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Robin Hood is the Archetypal English folk Hero ; a Courteous , Pious and Swashbuckling Outlaw of the Medieval era who, in modern versions of the Legend , is famous for his robbing the rich to feed the poor and fighting against injustice and tyranny. He operates with his "seven score" (140 strong) group of fellow Outlawed Yeomen – named the '''Merry Men''' for their famed jollity – who were based in hideouts in Sherwood Forest and Barnsdale Forest . The chief nemesis of the Merry Men is the villainous Sheriff Of Nottingham who is overtaxing the people into poverty, and in some tales the villain is Prince John, based on John Of England . In some versions Robin Hood is said to have been a nobleman, the lord of Loxley , or Locksley (then the seat of Hallamshire , now in South Yorkshire ) in the early medieval period who was deprived of his lands by corrupt churchmen and greedy law officials. Sometimes he is returning from the Crusades to find the land pillaged by the sheriff. In many tales, Robin Hood was said to have been Anglo Saxon and his enemies in authority were often said to be Norman ; it is a historical fact that bitterness and conflict was still common amongst these communities over a century after the Norman Conquest (the former having being settled in England for far longer). Locksley is indeed an Anglo-Saxon surname, as can be seen here Although most noted for his material Egalitarianism , in the stories Robin Hood also pursues other types of social justice. However, as mentioned below, Robin Hood was not quite so generous in the original medieval ballads, in which he is often seen as an arrogant and headstrong rebel who isn't adverse to blood-letting, and was more than a little fearsome opponent for his enemies. In the end, since most events in the various Robin Hood stories are folklore, arguments over the "real" or "true" Robin Hood are unlikely to reach any conclusion. Even if a historical Robin Hood or a similar person did indeed exist, finding concrete evidence about his life is highly improbable. Evolution of the Robin Hood legend The stories relating to Robin Hood are apocryphal, verging on the Myth ical. The modern image widely held today contrasts in many ways with the medieval legend; the latter being far grittier and bloodier than most modern audiences would recognise. The modern Robin Hood was created by 16th and 17th Century dramatists and writers, while the early medieval Robin Hood was more realistic yet probably mostly the creation of wandering Minstrel s, and is a more elusive figure. Outlaws, thieves and bandits were often referred to as "Robin Hoods" as early as the 1200s , so if there was a historical Robin Hood, he must have come before this time. However if there was, he has been lost to the mists of time, although stories of him were already being told. The first appearance of the "bold outlaw" himself in a surviving manuscript is in William Langland 's '' Piers Plowman '' ( 1377 ) in which Sloth, the lazy priest, boasts "I ken {Link without Title} 'rimes of Robin Hood." The next notice is in Wyntown's Scottish Chronicle, written about 1420 , where the following lines occur – without any connection, and in the form of an entry – under the year 1283 : :''Lytil Jhon and Robyne Hude Wayth-men ware commendyd gude: In Yngil-wode and Barnysdale Thai oysyd all this tyme thare trawale. In 1439 , a petition was presented to Parliament against one Piers Venables of Aston, in Derbyshire , "who having no liflode, ne sufficeante of goodes, gadered and assembled unto him many misdoers, beynge of his clothynge, and, in manere of insurrection, wente into the wodes in that countrie, ''like as it hadde be Robyn Hude and his meyne.''"—''Rot. Parl.'' v. 16. This is the first portrayal of Robin Hood as an Antihero , which would stick with him to the 17th Century , when Guy Fawkes and his associates were described as "Robin Hoods" by Robert Cecil . The first mention of a historical Robin Hood is in a passage of the " Scotichronicon ", written partly by John Fordun between 1377 and 1384 , and partly by his pupil Walter Bower , in about 1450 , who largely interpolated the work of his master. Among his interpolations is a passage translated as follows. It is inserted immediately after Fordun's account of the defeat of Simon De Montfort and the punishments inflicted on his adherents: At this time, [ According to ''The Annotated Edition of the English Poets - Early Ballad s'' (London, 1856 , p.70): His death is stated by Ritson to have taken place on the 18th Of November , 1247 , about the eighty-seventh year of his age; but according to the following inscription found among the papers of the Dean of York, and quoted from the Appendix to Thoresby's ::''Hear undernead dis laitl stean ::''Lais Robert Earl of Huntingtun ::''Near arcir der as hie sa geud ::''An pipl kauld im Robin Heud ::''Sic utlaws as hi an is men ::''Vil England nivr si agen. :::''Obiit 24 Kal Dekembris 1247 This inscription also appears on a grave in the grounds of . The first recorded