Results: Pro Wrestling at Waverley Market in Edinburgh (1903-1913)
Results from Waverley Market in Edinburgh, Scotland, where a lot of the biggest pre-WWI European wrestling crowds gathered.
Between 1903 and 1913 pro wrestling was a staple at Waverley Market in Edinburgh, Scotland, and the sport as a whole was quite popular in Scotland during most of that period. In fact, back then in terms of big crowds Waverley Market was probably the number one place for pro wrestling in Europe, and maybe the world too. To the best of my knowledge, during that era no other place had as many big crowds watching pro wrestling as Waverley Market did.Like with Glasgow and elsewhere in Scotland, the unique thing about Waverley Market in Edinburgh is that while there were a lot of big crowds there, most of them weren't there just to watch pro wrestling. Usually the pro wrestling matches were part of either a big athletic event that featured a number of sports or most often the big annual Christmas carnival that had a plenty of other attractions in addition to the wrestling. But make no mistake about it, even though pro wrestling wasn't the only attraction on the bill, pro wrestling was always positioned as the headline attraction.
Over the years a number of popular international stars wrestled at Waverley Market - George Hackenschmidt, Paul Pons, Simon Antonitch, Raoul le Boucher, Jack Carkeek, Ahmed Madrali, Josef Smejkal, Taro Miyake, Yukio Tani, etc. The most important name though was Scotland's own Alex Munro. He was considered the champion of Great Britain and, since there were no notable English standouts at the time, he was the biggest British wrestling star of the era.
Below I've listed all the pro wrestling match results from Waverley Market that I could find, but the list is not full. On occasion there would be two wrestling shows per day (afternoon and evening), but sometimes the newspapers skipped over the afternoon shows in their reporting. Also, in some cases I only know the advertised matches, but don't know the results. I have not listed any of the amateur matches that took place along with the pro bouts, but there was quite a few of those too. Japanese jiu-jitsu bouts are listed. The attendance numbers and quotes are exactly as mentioned in the Scottish press. Take them for what they're worth. If there's more than one attendance estimate listed per event that means they're from different newspapers. Unfortunately, for a lot of the cards there are no concrete numbers available.
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There may have been earlier instances too, but 1903 is when pro wrestling became a regular fixture at Waverley Market, and particularly at H. E. Moss' annual carnival. Sir Horace Edward Moss was a major British impresario and the joint managing director of Moss Enterprises. Moss Enterprises was the largest chain of variety theatres and music halls in the United Kingdom back then, with over 50 venues under their umbrella at one point. Moss' big annual venture in Edinburgh was his Christmas and New Year's Carnival. It was a three-week, six days a week, 12 hours a day carnival that Moss promoted at Waverley Market for 27 years. In 1903, as part of Moss' 18th annual carnival, Moss added pro wrestling as the headline attraction. During the third and final week of the carnival the American Jack Carkeek was appearing daily. Carkeek had an open challenge out to all-comers. He had said he'd beat his opponents within 15 minutes or he'd forfeit £10. The challenge was valid for the catch-as-catch-can, Greco-Roman and Cornish styles. The condition was the wrestlers had to sign up to take on Carkeek with at least 24 hours notice. The adverts billed Carkeek as the greatest and most scientific wrestler the world had ever produced. At the time Carkeek was probably the top wrestling star in the UK, along with George Hackenschmidt who had arrived in the UK 10 months prior and was rapidly gaining popularity.
5 January 1903
6,000 fans
1. Jack Carkeek def. Carl Beck (10:33 minutes)
2. Jack Carkeek def. Victor Ajax (4:10 minutes)
= Catch-as-catch-can matches.
6-9 January 1903
= Jack Carkeek was wrestling at the Waverley Market carnival daily, but I don't have the results for these four days.
10 January 1903
"the building was crowded in every part"
1. Jack Carkeek def. Matt Steadman (18 minutes)
= The stipulation was that Carkeek had to beat Steadman within 12 minutes or pay a forfeit for every additional minute after that. Matt Steadman was the son of one of the all-time UK wrestling greats George Steadman.
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Next up was a four-day mixed rules (catch and Greco-Roman) tournament. It was billed as Monstre World's Wrestling Tournament and was promoted by J. Franklyne. Heading into the tournament Jack Carkeek, Alex Munro, Alec Bain and Matt Steadman were advertised as the top contenders.
