In the footsteps of Robin Hood
The Lancastrian revolutionary
In the ballad, the king himself comes to sort out the rebels in the North – which leaves us with a puzzle. The modern Robin story is set in the reign of Richard Lionheart, but the ballad says that Robin met an entirely different monarch: 'Edwarde, our comly kynge.'
Which Edward?
Eight Edwards have been kings of Britain. The first mention of Robin
Hood was made in 1377, so all the Edwards after Edward III can be ruled
out – Edward IV didn't come to the throne until 1461. So the Robin
of the Geste must have been around some time between 1274, when
Edward I came to the throne, and 1377 when we get that first mention of
him in Piers Plowman.
Three Edwards reigned in succession from 1272 to 1377: Edward I (1272-1307), Edward II (1307-27) and Edward III (1327-77). Which one was the Edward of the ballad?
Historians have looked closely at the lives of the three Edwards who are potential candidates to be the 'comly kynge', but only one could possibly have come face to face with an outlaw in the north. In 1322, Edward II – described by a contemporary chronicler as 'fair of body and great of strength' – went there because of a political crisis that had started at Pontefract Castle.
Rebellion
Pontefract in West Yorkshire was home to Thomas, earl of Lancaster,
Edward II's cousin. The king was unpopular, and Lancaster decided to make
his own bid for the throne. He called up his men from Yorkshire and Lancashire
to form an army, but as they moved out of Pontefract, Edward's forces
were waiting. The king's commander Sir Andrew Harclay crushed the rebellion
at the battle of Boroughbridge, some 28 miles to the north. 'No battle
on British soil made less impact on British history,' says The Guide
to the Battlefields of Britain and Ireland rather uncharitably.
The earl of Lancaster was tried and beheaded. Those of his followers who weren't also executed – and 20 of the leaders were – were outlawed and fled for their lives, to places like Barnsdale. These outlaws are known to have committed widespread acts of vengeance, including the pillaging of the king's deer in the royal forests.
The sheriff of Nottingham
The Lancastrian revolt provides a plausible explanation as to why
Robin and his men would have been outlaws. It also connects Robin to Nottingham
and to the tale's villain. The period of the revolt was the first time
since William Peveril in the 11th century (see Peveril
Castle) that the same man – Sir Henry de Faucumberg –
was sheriff (or shire-reeve) of Nottingham and high sheriff of
Yorkshire. In 1322, he was commander of the king's troops known as the
'Yorkshire Array'.
At the end of the first day of fighting at Boroughbridge, the rebels made a truce with Harclay, which was to last until the following morning. However, when Faucumberg arrived with his troops during the night, Harclay decided to enter the town and seize the rebels in their beds. It could be that Robin Hood was one of those dragged so unceremoniously from their beds by the sheriff or his men.
Brothers-in-arms
The Lancastrian rebellion also explains another puzzle. The poor knight
who Robin originally held up is a recurring character in the stories.
When the outlaws flee from the sheriff, they run to the knight's castle
for protection. His name is Sir Richard at the Lee – that is, Lee
in Wyredale. But that is in Lancashire, several days' ride from Barnsdale
where Robin was based.
At first glance, it seems pretty implausible to have a leading character more than 60 miles away – quite a distance when there was only primitive transportation – but it actually makes perfect sense. Wyredale was linked with Barnsdale through the earl of Lancaster: his lands formed a corridor right across the Pennines, allowing for easy communication between the rebels. A knight based in Wyredale would have been a brother-in-arms to a yeoman outlaw in Barnsdale.
The mighty bow
There's another piece of evidence that supports Robin Hood being active
during the reign of Edward II. It's something that he is famous for: archery.
In Richard Lionheart's reign (1189-99), the longbow was a minority weapon.
Edward I, Edward II and Edward III made it a key part of their military
strategy.
Under the three Edwards, archery was compulsory for every able-bodied male, and being a great archer was like being a football star today. Robin, the crack marksman, could only have been a product of this culture in the early 14th century.
What you can see now
Pontefract Castle, West Yorkshire
This 12th-century stone motte-and-bailey fortress is where Richard
II languished until his suspicious death. It stands high on a ridge, with
a great ditch, barbican and two stone-walled outer baileys. Unfortunately
the majority of the castle was purposely demolished in 1648, during the
English Civil Wars. Prior to that, the motte was encased with a cluster
of drum towers to form a large and powerful keep, with the inner bailey
curtain wall flanked by seven large square towers, a twin-towered gatehouse
and a 15th-century detached tower at the bottom of the scarp. In the inner
bailey today are the rock-cut cellars of a Norman great hall, along with
the foundations of two chapels, lodgings and service buildings. According
to the Topographical Dictionary of Yorkshire of 1822, the earl
of Lancaster, 'after suffering every possible indignity that cruelty could
suggest, was mounted on a sorry horse, and brought before the king, who
ordered, without any form of trial, his head to be struck off, on an eminence
near Pontefract'.
Located in the town centre, off Castle Chain. Owned by the Wakefield
Museums and Arts Department, it is freely accessible in daylight hours.
Car parking is available next to All Saints' Church.
Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire
Site of the battle of 1322, where Sir Andrew Harclay defeated Thomas,
earl of Lancaster – did Robin fight for Thomas here? The present
stone bridge dates from the late 18th century. In 1322, it was made of
wood and the walkway was covered in planking. It is said that, during
the battle, one of Lancaster's supporters, the earl of Hereford, was passing
over the bridge when he was run through with a spear by a soldier standing
beneath it. (It is claimed that, subsequently, no bridge was allowed to
have gaps between the planking.) The rebel earl sought refuge in the village
church (pulled down in 1851), but his enemies dragged him out and transported
him to Pontefract and his execution. The monument that commemorates the
battle was, for some reason, moved to the neighbouring village of Aldborough
in 1852.
One mile east of the A1M, on the south bank of the River Ure, about
12 miles north of Wetherby. OS ref: SE3966.
Lee, Lancashire
Part of the Forest of Bowland, this possible location for Sir Richard
at the Lee is deep in rural Lancashire.
Settlement near the bridge over Tarnbrook Wyre at the foot of Dunkenshaw
Fell, 7 miles south-east of Lancaster. OS ref: SD5655.
Peveril Castle, Derbyshire
Castleton is 18 miles south-west of Loxley,
where Robin Hood was supposedly born, and 5 miles west of Hathersage,
said to be the home of Little John. Looming over Castleton are the ruins
of Peveril Castle, once the home of William Peveril, illegitimate son
of William the Conqueror. He was sheriff of Nottingham with responsibility
for Sherwood Forest (and the building of Nottingham Castle), as well as
bailiff of the Royal Manors of the Peak with responsibility for Barnsdale.
It may be this dual role that is the origin of the confusion about Robin
Hood operating in Sherwood.
English Heritage. Open all year: 1 April-30 Sept 10am-6pm; 1-31 Oct:
10am-5pm; rest of year: 10am-4pm. Closed Mon and Tues. On the south side
of Castleton, 15 miles west of Sheffield on the A6187. OS ref: SK149826.
Find out more
Websites
The Penurious Knight
www.geocities.com/Heartland/Lane/8771/knyght.html
In this alternative theory about 'Sir Richard at the Lee', the knight
is actually Sir Richard de Thornhill, based in Huddersfield, who appears
in the Court Rolls for Wakefield as a person who transgressed the laws
of Lord Warrene's hunting forest of Sowerby in 1274.
Archery History
www.centenaryarchers.gil.com.au/history.htm
A good illustrated chronology of the development and use of the bow
and arrow (including the longbow), by an Australian archer.