mention of the Huntington title in association with Robin Hood appears to be the 1598 play ''The Downfall of Robert, Earl of Huntington'' by Anthony Munday . Printed versions of Robin Hood ballads appear in the early 16th century, shortly after the advent of Printing in England. In these ballads, Robin Hood is a Yeoman which, by that time, meant an independent tradesman or farmer. It is only in the late 16th century that he becomes a Nobleman , the Earl of Huntington, Robert of Locksley, or later still, Robert Fitz Ooth. His romantic attachment to Maid Marian (or "Marion") (originally known as Mathilda or Maud) is also a product of this later period and probably has something to do with the French pastoral play of about 1280 , the ''Jeu de Robin et Marion.'' Aside from the names, there is no recognizable Robin Hood connection to the play. The late 16th century is also the period when the Robin Hood story is moved back in time to the 1190s, when King Richard was absent from his throne, fighting in the Crusade s. (See Mair , ''Historia Majoris Britanniae''). One of the original Robin Hood ballads refers to King Edward ( Edward I , II , and III ruled England from 1272 to 1377 ). The idea of Robin Hood as a high-minded Saxon fighting Norman Lords originates in the 19th Century , (see e.g. Thierry , ''Histoire de la Conquête de l'Angleterre par les Normands'', livr. xi) most notably in the part Robin Hood plays in Sir Walter Scott 's '' Ivanhoe '' ( 1819 ), chapters 40 - 41, where the familiar modern Robin Hood — "King of Outlaws and prince of good fellows!" as Richard the Lionheart calls him — makes his debut. The folkloric Robin Hood was deprived of his lands by the villainous Sheriff Of Nottingham and became an Outlaw . The Sheriff does indeed appear in the early ballads (Robin kills and beheads him), but there is nothing as specific as this allegation (n.b. one historical contender for this villain may be William De Wendenal ). Robin's other enemies include the rich Abbot s and a bounty hunter named Guy Of Gisbourne , whom Robin kills and beheads as well. The early ballads contain nothing about giving to the poor, although Robin does make a large Loan to an unfortunate Knight . In the ballads, the original "Merry Men" (though not called that) included: Will Scarlet (or Scathlock) , Much The Miller's Son , and Little John — who was called "little" as a joke, as he was quite the opposite. The minstrel Alan-a-Dale , who Narrates Robin's adventures in song, is a later invention in Robin Hood plays. The Robin Hood legend evolved steadily over time from humble beginnings as an ordinary rogue to a national hero of epic proportions, who not only supported the poor by taking from the rich, but still heroically defended the King Of England when his own brother (the scheming Prince John ) plotted to usurp the throne from his exile in France during Richard's absence from England when Richard was attending the Crusades . Connections to existing locations In modern versions of the legend, Robin Hood is said to have taken up residence in the verdant Sherwood Forest in the county of Nottinghamshire . This is a matter of some considerable contention. The original ballads speak of his being in Barnsdale (the area between Pontefract and Doncaster ), some fifty miles north of Sherwood in the county of Yorkshire . This is reinforced for some by the similarity of ''Locksley'' to the area of Loxley in Sheffield , where in nearby Tideswell , which was the “Kings Larder” in the Royal Forest of the Peak, a record of Robert de Lockesly in court is found, perhaps in his Retirement years in 1245 . Although it cannot be proved this is the man himself, it is believed he had a brother called Thomas, which gives credence to the following reference: “(24) No. 389, f0- 78. Ascension Day, 29 H. III., Nic Meverill, with John Kantia, on the one part, and Henry de Leke. Henry released to Nicolas and John 5 m. rent, which he received from Nicolas and John and Robert de Lockesly for his life from the lands of Gellery, in consideration of receiving from each of them 2 M. only, the said Henry to live at table with one of them and to receive 2 m. annually from the other. T., Sampson de Leke, Magister Peter Meverill, Roger de Lockesly, John de Leke, Robert fil Umfred, Rico de Newland, Richard Meverill. (25) No. 402, p. 80 b. Thomas de Lockesly bound himself that lie would not sell his lands at Leke, which Nicolas Meveril had rendered to him, under a penalty of L40. (40 marks)” In Barnsdale Forest there is at least one Robin Hood's Well (by the side of the Great North Road ), one Little John's Well (near Hampole ) and a Robin Hood's stream (in Highfields Wood at Woodlands ). There is something of a modern movement amongst Yorkshire residents to re-confirm the legend of Robin Hood, to the extent that South Yorkshire's new airport, on the site of the redeveloped RAF Finningley airbase near Doncaster , has been given the name Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield . There has long been a Pub in the village of Hatfield Woodhouse , quite close to