12 August 1903
4,000 fans
1. Tom Connor def. J. J. Miller
2. James Morrison def. Jackson
3. Matt Steadman was given a bye to the next round because his opponent wasn't there
4. Jack Carkeek def. M. Bain
5. Alex Munro def. Joe Carroll
6. Lacrenzi def. Victor Ajax
7. Barker def. Eberlicht
8. Charles Green drew Alec Bain
9. A. J. Ingram def. Murad Hassam
10. Jean Calvet def. Barker
11. James Morrison def. Tom Connor
12. Jack Carkeek def. Matt Steadman
13 August 1903
5,000 fans
1. M. Bain def. Jackson (15 minutes)
2. Victor Ajax def. Tom Connor
3. Barker def. J. J. Miller (15 minutes)
4. Matt Steadman def. Brown (5 minutes)
5. Joe Carroll def. Eberlicht (over 15 minutes)
6. Alex Munro def. Lacrenzi (2:0 falls)
7. Jean Calvet def. Alec Bain (2:1 falls)
8. Jack Carkeek received a bye to the next round because his opponent (Morrison) wasn't there
9. Charles Green def. A. J. Ingram
= The first five bouts were part of the consolation tournament (i.e. the losers of the previous night's matches) and were under catch rules. Brown was a sub for the Turk Murad Hussam. From the sixth match onward the matches were one round catch, one round Greco-Roman and then, if needed, a coin toss would decide the style for the third round.
14 August 1903
“several thousand fans”
1. Jackson def. A. J. Ingram (2:0 falls - 7 minutes in Greco-Roman, 5 minutes in catch)
2. Eberlicht def. Lacrenzi (2:1 falls - Eberlicht 7 minutes in Greco-Roman, Lacrenzi 7 minutes in catch, Eberlicht 5 minutes in Greco-Roman)
3. Joe Carroll def. Victor Ajax (2:1 falls - Carroll 8 minutes in catch, Ajax 24 minutes in Greco-Roman, Carroll 6 minutes in catch)
4. Barker def. Matt Steadman (2:0 falls - 9 minutes in catch, 8 minutes in Greco-Roman)
5. Tournament Semi-final: Alex Munro def. Jean Calvet (2:1 falls - Munro 8 minutes in catch, Calvet 9 minutes in Greco-Roman, Munro less than 5 minutes in catch)
6. Tournament Semi-final: Jack Carkeek def. Charles Green (2:0 falls)
15 August 1903
10,000 fans / 10,000 to 12,000 fans / 11,000 fans / 17,000 fans (conflicting estimates)
1. Consolation Tournament Final: Matt Steadman def. Joe Carroll (2:1 falls, over 30 minutes in total)
2. For 3rd & 4th place: Jean Calvet def. Charles Green
3. Tournament Final: Jack Carkeek def. Alex Munro (2:1 falls, Carkeek 7 minutes in Greco-Roman, Munro 10 minutes in catch, Carkeek 13 minutes in catch)
= Final placement: Carkeek 1st (winning £100), Munro 2nd (£50), Calvet 3rd (£20), Green 4th (£10). Tom Cannon was the referee. With the crowd behind him, Munro protested the loss, saying his shoulders had not been on the carpet long enough for him to be declared defeated, but Cannon held his ground and explained that the rule in catch was that both shoulders had to touch the carpet and there was no requirement for time (i.e. no three counts or anything like that). It's also worth mentioning that earlier in the day Munro had wrestled in another town - he had defeated Charles Green in Crieff.
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Next there was a Scottish Athletic Championship promoted by Fred A. Lumley. He was an Englishman, who had moved to Scotland, where he became a sports promoter. At one point he was leasing the Powderhall Grounds stadium in Edinburgh. The Scottish Athletic Championship was Lumley's first foray into pro wrestling. He decided to get into wrestling promotion after he saw how successful the August 1903 tournament was. The Scottish Athletic Championship featured pro wrestling, amateur wrestling, boxing, tug of war and weightlifting. The pro wrestling part consisted of two tournaments - a 12 Stone Championship (i.e. middleweights) and an Open Championship. These were catch tournaments. Lumley tried to book George Hackenschmidt and Alex Munro for the latter tournament, but couldn't get it done.
