52 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019an imprisoned man named “Robin Hood” who
was awaiting trial. Because Hunter and other
19th-century historians discovered many dif-
ferent records attached to the name Robin Hood,
most scholars came to agree that there was prob-
ably no single person in the historical record
who inspired the popular stories. Instead, the
moniker seems to have become a typical alias
used by outlaws in various periods and locations
across England.A Popular Hero
When historical records failed to yield a de-
finitive personage behind the noble outlaw,
scholars than turned to the popular culture of
medieval England: folklore, poetry, and ballads.
These three formats all grew out of an oral tradi-
tion. Some theorize that they originally derived
from troubadours’ songs that reported news
and events.
The first known reference in English verse
to Robin Hood is found in The Vision of Piers
Plowman, written by William Langland in the
second part of the 14th century (shortly beforeDAVEDAVEDAVEPORPORPORTER/TER/TER/AGE FOTOSTOCAGE FOTOSTOCAGEFOTOSTOCKKKROBIN’S HAUNT
Beech trees in Sherwood Forest near
Nottingham. Extending over some 450
acres today, the former royal forest still
contains numerous veteran oaks of
around 500 years old.A
CCORDING TO THE BALLADS, the place where most of
the adventures took place was not Sherwood Forest.
It was Barnsdale Forest, which is in South Yorkshire,
England. Over time, the legend became more closely
associated with Sherwood, a forest lying to the north of the city of
Nottingham and belonging to the king, whose sheriff was Robin’s
great enemy. In the Middle Ages the area then known as Shire-
wood (County Forest) underwent substantial deforestation and
the dense oak and beech became interspersed with grassland,
heather, and villages. But what defined the forest went beyond
the trees and extended to the laws governing it. These laws, which
were tightened following the Norman conquest of England in
1066, included extreme penalties for cutting down trees or hunt-
ing the king’s deer. The forest was a prime royal hunting ground,
and locals were being shut out, which led to the unpopularity
of the forest laws among large portions of society. Because the
lands were protected from clear-cutting, the woods remained
a wild place, making it the perfect setting where outlaws could
hide and adventures could be spun.THE REAL
SHERWOOD FOREST
A FOREST DEER HUNT IN A
14TH-CENTURY MINIATURE FROM
THE LIVRE DE CHASSE, A HUNTING
MANUAL WRITTEN BY GASTON
PHÉBUS, COUNT OF FOIX, IN
MODERN-DAY FRANCE
AKG/ALBUM