the airport, which is known as The Robin Hood and Little John. Centuries ago, a variant of 'as plain as the nose on your face' was 'Robin in Barnesdale stood.' , ''.]] This debate is hardly surprising, given the considerable value that the Robin Hood legend has for local . The Sheriff of Nottingham also had jurisdiction in Derbyshire that was known as the “Shire of the Deer,” and this is where the Royal Forest Of The Peak is found, which roughly corresponds to today's Peak District National Park . The Royal Forest included Bakewell , Tideswell , Castleton , Ladybower and the Derwent Valley near Loxley . The Sheriff of Nottingham possessed property near Loxley, including Hazlebadge Hall , Peveril Castle and Haddon Hall . Mercia, to which Nottingham belonged, came to within three miles of Sheffield City Centre. The supposed grave of Little John can be found in Hathersage , also in the Peak District. Robin Hood himself is reputed to be buried in the grounds of Kirklees Priory near Brighouse in West Yorkshire . There is an elaborate grave there with the inscription referred to above. The story is that the Prioress was a relative of Robin's. Robin was ill and staying at the Priory where the Prioress was supposedly caring for him. However, she betrayed him, his health worsened, and he eventually died there. Before he died, he told Little John (or possibly another of his Merry Men) where to bury him. He fired an arrow from his bow from the Priory window, and where the arrow landed was to be the site of his grave. The actual grave is within sight of the ruins of the Priory, and this lends credence to this version of Robin's life story. The grave can be visited on occasional organised walks, organised by Calderdale Council Tourist Information office. Further indications of the legend's connnection with West Yorkshire (and particularly Calderdale) are noted in the fact that there are pubs called the Robin Hood in both nearby Brighouse and at Cragg Vale ; higher up in the Pennines beyond Halifax, West Yorkshire . There is at least one village in West Yorkshire called Robin Hood, on the A61 between Leeds and Wakefield and close to Rothwell. With all these references to Robin Hood, it is not surprising that the people of both South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire lay some claim to Robin Hood, who, if he existed, could easily have roamed between Nottingham , Lincoln , Doncaster , and right into West Yorkshire. In those days, Sherwood Forest and Barnsdale Forest were probably all one vast forest affording plenty of cover for a band of outlaws. Modern interpretations Songs, plays, games, and, later, novels, musicals, films, and TV series have developed Robin Hood and company according to the needs of their times, and the mythos has been subject to extensive ideological manipulation. Maid Marian, for instance, something of a warrior maiden in early Victorian novels, was reduced in demeanour to passivity during the period of the Women's Suffrage movement. As the media power of the modern Feminist movement gathered momentum, Marian reacquired an altogether more active role. Robin Hood himself has been transformed from an "outlaw for venyson" with an occasional element of generosity with no particularly notable skill in archery–and no suggestion of political animosity–in the original tales, to a medieval Che Guevara , a deadly accurate master archer fighting a Guerrilla war against Prince John , the Sheriff of Nottingham, and his vicious second, Guy of Gisbourne, on behalf of the oppressed and King Richard. Libertarians and Classic Liberals have interpreted Robin Hood as a liberty seeking anti-government independent. In this phrasing, the power structure of the Sheriff and Prince John are representative of the government, while Robin Hood and the Merry Men are the rebellious everymen, with Friar Tuck as an ambivalent Church. Robin Hood returns taxes, confiscated goods and private property to their rightful owners, the common individual citizen in this reading. An alternative interpretation can be found in Objectivism , which criticizes the conventional interpretation as it glorifies stealing from the rich to give to the poor--an act it considers morally reprehensible. ''Robin Hood'' has become shorthand for a good-hearted bandit who steals from the rich to give to the poor. Many countries and situations boast their own Robin Hood characters; the page tracks them. An airport in South Yorkshire has been opened and named "The Doncaster Sheffield Robin Hood Airport". Other trivia
Movies and TV series
The character of Robin from the Batman series of comics is reported to have taken both his name and the style of his original costume from Robin Hood. Appearance in other arts Music Composer Robert Steadman , who lived for some time in Nottingham , has written 2 musical compositions using the Myths of Robin Hood:
"Einstein, disguised as Robin Hood With his memories in a trunk Passed this way an hour ago With his friend, a jealous monk." Video games
Strategy Games
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