5 December 1903
8,000 fans
1. Victor Ajax def. Jim Connor (14 minutes)
2. Charles Green def. Alex A. Cameron
3. Charles le Meunier def. Charles McIntosh (less than 1 minute)
4. Jack Carkeek def. J. J. Miller (3 minutes)
7 December 1903
between 4,000 and 5,000 fans
1. John Bain was given a bye because his opponent Matt Steadman wasn't there
2. Alec Bain def. Tom Connor (14 minutes)
3. Willie Withers Bain drew Jean Calvet (30 minutes)
4. Louis Chorella def. Joe Carroll
8 December 1903
1. John Sutherland def. J. Robertson
2. Joe Carroll def. A. J. Ingram
3. Tom Connor def. W. Jackson
4. Victor Ajax was given a bye because his opponent J. J. Miller wasn't there
5. Willie Withers Bain drew Charles Green (35 minutes)
6. Jack Carkeek def. John Bain (5 minutes)
9 December 1903
4,000 fans / 4,000 to 5,000 fans
1. Louis Chorella def. Victor Ajax (18 minutes)
2. Alec Bain def. Charles le Meunier (2 minutes)
3. Charles Green def. Willie Withers Bain via decision (30 minutes)
10 December 1903
1. Willie Withers Bain def. Jim Connor (8 minutes)
2. Joe Carroll def. John Sutherland (6 minutes)
3. John Bain def. Victor Ajax (26 minutes)
4. Alec Bain def. Louis Chorella (14 minutes)
11 December 1903
"large attendance"
1. Joe Carroll def. Willie Withers Bain (28 minutes)
2. Tom Connor def. John Bain (17 minutes)
3. Jack Carkeek def. Charles Green (23 minutes)
12 December 1903
11,000 fans / 12,000 to 14,000 fans
1. Charles Green def. Louis Chorella (6 minutes)
2. 12 Stone Championship Final: Joe Carroll drew Tom Connor (45 minutes)
3. Open Championship Final: Alec Bain def. Jack Carkeek - cnc
= Carkeek won the first fall in about 14 minutes, but injured his shoulder, and in the second fall Carkeek hurt himself again so had to forfeit the match. Final placement. Open Championship final placement: Bain 1st, Carkeek 2nd, Green 3rd, Chorella 4th. 12 Stone Championship: Connor & Carroll tied for 1st, John Bain and Willie Withers Bain tied for 3rd and 4th place.
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The third and final week of H. E. Moss's 19th annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival was headlined by a Greco-Roman tournament with the Paul Pons troupe. Leon Dumont was advertised for the tournament, but wasn't there. The previous two weeks of the carnival had been headlined by Eugen Sandow doing various demonstrations.
4 January 1904 (afternoon)
6,000 to 8,000 fans / "very large attendance"
1. Ferdinand Dieckmann def. Josef van Dem (8 minutes)
2. Raoul le Boucher def. Eduard Ritzler (6 minutes)
4 January 1904 (evening)
"several thousand spectators" / "almost inconveniently crowded"
1. Emile Vervet def. Charles Poiree (9 minutes)
2. Simon Antonitch def. Ivan Romanoff (11 minutes)
5 January 1904 (afternoon)
"a large gathering"
1. Heinrich Weber def. A. J. Ingram (7 minutes)
2. Paul Pons def. Carlos Wonders (4 minutes)
3. Ivan Romanoff def. Eduard Ritzler (6 minutes)
5 January 1904 (evening)
"several thousand spectators" / "a great crowd" / "a large gathering"
1. Anastace Anglio def. Charles Poiree (8 minutes)
2. Matt Steadman def. Josef van Dem (12:30 minutes)
6 January 1904 (afternoon)
"a large attendance"
1. Anastace Anglio def. Eduard Ritzler (10 minutes)
2. Emile Vervet def. Ferdinand Dieckmann (15 or 16 minutes)
6 January 1904 (evening)
"a large attendance" / "the market was again uncomfortably filled"
1. Josef van Dem def. John Sutherland
2. Matt Steadman def. Carlos Wonders (14 minutes)
3. Raoul le Boucher def. Ivan Romanoff (15 minutes)
7 January 1904 (afternoon)
"a big attendance"
1. Emile Vervet def. Josef van Dem (11 minutes)
2. Simon Antonitch def. Charles Poiree
3. Ivan Romanoff def. Carlos Wonders (13 minutes)
7 January 1904 (evening)
8,000 to 10,000 fans
1. Heinrich Weber def. Ferdinand Dieckmann (9 minutes)
2. Matt Steadman def. Eduard Ritzler (8 minutes)
3. Paul Pons def. Anastace Anglio (22 minutes)
8 January 1904 (afternoon)
"a big crowd"
1. Heinrich Weber def. Josef van Dem (6 minutes)
2. Emile Vervet def. John Sutherland (8 minutes)
3. Simon Antonitch def. Anastace Anglio (25 minutes)
8 January 1904 (evening)
"the market was almost packed"
1. Matt Steadman def. Ferdinand Dieckmann (12 minutes)
2. Paul Pons def. Raoul le Boucher (23 minutes)
9 January 1904 (afternoon)
1. Carlos Wonders def. Josef van Dem (13 minutes)
2. Emile Vervet def. A. J. Ingram (3 minutes)
3. Raoul le Boucher def. Anastace Anglio (17 minutes)
9 January 1904 (evening)
"the attendance seemed to be larger than 10,000 fans" / 15,000 fans / "the market was crowded to its utmost capacity"
1. Ferdinand Dieckmann def. Eduard Ritzler (14 minutes)
2. Heavyweight Final: Paul Pons def. Simon Antonitch (14 minutes)
3. Middleweight Final: Matt Steadman def. Charles Poiree (5 minutes)
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Next we have two one-night tournaments held in conjunction with an Edinburgh City Police Pipe Band concert. 11 stone or under (welterweight or smaller) and an open competition. The style was not mentioned, but most likely it was catch. It's possible these tournaments may have been amateur, but I think they were pro.
