to the custom of the place where you run, to give notice for stripping and weighing; be sure in the first: place, to keep out the wind, and to strengthen you: if you are light, that you must carry weight, let it be equally quilted in your waistcoat ; but it is better if you are just weight, for then you have no more to do than just to dress you, according to your own fancy; your clothes should be of coloured silk, or of white holland, as being very advantageous to the spectators; your waistcoat and drawers must be made close to your body, and on your head a little cap tied on; let your boots be gartered up fast, and your spurs must be of good metal ; then mount and come to the starting place, where going off briskly or gently, as occasion requires, make your horse perform the course or heat, according to your intended design ; particularly, if you would win the same, and that your horse excels in goodness more than speed, start him roundly, and run him to- the very top of what he can do, during the whole course or heat; and by that means, if the horse you run against be not so good at the bottom, though he has more speed, you will beat him, because he will run off it a great way before he comes to the end. But on the contrary, if your horse's talent be speed, all that you can do is to wait upon the other horse, and keep behind till you come almost to the end, and then endeavour to give a loose by him. Sometimes when you are to run more heats than one, it will be your policy to lose a heat; and in that case you must, for the easing and safeguard of your horse, lie behind as much as you can, provided you bring him in within distance.

The posture to be observed is, that you place yourself upon your twist, with your knees firm, and your stirrups just at such a length, that your feet, when they are thrust home in them, you can raise yourself a little in the saddle, for your legs, without that allowance, will not be firm when you come to run; the counter-poise of your body must be forward, to facilitate your horse's running, and your elbows must be close to your body; be sure, above all things, that you do not incommode your horse by swaggering this or that way, as some do, for since weight is a great matter in running, and that a troublesome rider is as bad as so much more weight, there is no need to fay how necessary it is to take great care of your seat and hand; you must therefore beware of holding yourself by the bridle, or of jobbing your horse's mouth upon any occasion; you must take your right rein in the fame hand, holding up horse, &c. as you find it necessary, and every now and then remove the bridle in his mouth. But these things are best learned by experience and practice.

A plate being run for by heats, every man that rides must be just weight at starting, in great scales for that purpose, and at the end of the lame heat, for if you want of your weight at coming in, you shall lose your heat, though you are the first horse: you have half an hour between the first and second, to rub your horses, and at the warning of the drum and trumpet again, you mount, &c. as before, and so till all is done, which is three, and sometimes three heats and a course.

If you do not breed racers yourself, be sure you buy no horse that has not extraordinary good blood in his veins, for the charge of keeping is great, and a good one eats no more than a bad, and requires no more attendance; some to save twenty or thirty guineas in the price of a young horse have lost hundreds by him afterwards.

A horse that you have tried once or twice at a twelve stone plate, you may be fare will make an extraordinary good hunter: and you are to observe, that the posture, manner of riding, is the same in a match as in a plate race, only that there being but a single course to be run, you must push for all ”