Robin Hood Butts (Clapham)

From International Robin Hood Bibliography
Locality
Coordinate 54.114677, -2.450929
Adm. div. West Riding of Yorkshire
Vicinity c. 3.6 km E of Bentham; c. 3.8 km W of Clapham
Type Natural feature
Interest Robin Hood name
Status Extant
First Record 1738
A.k.a. Robin Hood But; Robin Hood's Butt; But Hill
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Butt Hill or Robin Hood Butts, about midway between Bentham and Clapham in Craven.
Butt Hill in the foreground, Ingleborough Hill in the background / Karl and Ali, 22 May 2014, Creative Commons, via Geograph.

By Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2014-09-05. Revised by Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2021-05-30.

But Hill, c. 3.6 km E of Bentham and c. 3.8 km W of Clapham, in Craven, also known as 'Robin Hood But', Robin Hood Butts or Robin Hoods's Butt, is probably a natural feature.

The name 'Robin Hood Butts' is first recorded with reference to this locality in the 1738 parish register of Thornton-in-Lonsdale.[1] 'Robin Hood But' is included on Jeffery's Map of Yorkshire, prepared 1771 and published the following year (see Maps section and image gallery below). The hill or mound is probably a natural feature but was tentatively included, under the name 'Robin Hood's Butt', in a list of mottes which was published in 1889. It is noted there that it 'is a mound, but its character is doubtful'.[2] Karl and Ali who took the photograph included below note that 'Butt Hill is a small, grassy hill with a scatter of mature trees which looks like it ought to have been a mediaeval motte earthwork. The map lettering does not suggest this, however[,] and it may simply be a natural feature such as a drumlin. Beyond, is Ingleborough (724m)'.[3] On the early O.S. maps listed below, the site is included as Butt Hill, never Robin Hood Butts or similar.

Formerly in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the area where the hill is situated now belongs administratively to North Yorkshire.

Maps

Gazetteers

Sources

Background

Also see

Notes


Image gallery

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