16 April 1904
1. C. Jackson def. Tom Brown (13:08 minutes)
2. A. J. Ingram def. J. Andrews (13:07 minutes)
3. 11 Stone Tournament Final: A. J. Ingram def. C. Jackson
4. Willie Withers Bain def. J. Murray (15:45 minutes)
5. Willie Withers Bain def. C. Jackson (17 minutes)
6. Willie Withers Bain def. Tom Brown (14:30 minutes)
7. Willie Withers Bain def. A. J. Ingram (18:20 minutes)
8. A. J. Ingram def. C. Jackson (17 minutes)
= Final placement in the Open Competition: Willie Withers Bain 1st, A. J. Ingram 2nd, C. Jackson 3rd.
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Then George Harrington (of London) promoted a series of events, which featured three catch tournaments at once - a heavyweight one, a 13 stone one (light heavyweight) and an amateur middleweight tournament.
7 September 1904
3,000 fans
1. John Bain drew Cherbonnier (20 minutes)
2. Alex Munro def. Fred Johnson (8:49 minutes)
3. J. J. Miller def. A. Ross (5:37 minutes)
4. Jackson def. McNab (5:55 minutes)
5. Pat Connolly def. McDonald (7:16 minutes)
6. Ackbar Ackmuch def. Rory O'More (5 minutes)
9 September 1904
"a good attendance" / "a large crowd"
1. J. J. Miller drew Rory O'More (20 minutes)
2. Alex Munro def. Pat Connolly (7 minutes)
3. Ackbar Ackmuch def. A. Ross (4 minutes)
4. John Bain drew Cherbonnier (20 minutes)
5. A. J. Ingram def. W. Lumsden (10 minutes)
6. W. L. Jackson drew W. L. Ross (20 minutes)
9 September 1904
"a large attendance"
1. A. J. Ingram drew W. L. Jackson (20 minutes)
2. J. J. Miller def. W. Lumsden (7 minutes)
3. Alex Munro def. Alfred Kramer (10 minutes)
4. Pat Connolly def. A. Ross (12 minutes)
5. Cherbonnier drew W. L. Ross (20 minutes)
6. Ackbar Ackmuch def. John Bain (6 minutes)
10 September 1904
7,000 fans
1. W. L. Jackson def. W. Lumsden (16 minutes)
2. Alex Munro def. W. L. Ross (7 minutes)
3. Ackbar Ackmuch def. Cherbonnier (3:20 minutes)
4. Cherbonnier def. A. Ross (2 minutes)
5. Heavyweight Final: Alex Munro def. Ackbar Ackmuch (3 minutes)
= Final placements. Heavyweight: Munro 1st, Ackmuch 2nd, Cherbonnier 3rd. 13 Stone: W. L. Jackson 1st, A. J. Ingram & W. L. Ross tied for 2nd and 3rd.
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Next Fred A. Lumley promoted a wrestling card built around two of the top Scottish stars - Alex Munro and Willie Withers Bain. In addition to the pro wrestling matches there was also a 9 stone amateur tournament.
8 October 1904
10,000 fans
1. Alex Munro def. Charles McIntosh (7:08 minutes)
2. Alex Munro def. Victor Cudell (4:50 minutes)
3. Alex Munro def. Safo Petroff (9:50 minutes)
4. Willie Withers Bain def. W. Jackson (3:46 minutes)
5. Willie Withers Bain def. W. L. Ross (3:08 minutes)
6. Willie Withers Bain def. A. J. Ingram (5:45 minutes)
7. Willie Withers Bain def. J. McBain (5:39 minutes)
8. Willie Withers Bain def. Jim Marks (6:12 minutes)
9. Willie Withers Bain def. Jim Connor (8:06 minutes)
10. International Championship - Cumberland style: J. J. Miller def. John Strong
= Munro (billed as the champion of Great Britain) had to beat three heavyweight wrestlers inside 30 minutes to win £25. Petroff was a sub for Alfred Kramer. Bain (billed as the World Middleweight champion) had to beat 6 middleweight wrestlers inside 60 minutes. Miller (billed as the champion of Scotland) vs. Strong (billed as the champion of England) was wrestled under Cumberland rules and was billed for the International Championship. This final match may have been an amateur one - it's not clear in the reports.
