Although it is also common to hear that Robin Hood was from Loxley, Yorkshire. His story has been featured in books, plays, movies and cartoons as well. A historical Robin Hood probably didn’t take the booty he stole and gave it to the poor. Our guide to Robin Hood looks at the history of the legend, interesting facts and the best places to visit. Even if there was no noble outlaw named Robin Hood, there were sheriffs and other officials who were given authority by the king to exact taxes and oppress the people without any fear of punishment. The Robin Hood legends may have grown up about some actual victim of the harsh forest laws of old England. For some, trying to find the historical Robin Hood is about identifying a particular person about whom the earliest legends tell stories. Yorkshire borders Nottinghamshire, the site of Sherwood Forest and the domain of the Sheriff of Nottingham. As such, in the legends, the people love him and will go to great lengths to honor and protect him. He may have been a... Robin Hood has been portrayed in over 100 films and many books. Sherwood Forest is just outside of Nottingham in the county of Nottinghamshire in England. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. As such, they may have applied the term “Robin Hood” as a catch-all for any outlaw who had good intentions but was on the wrong side of the law. Robin Hood’s alleged “trysting oak” in Sherwood Forest. However, Barnhill and Nottingham are 30 miles away from each other, quite a distance for a Medieval horseman. In Sherwood Forest, the oak where he is believed to have called his Merry Men is protected as a historical site. The Scottish author Sir Walter Scott must have understood this part of the early legend because, in Ivanhoe, Robin Hood and his Merry Men were all yeomen. Historians study the legends to better understand what Medieval life was like back then. Prince … They may keep growing and evolving, so much so that 200 years from now, the stories scarcely recognize those that we know today. Robin Hood has been a part of popular imagination for a very long time, forming a subject for popular plays, novels and movies. Maid Marian was not present in the earliest of the Robin Hood legends. 13 Easy DIY Halloween Decorations – Ideas and Inspiration, 10 Creative DIY Star Wars Christmas Holiday Crafts, Christmas in Germany: Facts About German Christmas Traditions, TT Rockstars Tips: How to Get Better at Times Tables Rock Stars, Robin Hood was an outlaw who, according to legend, lived in. The stories about Robin Hood appealed to common folk because he stood up against—and frequently outwitted— people in power. Say the words Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves to anyone over a certain age and the probable responses you'll get will be 'Bryan Adams', 'Dodgy accents' and 'Questionable geography'. Fan Pop. It was believed that he had been the second in command for the Merry Man. Rather than frequently traveling back and forth between Barnsdale and Nottingham, the real Robin Hood may have had bases in both places. Legend says that when he knew he was dying, Robin fired an arrow, asking to be buried where it landed. He is a legendary person whom people have told stories about for many years. Robin Hood stealing from the Sheriff in the Disney movie. Robin Hood’s famous haunt is Sherwood Forest, where he would kill the king’s deer and taunt the Sheriff of Nottingham. Both men were skilled at archery and from the roof of the Monastery they both shot an arrow. People even had to have a special permit to collect wood for the cold winters. Bandits were notorious for attacking unsuspecting travelers, sometimes engaging them in a swordfight, which could easily prove deadly, and almost always stealing whatever they had. It helped me with my research.I would love more information on other famous outlaws, such as Ned Kelly. If there were a real Robin Hood, he probably would not have been an even-tempered knightly figure. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. There is a chance that Robin was born in Loxley and moved to Nottinghamshire. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Legends are stories that have some historical root and can actually tell us something about the past. There are some obscure references to locations – possibly because the early writers of the legends were not local to Nottinghamshire or Yorkshire – such as the city of Barnsdale, which is in Yorkshire. The Sheriff of Nottingham was real, and played by Ben Menelsohn in the 2018 version. In it, Robin was struck by an arrow and whisked off to the church. Sheriffs, their deputies, and even clergymen were representatives of the king, though they could rob from anyone without punishment. But was he real or not? His band of Merry Men included Friar Tuck. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. Keep reading to learn the truth about the man who would steal from the rich and give to the poor. In the oldest known versions he is instead a member of the yeoman class. His legends became very popular among them. Hey Guys. Some have claimed to discover who he really is, while … Robin Hood is said to have lived from 1160 to 1247. One certain fact is that he was a North Country man, with his traditional haunts as an outlaw in Sherwood Forest and a coastal refuge at Robin Hood’s Bay in Yorkshire. He is described as a yeoman, or knight. Still, the stories that are told about him tell of a brave outlaw who lived on the fringes of society and committed crimes to further the welfare of the ordinary people. Everyone hated him, and anyone who was willing to face him would have indeed become a hero to anyone living under his oppression. Your email address will not be published. Like many other great legends, traveling minstrels singing tales of our hero spread his fame throughout the countryside. Hollywood has taken the legends of Robin Hood and outfitted them for a contemporary audience. The fact that they had such compelling nicknames made them all the more terrifying. He stole from the rich – monks and other clergymen, sheriffs and their deputies – so that he could give to the poor. The Exchange.uk. Did you know that this film used recycled animation? Hood was a common surname in Medieval England, and Robin, a variation of the name Robert or Rupert, was also very popular. The actual social standing of any real Robin Hood, if he existed at all, may have been that of a yeoman who had a rightful claim to an earldom. Glad you liked it. Consider people like Billy the Kid or Blackbeard. Robin Hood is a folk hero from the Middle Ages in England. Robin is said to have hidden from his enemies in the Major Oak tree in Sherwood Forest. