Robin Hood's Well (Fountains Abbey)
By Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2013-07-22. Revised by Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2020-05-17. Photo: Matthew Hillier.
Fountains Abbey is the home of the "Curtal Friar" and the scene of the main action of the ballad of Robin Hood and the Curtal Friar (Version A in MS of c. 1650, version B first printed 1663). Within or very close to the abbey grounds are two places named after Robin Hood: Robin Hood's Wood and Robin Hood's Well. The covering of the latter is built into a slope in Robin Hood's Wood at the southern boundary of the abbey grounds. Dobson & Taylor refer to it as the "well now associated with Friar Tuck's combat with, and ducking of, Robin Hood".[1] It may have been named Robin Hood's Well to commemorate the said combat, though we have no evidence of this, but it should be stressed that the water into which Robin Hood was ducked in the ballad was not the trickle from this little well but the Skell which runs by (and once ran under) the abbey.
The well-spring and the name Robin Hood's Well date back at least to 1734,[2] and underground lead piping is said to have been found leading from the site of the well to the abbey, which if correct is a clear indication that the well existed in medieval times. However, according to notes found among the Walbran papers at York Minster Library[3] the present well cover is of somewhat more recent construction, for it was built, with stones from the ruins of Fountains Abbey, after Walter Scott visited the site and suggested to the owner of the Studley Roger estate, Elizabeth Sophia Lawrence, that she let a well covering or well house construct. Scott apparently wrote a short poem for use as an inscription (see Allusion 1832 below), but there is no indication it was ever displayed at the site. Mrs Lawrence, who inherited the estate in 1808, died in 1845; Walter Scott died in 1832, so his visit would have taken place some time in the period 1808-32. It does not appear to be mentioned in any of Scott's letters[4] or in J. G. Lockhart's ten volume biography of Scott,[5] but of course this does not necessarily mean it never happened. The construction of such a well house in this period would have been quite in keeping with the contemporary craze for follies[6] among well-heeled landowners. The well covering "is built of coursed squared gritstone and comprises a round chamfered arch approximately 2 metres high under a hood-mould with spiral stops, and short flanking walls protecting a spring in a rock-cut recess".[7] A much more detailed technical description of the structure can be found at the National Trust's website.[8] Note that the lines attributed to Walter Scott have also been cited as applying to Robin Hood's Well at Fountains Earth, an upland pasture area that was owned by Fountains Abbey but is located more than 12 km west of the abbey ruins.Template:PnItemQry
Gazetteers
- Dobson, R. B., ed.; Taylor, J., ed. Rymes of Robyn Hood: an Introduction to the English Outlaw (London, 1976), p. 310
- Northern Antiquarian: Holy Wells, Healing Springs & Spas.
Sources
- Anonymous. The Tourist's Companion; being a Description and History of Ripon, Studley Park, Fountains Abbey, Hackfall, Brimham Craggs, [...] Newby Hall, Knaresborough, [...] Harrogate and Harewood House [...] (Ripon, 1826); not seen; cf. National Trust, which states that this is the first mention of the well (but see above for 1734 reference).
- Anonymous. Title Guide to Harrogate: Knaresborough, Ripon, Ilkley, Bolton Abbey, Fountains Abbey, York and the Dales (Ward Lock's Illustrated Guide Books) (London, 1950); not seen; cf. National Trust.
- Borough of Harrogate. Borough of Harrogate. List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest ([?], 1986-06-11); not seen, but cf. Engish Heritage's PastScape website (see below).
- Culverwell, Robert James. The Enjoyment of Life; or, Health, Recreation, and Rational Use of Time, by an Old Man. Addressed especially to the Inhabitants of London, suggestive of how best to secure and maintain Health (London, 1850), p. ? Not seen, but cited at Britannia.com: Robin Hood's Yorkshire – Fountains Abbey. A lyrical effusion of the kind so typical of this period, inspired by the well and its setting.
- Doe, Robert. Copies of letters from Robert Doe to William Aislabie (Vyner Archive, Leeds Reference Library); not seen; cf. National Trust and A. H. Smith, pt. VII, p. 111 (see below).
- Gilyard-Beer, R. Fountains Abbey, Yorkshire (London, 1970), p. 39. 6th printing 1978.
- Lefroy, William Chambers. The Ruined Abbeys of Yorkshire (London, 1891), pp. 121-22.
- Macquoid, Thomas; Macquoid, Katharine. About Yorkshire (London, 1894), pp. 248-49. The Macquoids walked down "down a steep path to the river, keeping beside it till we reached the ivy-covered well near which Robin Hood and Friar Tuck are supposed to have had their celebrated trial of strength." (p. 259.) After story of Robin Hood's fight with the friar: "Beyond this moss-grown well we came to a seat, and here we sat and rested [...]" (p. 259). Drawing p. 258 displayed above.
- Megalithic Portal: Robin Hood's Well (Yorkshire).
- National Trust.
- Newman, M.A. Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal Estate: An Archaeological Survey ([s.l.], The National Trust, 1996), pp. 20, 376-77; not seen, but cf. English Heritage's PastScape website (see below).
- Newman, Mark A. Observations and recording at Robin Hood’s Well, Fountains Abbey, March-Sept 06. [s.l.]: National Trust, 2009; not seen; cf. National Trust.
- Parker, George. Studley Royal and Fountains Abbey: Notes Historical and Descriptive [...] (Ripon, [1890?]), p. ? Not seen, but cited at Britannia.com: Robin Hood's Yorkshire – Fountains Abbey. Another nostalgic reverie inspired by the well and scenery.