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The third and final week of H. E. Moss's 20th annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival was headlined by the Japanese jiu-jitsu expert Yukio Tani. Tani had an open challenge - £20 to any man who he failed to beat in 15 minutes, and £100 to anyone who could defeat him. Later on there was also another challenge - £10 to anyone who could last 10 minutes against him and then £1 for every minute after that. The matches were to be wrestled in the jiu-jitsu style (including wearing the traditional jackets). Tani's manager was William “Apollo” Bankier.
9 January 1905
1. Yukio Tani def. Ross (3:30 minutes)
2. Yukio Tani def. Duke (8:05 minutes)
10 January 1905
"another large attendance"
1. Yukio Tani def. John Sutherland (8:02 minutes)
2. Yukio Tani failed to beat a miner from Newcastle (10 minutes)
= It was said that same miner had won £20 from Tani three weeks ago at Newcastle.
11 January 1905
1. Yukio Tani def. Bain (7:30 minutes)
= There were several Bains around this time so it's not clear which one of them this was.
12 January 1905 (afternoon)
1. Yukio Tani def. Bain (6 minutes)
= There were several Bains around this time so it's not clear which one of them this was.
12 January 1905 (evening)
"again a large attendance"
1. Yukio Tani vs. Petroff
2. Yukio Tani def. Duke (10:03 minutes)
= There's conflicting reports on the first match - it either reached the 10-minute time limit without a winner or Tani beat Petroff (of Russia) in 6 minutes.
13 January 1905
"packed from front to end"
1. Yukio Tani failed to beat Alex Munro (10 minutes)
2. Yukio Tani def. Charles Laurie (2 minutes)
14 January 1905
more than 15,000 fans
1. Yukio Tani def. Allan (4:30 minutes)
2. Yukio Tani def. Fallon (2:05 minutes)
3. Yukio Tani def. the miner from Newcastle (7:49 minutes)
= After the bouts were over the promoter Moss announced that George Hackenschmidt would wrestle at the carnival the following year (but he didn't). The report also mentions that in terms of crowds the final week of the carnival, the one where Tani was the headline attraction, was the most successful one.
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Sidenote #1: On 1 April 1905 there was event promoted by W. H. Cameron which featured a professional boxing tournament and an amateur catch-as-catch-can tournament. D. Munro won the catch tournament. The reported attendance was 3,000.
Sidenote #2: This wasn't at Waverley Market, but it was a big card so I'll mention it here. On 17 June 1905 there was an athletics event at the Royal Gymnasium Ground stadium. It was promoted by the National Sports Syndicate. The event featured a number of sports, but the headline attraction was Alex Munro vs. Mehmet Yussuff and it was billed as being for the World's Wrestling Championship, with a £100 stake. The other advertised pro wrestling bout was Petroff (of Bulgaria, not Nicolai Petroff) vs. Neilschka (of Berlin) and was billed as being for the Middleweight Championship and a £50 stake. There were also an amateur and pro catch tournaments, billed as British Wrestling Championship, which had a £25 stake.
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Next Fred A. Lumley promoted a Great Athletic Carnival, which was in aid of the Tramwaymen's Widows and Orphans Fund. Pro wrestling was the headline attraction, but there was also tug of war, dancing, acrobats, dog and pony show, boxing, etc. There were also two simultaneous amateur wrestling tournaments (lightweight and middleweight), catch style. On the pro side of things there was an open challenge by Yan Kosski (billed as a Russian Pole) - £25 to any wrestler Kosski couldn't beat in 15 minutes. Again, this was in the catch style.
4 November 1905
"a huge crowd that must have numbered nearly 10,000 people" / "Waverley Market probably never held a crowd as dense as that which attended the opening, packed to suffocation, people were turned away as well"
1. Mixed Styles: Willie Withers Bain def. J. J. Miller (Bain won the catch fall, Miller took the Cumberland one, and finally Bain won the Greco-Roman fall in 13 minutes)
2. Alex Munro def. Max Muller (8:15, 8 minutes)
= Munro/Muller was in the catch style and was for a £50 stake.
6 November 1905
7,000 fans / "again a very large attendance"
1. Yan Kosski def. Robertson (17 seconds)
2. Yan Kosski def. Peterson (6:40 minutes)
7 November 1905
10,000 fans
1. Yan Kosski failed to beat Alex Munro (15 minutes)
= By lasting 15 minutes Munro won the £25 open challenge.