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. Instead, he probably would have been someone who went around looking for trouble and always trying to start a fight. Robin Hood: Facts and Information He was probably based on a real person, although if that is so, nobody knows for sure who he was. In fact, the people may have become so terrified of this bandit that they resorted to calling him Robin Hood, even if it wasn’t really his name. The Sheriff of Nottingham was a corrupt tyrant who oppressed the people of Nottinghamshire with taxes so high that they could not pay them. In the popular stories, Robin Hood has been portrayed as a simple person, who adopted the outlawed ways to oppose the harsh rule of the elite class. Among local people, stories about an outlaw who lived life on his own terms and was unafraid to face down the Sheriff of Nottingham would have turned the persona into a hero, whether or not there actually was such a person. Many of the legends about him cite that location correctly, and inhabitants of Nottingham today are quite proud of their essential connection with the famous outlaw. Furthermore, his life in the forest—hunting and feasting with his fellow outlaws, coming to the assistance of those in need—seemed like a great and noble adventure. They take on layer after layer after layer, until the kernel of truth inside them appears to be lost. A painting of Robin Hood. Robin Hood is a fictional character from very old stories dating back to the medieval period. He also supposedly met Maid Marian at one of these fairs. If Robin was a real person, there is a grave at Kirklees Priory in Yorkshire said to be his. Robin Hood Biography. Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. Any historical Robin Hood was probably more of a bandit than a celebrated hero (at least until legends repainted him as a man of the people who took from the rich and gave to the poor). Blogspot. BBC / Fan Pop. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves was full of explosive action scenes. Nick Brimble portrayed Little John in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. Den of Geek. He was perhaps a hot-tempered outlaw who liked to pick fights with people rather than the noble villain who fought for social justice by taking from the rich and giving to the poor. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. As a loveable outlaw, Robin Hood was depicted as someone who was devoted to the Christian religion, especially the Virgin Mary. As such, historians who have searched for any authenticity to the Robin Hood legends have identified several people who, based on the little that can be found about them, may fit the description of Robin Hood. One well known story about Robin that places him in Whitby, Yorkshire, is about him and Little John having a friendly archery contest. Blogspot. The fact that Robin Hood dwelled there was an act of rebellion against feudalism. The traditional view of Robin Hood suggests he was an outlaw who fought injustice and helped the poor. Vignette. Nottingham is about 30 miles from Barnsdale, a distance that would have been quite arduous for someone in the Middle Ages. Robin Hood would have been nothing without Little John, who was played by a bear in the Disney film. B Plus Movie Blog. Robin Hood was the legendary bandit of England who stole from the rich to help the poor. According to the old ballads, Robin Hood, along with his followers, wandered in the greenery of Sherwood, near … i needed some last second facts for my school project and this site helped a lot, Thank you so much this has really helped me with my Robin Hood research, Thanks this website was really helpful because I’m doing my topic on Robin Hood, this really helped me thanks sooooooo much it saved me from getting a detension too . Robin of Loxley enjoys a good life with his lover, Marian, before he is … While Robin Hood was painted as a thief and bandit, there wasn’t much fault to be found with his trusty sidekick, Little John. He is a legendary person whom people have told stories about for many years. Blogspot. Usually, Robin Hood is an outlaw who lives in Sherwood Forest near the town of Nottingham, England. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. There is probably little historical truth to the stories about Maid Marian. Kevin Costner went above and beyond to create the intensity of the character in Prince of Thieves. This was the animal that portrayed the Sheriff of Nottingham in the Disney version of Robin Hood. Most of the legends say that Robin Hood died at Kirklees Priory, in Yorkshire. So if Robin Hood probably didn’t steal from the rich to give to the poor, why did he become so popular, especially among the peasants and lower strata of Medieval society? Pinterest. One day, he insisted on attending mass at St Michael’s, even though he was an outlaw and would probably be arrested. Robin Hood as a Disney cartoon fox. Any real Robin Hood was probably less well-liked than his Hollywood counterparts. Robin Hood is often portrayed as the enemy of … In the legends, Robin Hood is undefeatable with a bow and arrow. Robin Hood, legendary outlaw hero of a series of English ballads, some of which date from at least as early as the 14th century.