Robin Hood: The History
 
 

Robin Hood, of modern folk-mythology, is a creation that was construed over the years to make him what he is, appealing to the people who listen to stories of his adventures, or misadventures. This makes it easy to understand why the legend of Robin Hood has lasted for so many years. A man of pride and independence, he opposed the rich and high ranked in society who, because they were richer and higher, felt they were better and used every means they had to smite and oppress the commoners. Officers of the law, churchmen, and most definitely the king, were among those that Robin Hood lashed out against. In turn, he remained loyal to the king and accepted religion. Through his plunders, he became a fighter for the people and a symbol of freedom of will, but also boasted the ever popular patriotism, for it was not the “existing social order” that he was against; it was the abuses of it by those who thought they were above the laws.

Since Robin Hood has such a great appeal to the people, many people believe that he was based on a real person and many people have tried to trace this real person though history. William Langland in his 1377 edition of Piers Plowman, brings up the “rymes of Robyn Hode” where in one verse, in a drunken stupor he criticizes himself for knowing the rhymes of Robin Hood better than he knows his prayers. Even back then, Robin Hood was already so well know that he could put it into his writings and feel no need to explain. One of the earliest writings recorded dates from the 15th century. entitled “Lytell Geste of Robyn Hode,” it is held in Lincoln Cathedral. However, this is only one of the earliest writings and cannot be used to determine the dates of Robin Hood.

Other writings were also placing Robin Hood within a timeline of the world, writings such as an anonymous manuscript in the British Museum that states Robin Hood’s home was in Lockesley, where he was born, in either Yorkshire or Nottinghamshire around the time of 1160. Other references in the manuscript talk about events happening along the road from Yorkshire to Nottinghamshire, so it was somewhere in between that the characters encountered Robin Hood. If this script were correct, and Robin was born in the 12th century, he would have been under the rule of Richard the Lionheart and his brother John, and since the Crusades to the Holy Land would have been going on, the country’s finances would have been whittled down to nothing and the political structure would have broken down. From this logic, Robin Hood, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, would have been a very popular person of that era especially because of the lack of funds within the kingdom. Perhaps that is why his stories stick around for such a long time; they were a way for people to, in a sense, keep the hope alive. Even though the hope rested in eternal stories that may not have even been justified by a real being, it was worth believing in them because it made the people feel like they had someone sticking up for them and taking action against the tyranny that the upper class were wreaking upon them.

One other thing that is certain to have added another interest into the stories was the fact that Robin Hood's stories were like a life, changing and evolving with new things happening that pertained to the times. For example, in the early ballads, there is no mention of the fair Maid Marian. She later shows up in the late 15th century versions when folk plays and morris dances were becoming more popular with the people. Giant Little John is with Robin Hood from the beginning, but Friar Tuck shows up much later with the add in of religion into the stories. The original Robin Hood is said to be a simple yeoman but later is described as a fugitive nobleman. With so many changes and additions to the Robin Hood legends, it is not likely that a real hero will ever be identified. Many scholars now agree that Robin Hood is more of a representation of a type of hero, the outlawed hero. However, even though Robin Hood was branded an outlaw by those he took from, he became a servant to the people, a fictional ray of hope in a very dismal time.

See where Sherwood Forest is on a map.
 
 

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