8 November 1905
"a large crowd, attendance at the beginning being between 4,000 and 5,000 fans"
1. Yan Kosski def. Max Muller (first fall was 5 minutes, and the second was 27 seconds)
= This was a Greco-Roman match with a £20 stake.
9 November 1905
8,000 fans
1. Alex Munro failed to beat Yan Kosski (10 minutes)
= The stipulation was that Munro would forfeit £25 if he couldn't beat Kosski in 10 minutes. Catch style.
10 November 1905
1. Yan Kosski def. J. Robertson (57 seconds)
2. Yan Kosski def. D. Hislop (40 seconds)
3. Yan Kosski def. A. Ross (3:25 minutes)
4. Yan Kosski def. John Sutherland (4:35 minutes)
= Kosski had to defeat all four opponent inside 10 minutes, which he did.
11 November 1905
12,000 fans
1. Alex Munro def. Yan Kosski (25:45 minutes)
= Catch style bout for a £50 stake. After Kosski lost he said catch style wasn't his specialty so he issued a challenge for a two out of three falls Greco-Roman rematch with a £100 stake.
9 December 1905
over 10,000 fans / "a large gathering"
1. Jiu-jitsu: John Sutherland def. three local men
2. Alex Munro def. Yan Kosski (2:15 minutes catch, 20 seconds Greco-Roman)
3. Exhibition: Alex Munro def. G. Paterson
= The Munro/Kosski rematch ended up being a mixed styles match. Whoever won their fall the quickest would get to choose the style of the third fall. The crowd wasn't happy at the quick result so to appease them Munro wrestled his trainer (G. Paterson) in an exhibition bout. It's mentioned Sutherland had toured with Taro Miyake recently and that's where he picked up more experience in the jiu-jitsu style.
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The third and final week of H. E. Moss's 21st annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival was headlined by the Turk Ahmed Madrali (billed as the World's Champion Catch-As-Catch-Can Wrestler) and Taro Miyake (billed as the Champion Jiu-jitsu Wrestler of Japan). Both had issued open challenges. Madrali - £25 man to any man he failed to beat in 15 minutes. Miyake - £1,000 to any man who defeated him. Miyake had also guaranteed that he would wrestle three men every day.
8 January 1906
"a crowded house"
1. Jiu-jitsu: Taro Miyake def. Fraser (1:28 minutes)
2. Jiu-jitsu: Taro Miyake def. Lee (1:47 minutes)
3. Jiu-jitsu: Taro Miyake def. John Sutherland (5:42 minutes)
4. Ahmed Madrali def. Mino (4:32 minutes)
= Munro vs. Meiler was announced for January 10.
9 January 1906
= Matches with Ahmed Madrali and Taro Miyake.
10 January 1906
over 10,000 fans
1. Alex Munro def. Meiler (9:37 minutes)
= Madrali and Miyake most likely had matches as well, but the reports only talk about the Munro match. The match was for a £100. Munro vs. Madrali was announced for January 12.
11 January 1906
= Matches with Ahmed Madrali and Taro Miyake.
12 January 1906
over 10,000 fans
1. Ahmed Madrali failed to beat Alex Munro (10 minutes)
= Munro was to get £25 if Madrali failed to beat him inside 10 minutes. Miyake likely wrestled on the card as well.
13 January 1906
12,000 fans
1. Francois Fournier vs. Walter Anderson
2. Jiu-jitsu: John Sutherland failed to beat Taro Miyake (5:00)
3. Joe Carroll beat Willie Wither Bain
4. Ahmed Madrali vs. ?
= Fournier/Anderson was for a £5 stake, Bain/Carroll was for £10, and the stipulation for Miyake/Sutherland was that Sutherland had to beat Miyake in 5 minutes with an armlock. The report didn't mention anything about match 1 and 4 so it's not clear if they took place.
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The match below was the headline attraction at an entertainment show promoted by the The Ancient Order of Foresters.
20 January 1906
1. Mixed Styles Championship for Great Britain: Alex Munro (c) vs. J. G. Gordon
= In addition to the championship, there was a £50 stake as well.
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The second and third week of H. E. Moss's 22nd annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival were headlined by Raku (Sadakazu Uyenishi).
7-19 January 1907
= There were daily jiu-jitsu matches, except on Sunday January 13, with Raku. He had an open challenge - £50 to any European wrestler he failed to beat inside 15 minutes. He was also doing demonstrations of the jiu-jitsu style.