- Parker, George. Studley Royal and Fountains Abbey, Past and Present [...] (Ripon, [1900?]); not seen; cf. National Trust.
- English Heritage: PastScape: Robin Hood's Well.
- Smith, A.H. The Place-Names of the West Riding of Yorkshire (English Place-Name Society, vols. XXX-XXXVII) (Cambridge, 1961-63), pt. V, p. 192.
- Sheahan, James Joseph. History and Topography of the Wapentake of Claro (Beverley, 1871); not seen; cf. National Trust.
- Smith, W H. Guide to Harrogate (1905); not seen; cf. National Trust.
- Tute, J.S. Handy Guide to Fountains Abbey (1890); not seen; cf. National Trust.
- Walbran, John Richard, ed.; Fowler, J.T., ed. Memorials of the Abbey of St. Mary of Fountains. (The Publications of the Surtees Society, vols. XLII, LXVII and CXXX) (1863-1918), vol. II, p. 137, notes that during excavation of the ruins a medieval horse shoe was "found outside the [abbot's] house, near Robin Hood's well".
- Walbran, John Richard. [MS notes on Robin Hood's Well, and poem by Sir Walter Scott] ([No later than 1869.]).
- [Walbran, John Richard]; [Smith, Alfred]. The Harrogate Visitors Hand Book (Ripon, 1847), p. 89.
- Wood, E.S. The Ancient Buildings of the Harrogate District ([Harrogate], 1946); not seen; cf. National Trust.
Maps
- 25" O.S. map (1891); not seen; cf. National Trust.
- 6" O.S. map Yorkshire 119 (1st ed.) (1854); not seen; cf. National Trust.
- 6" O.S. map Yorkshire 119 (1856; surveyed 1849-53)
- 6" O.S. map Yorkshire CXIX.SW (1910; surveyed 1907)
- 6" O.S. map Yorkshire CXIX.SW (1930; surveyed 1928)
- 6" O.S. map Yorkshire CXIX.SW (1947; surveyed 1938)
- Ordnance Survey map (1980); not seen; cf. National Trust.
Brief mention
- [Armstrong, J. L.]; Piggott, G. W., index. Armstrong's Harrogate Hand-Book, and Visitor's Vade Mecum (Harrogate, [1905]), p. 83: "Leaving Robin Hood's Well, near where there is an excellent Echo, we pass at once to the ruins of Fountains Abbey."
- Baddeley, M. J. B. Yorkshire (Part II.): West and Part of North Ridings and All Parts of the Country West of the N. E. Main Line, also Barnard Castle (London, 1890), p. 56.
- Black, Adam; Black, Charles. Black's Picturesque Guide to Yorkshire (Edinburgh, 1858), p. 217.
- Black, Adam; Black, Charles. Black's Guide to Harrogate and Vicinity: including Fountains Abbey, Bolton Priory, and Ripon (Edinburgh, 1871), p. 40.
- Hope, R.C. 'Holy Wells: their Legends and Superstitions', The Antiquary, vol. XXIII (1891), pp. 264-66, see p. 264.
- National Trust, The. Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, Yorkshire (The National Trust, Parks and Gardens). [Swindon, Wilts], ©1984, p. 4 and map
- National Trust, The. Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, Yorkshire (The National Trust, Parks and Gardens). Reprinted with corrections. [Swindon, Wilts], 1985, p. 4 and map
- National Trust, The. Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, Yorkshire (The National Trust, Parks and Gardens). Reprinted with corrections. [Swindon, Wilts], 1986, p. 4 and map
- National Trust, The. Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, Yorkshire (The National Trust, Parks and Gardens). Reprinted with corrections. [Swindon, Wilts], 1987, p. 4 and map
- National Trust, The. Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, Yorkshire (The National Trust, Parks and Gardens). Reprinted with corrections. [Swindon, Wilts], 1989, p. 4 and map
- National Trust, The. Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, Yorkshire (The National Trust, Parks and Gardens). Reprinted with corrections. [Swindon, Wilts], 1992, p. 4 and map
- Pickford, John. A Week in the Yorkshire Dales. Second Edition (Manchester, 1882), p. 14: "I quitted it [sc. Fountains Abbey], drinking, on my departure, a draught from Robin Hood's Well."
- Walbran, John Richard. 'On the Excavation now in progress at Fountains Abbey, with some Remarks on the Early History of the Monastery', Reports and Papers read at the Meetings of the Architectural Societies of the Archdeaconry of Northampton, the Counties of York and Lincoln, and of the Architectural & Archæological Societies of Bedfordshire and St. Albans, during the years MDCCCL–LI (London etc., [?1852]), pp. 263-92; see p. 285.
- White, Walter. A Month in Yorkshire (London, 1858), mp. 303 (first published 1853).
Notes
- ↑ Dobson, R. B., ed.; Taylor, J., ed. Rymes of Robyn Hood: an Introduction to the English Outlaw (London, 1976), p. 310.
- ↑ Smith, A.H. The Place-Names of the West Riding of Yorkshire (English Place-Name Society, vols. XXX-XXXVII) (Cambridge, 1961-63), pt. V, p. 192.
- ↑ Cf. National Trust HBSMR 30143*0: Robin Hood's Well and see Lefroy, William Chambers. The Ruined Abbeys of Yorkshire (London, 1891), pp. 121-22.
- ↑ Walter Scott's letters.
- ↑ Lockhart, John Gibson. Memoirs of the Life of Sir W. Scott (Edinburgh, 1839).
- ↑ See Wikipedia: Folly
- ↑ English Heritage's PastScape: Robin Hood's Well.
- ↑ National Trust website, as previously cited.