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The third and final week of H. E. Moss's 23rd annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival was headlined by George Hackenschmidt (billed as the Champion of Champions). Hack's open challenge was the following: £10 to any British wrestler he failed to beat in 10 minutes, £25 to any British wrestler he failed to beat in 15 minutes, and £100 to any British wrestler who succeedd in beating him in 15 minutes. Catch style matches.
6 January 1908
"crowded"
1. George Hackenschmidt def. William Rankin (1:25 minutes)
2. George Hackenschmidt def. Pat Connolly (2:30 minutes)
3. George Hackenschmidt def. Ted Miller (5:09 minutes)
7 January 1908
"an immense gathering"
1. George Hackenschmidt def. William Rankin (1:30 minutes)
2. George Hackenschmidt def. Pat Connolly (3:10 minutes)
3. George Hackenschmidt def. Alec Bain (6:20 minutes)
8 January 1908
1. George Hackenschmidt def. G. Easton (1:40 minutes)
2. George Hackenschmidt def. Ewen Cameron (2:15 minutes)
3. George Hackenschmidt def. Ted Miller (6:20 minutes)
9 January 1908
"an enormous crowd again"
1. George Hackenschmidt def. Tom Brown (1:20 minutes)
2. George Hackenschmidt def. J. Robinson (1:30 minutes)
3. George Hackenschmidt def. Pat Connolly (3 minutes)
4. George Hackenschmidt def. Alec Bain (7 minutes)
10 January 1908
1. George Hackenschmidt def. Tom Brown (1:45 minutes)
2. George Hackenschmidt def. William Rankin (40 seconds)
3. George Hackenschmidt def. Foster (3:04 minutes)
4. George Hackenschmidt def. Ted Miller (5:27 minutes)
11 January 1908
"a great crowd"
1. George Hackenschmidt def. Tom Brown (1:10 minutes)
2. George Hackenschmidt def. William Rankin (55 seconds)
3. George Hackenschmidt def. Pat Connolly (2:20 minutes)
4. George Hackenschmidt def. Alec Bain (3:20 minutes)
5. George Hackenschmidt def. Ted Miller (5:00 minutes)
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The third and final week of H. E. Moss's 24th annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival was headlined by Yukio Tani. He had an open challenge - £20 to any man he failed to beat in 15 minutes and £100 to any man who managed to defeat him.
4 January 1909
1. Yukio Tani def. John Paulsen (2:40 minutes)
2. Yukio Tani def. Charles Laurie (10:30 minutes)
5 January 1909
= Yukio Tani wrestled again.
6. January 1909
1. Yukio Tani failed to beat Alex Munro (15 minutes)
= By doing so Munro won the £20 open challenge prize.
7 January 1909
= Yukio Tani wrestled again.
8 January 1909
"an enormous crowd of spectators"
1. Yukio Tani failed to beat Alex Munro (30 minutes)
= The stipulation was that Tani would forfeit £50 if he failed to beat Munro in 30 minutes.
9 January 1909
"a great crowd"
1. Yukio Tani def. P. C. Olsen (7:35 minutes)
2. Yukio Tani def. Charles Laurie (9:25 minutes)
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This was a charity Highland event in aid of the unemployed. There were a number of sports featured, but Munro was the headliner.
3 April 1909
10,000 fans
1. Alex Munro vs. ?
= I don't have a full report for this event. Munro was to wrestle several men and he had to beat them in 20 minutes or forfeit £20.
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The third and final week of H. E. Moss's 25th annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival was headlined by a Greco-Roman tournament with wrestlers from Europe.
10 January 1910 (afternoon)
"a large crowd"
1. Kara Ibrahim def. Ivan Mathuchenko (5:04 minutes)
2. Noel le Bordelais def. Josef Hansen-Esch (9:11 minutes)
3. Karl Saft def. Alfred Coumy (3:04 minutes)
10 January 1910 (evening)
"a large audience"
= I don't know what matches were on the card.
11 January 1910 (afternoon)
1. Anastace Anglio vs. Alfred Coumy
2. Hugh McDonald vs. Paul Verssen
3. Josef Smejkal vs. Kara Ibrahim
11 January 1910 (evening)
1. Carl Johanson vs. Strubb
2. John Sutherland vs. Paul Verssen
3. Noel le Bordelais vs. Ivan Mathuchenko
12 January 1910 (afternoon)
"a large audience"
1. Kara Ibrahim def. Jack Bain (6:40 minutes)
2. Kara Suliman def. Leon Dumont (5:11 minutes)
3. Josef Smejkal def. Strubb (8:10 minutes)
12 January 1910 (evening)
"a large audience"
1. Simon Antonitch def. Kara Ibrahim (6:07 minutes)
2. Josef Smejkal def. Noel le Bordelais (6:25 minutes)
3. Anastace Anglio def. Karl Saft (14:13 minutes)
13 January 1910 (afternoon)
1. Constant de Paris vs. Jack Bain
2. Josef Smejkal vs. Kara Ibrahim
3. Simon Antonitch vs. Karl Saft
13 January 1910 (evening)
1. Simon Antonitch vs. Carl Johanson
2. Josef Smejkal vs. John Sutherland
3. Anastace Anglio vs. Kara Suliman
14 January 1910 (afternoon)
1. Noel le Bordelais vs. Hugh McDonald
2. Anastace Anglio vs. Constant de Paris
3. Simon Antonitch vs. Kara Suliman
14 January 1910 (evening)
1. Anastace Anglio vs. John Sutherland
2. Josef Smejkal vs. Kara Suliman
15 January 1910 (evening)
"a big crowd"
1. For 3rd/4th place: Simon Antonitch def. Hugh McDonald (5 minutes)
2. Tournament Final: Josef Smejkal def. Anastace Anglio (about 20 minutes)
= Final placement: Smejkal 1st (winning £100), Anglio 2nd (£50), Antonitch 3rd (£40), McDonald 4th (£30). The report mentions that overall attendance for the carnival had been large, but not as strong as in former years.
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The third and final week of H. E. Moss's 26th annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival was headlined by Taro Miyake and Yukio Tani.
9 January 1911
= Matches with Taro Miyake and Yukio Tani.
10 January 1911
1. Taro Miyake def. Jimmy Esson (12:40 minutes) via decision
= The stipulation was that Esson would get £1 for every minute after the 6th one that he lasted. Esson was billed as the British Heavyweight champion.
11 January 1911
= Matches with Taro Miyake and Yukio Tani.
12 January 1911
"a large crowd"
1. Taro Miyake failed to beat Jimmy Esson (15 minutes)
= The stipulation was that Esson would get £20 if he lasted 15 minutes and £50 for 20 minutes. Heading into the match Miyake had a sprained ankle. At the end of the 15 minutes they were wrestling on the edge of the ring and Esson's belief was that the bout should be resumed in the middle, but Miyake refused so the match was stopped. Esson refused to leave until he was paid the £20 he had earned and ultimately, with the crowd being in Esson's favor, Miyake's manager gave Esson the money. Esson requested a rematch.
13 January 1911
"a great crowd"
1. Taro Miyake failed to beat Jimmy Esson (15 minutes)
= The match had the same stipulation as the night before. Esson lasted 15 minutes and then he stopped wrestling, saying he was feeling sick and was satisfied with winning the smaller sum. Miyake wanted to continue wrestling.
14 January 1911
1. Taro Miyake def. Gillespie
2. Taro Miyake def. Brown
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Sir Horace Edward Moss passed away in November 1912 so then Fred A. Lumley took over as the promoter of the annual Christmas and New Year's Carnival. The third and final week of the late 1912/early 1913 carnival was headlined by a Greco-Roman tournament. The Frenchman Raoul de Rouen (billed as the 1912 champion of France and Europe) was advertised as the top star.
6 January 1913 (afternoon and evening)
= There were tournament matches, but I don't know what matches exactly.
7 January 1913 (afternoon)
1. Yves le Boulanger vs. Bach
2. Raoul de Rouen vs. Gaumont le Frappeur
7 January 1913 (evening)
1. van Rothen vs. Soyer
2. Jean Schackmann vs. Noel
8 January 1913 (afternoon)
1. Yves le Boulanger vs. Noel
2. Jean Schackmann vs. Soyer
8 January 1913 (evening)
1. Gaumont le Frappeur vs. Bach
2. Raoul de Rouen vs. Soyer
9 January 1913 (afternoon)
1. van Rothen vs. Bach
2. Yves le Boulanger vs. Gaumont le Frappeur
9 January 1913 (evening)
1. Raoul de Rouen vs. Soyer
2. Jean Schackmann vs. Noel
10 January 1913 (afternoon)
1. Gaumont le Frappeur vs. Soyer
2. Bach vs. Noel
10 January 1913 (evening)
1. Raoul de Rouen vs. Yves le Boulanger
2. Non-tournament Match: Jack Sutherland drew Jean Schackmann
11 January 1913 (afternoon)
1. Bach vs. Soyer
2. Yves le Boulanger vs. van Rothen
11 January 1913 (evening)
1. Raoul de Rouen vs. Noel
2. Non-tournament Match: Jack Sutherland vs. Jean Schackmann
= I don't know any of the results, but most likely Raoul de Rouen won the tournament.

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