Origins and history

By Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2013-07-07. Revised by Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2020-09-07.

Essential

• Aston, T. H. 'Robin Hood', Past & Present, No. 20 (1961), pp. 7-9
  • Aston, T. H. 'Robin Hood', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, London, New York, Melbourne, 1976), pp. 270-72
  • Aston, T. H. 'Robin Hood', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, 1981), pp. 270-72
• Dobson, R.B.; Taylor, J. 'The Medieval Origins of the Robin Hood Legend: a Reassessment', Northern History, vol. 7 (1972), pp. 1-30
• Dobson, R. B., ed.; Taylor, J., ed. Rymes of Robyn Hood: an Introduction to the English Outlaw (London, 1976), pp. 10-16
• Hilton, R.H. 'The Origins of Robin Hood', Past & Present, No. 14 (1958), pp. 30-44
  • Hilton, R.H. 'The Origins of Robin Hood', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, London, New York, Melbourne, 1976), pp. 221-35
  • Hilton, R.H. 'The Origins of Robin Hood', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, 1981), pp. 221-35
  • Hilton, R. H. 'The Origins of Robin Hood', in: Knight, Stephen, ed. Robin Hood: Anthology of Scholarship and Criticism (Cambridge, 1999), pp. 197-210
• Holt, J.C. 'The Origins and Audience of the Ballads of Robin Hood', Past & Present, No. 18 (1960), pp. 89-110
• Holt, J.C. 'Robin Hood: Some Comments', Past & Present, No. 19 (1961), pp. 16-18
  • Holt, J.C. 'Robin Hood: Some Comments', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, London, New York, Melbourne, 1976), pp. 267-69
  • Holt, J.C. 'The Origins and Audience of the Ballads of Robin Hood', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, 1981), pp. 236-57
  • Holt, J.C. 'The Origins and Audience of the Ballads of Robin Hood', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, London, New York, Melbourne, 1976), pp. 236-57
  • Holt, J.C. 'The Origins and Audience of the Ballads of Robin Hood', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, 1981), pp. 236-57
  • Holt, J. C. 'The Origins and Audience of the Ballads of Robin Hood', in: Knight, Stephen, ed. Robin Hood: Anthology of Scholarship and Criticism (Cambridge, 1999), pp. 211-32
• Holt, J.C. Robin Hood (London, 1982)
  • Holt, J.C. Robin Hood. Revised and enlarged edition (London, 1989)
  • Holt, J.C. Robin Hood (London, 2010)
  • Holt, J.C. Robin Hood (London, 2011)
  • Holt, J.C. Robin Hood (London, 2011)
• Hunter, Joseph. The Great Hero of the Ancient Minstrelsy of England, "Robin Hood." His Period, Real Character, etc. investigated and perhaps ascertained (Critical and Historical Tracts, No. 4) (London, 1852)
  • Hunter, Joseph. The Great Hero of the Ancient Minstrelsy of England, "Robin Hood:" his Period, Real Character, etc., investigated, and perhaps ascertained (Worksop, 1883)
  • Hunter, Joseph. 'Robin Hood', in: Knight, Stephen, ed. Robin Hood: Anthology of Scholarship and Criticism (Cambridge, 1999), pp. 187-95
• Keen, Maurice. 'Robin Hood: a Peasant Hero?', History Today, vol. 8 (1958), pp. 684-89
• Keen, Maurice. 'Robin Hood—Peasant or Gentleman?', Past & Present, No. 19 (1961), pp. 7-15
  • Keen, Maurice. 'Robin Hood—Peasant or Gentleman?', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, London, New York, Melbourne, 1976), pp. 258-66
  • Keen, Maurice. 'Robin Hood—Peasant or Gentleman?', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, 1981), pp. 258-66
• Keen, Maurice. The Outlaws of Medieval Legend (London, 1961)
  • Keen, Maurice. The Outlaws of Medieval Legend. Revised edition (London and Henley; Toronto and Buffalo, 1977)
  • Keen, Maurice. The Outlaws of Medieval Legend. Revised edition (London and Henley; Toronto and Buffalo, 1979)
  • Keen, Maurice. The Outlaws of Medieval Legend. Revised edition (London; New York, 1987)
  • Keen, Maurice. The Outlaws of Medieval Legend. Revised edition (London; New York, 2000)
• Keen, Maurice. 'Note, 1976', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, London, New York, Melbourne, 1976), p. 266
  • Keen, Maurice. 'Note, 1976', in: Hilton, R.H., ed. Peasants, Knights and Heretics: Studies in Medieval English Social History (Cambridge, 1981), p. 266.

Significant

• Bellamy, John. Robin Hood: An Historical Enquiry (London and Sydney, ©1985). While this sustained attempt to salvage and redevelop the Hunter/Walker/Harris hypothesis should be of interest to anyone with a serious interest in the Robin Hood tradition, its basic assumption that the Gest of Robyn Hode can be read as an historical source is highly questionable.
• Bradbury, Jim. The Medieval Archer (Woodbridge, Suffolk, 1985), ch. 5 (pp. 58-70); 'Robin Hood'
• Crook, David. 'The Sheriff of Nottingham and Robin Hood: The Genesis of the Legend?', in: Coss, P.R., ed.; Lloyd, S.D., ed. Thirteenth-Century England II. Proceedings of the Newcastle upon Tyne Conference, 1987 (Woodbridge, Suffolk, 1988), pp. 59-68
• Holt, James C. 'Robin Hood', Perspectives on Culture and Society, vol. 01: Provost's Lecture Series (Muncie, IN: Ball State University, 1988-89), pp. 127-44
• Kaufman, Alexander L., ed. British Outlaws of Literature and History (Jefferson, NC, 2011)
• Midgley Webpages: Robin Hood of Wakefield. On history and origins etc.
• Nielsen, Henrik Thiil. The Literary Evidence of the Gest of Robin Hood and the Origins of the Outlaw Tradition (M.A. thesis, University of Copenhagen, 1990). While others must judge whether it succeeds, my thesis is, to my knowledge, the most detailed attempt of reductio ad absurdum of historical-literalist readings of the Gest of Robyn Hode, especially John Bellamy, above.
• Owen, L.V.D. 'Robin Hood in the Light of Research: the Quest for Proof of his Existence', The Times, Trade and Engineering, vol. 38, No. 864 (Feb. 1936). East Midlands Section, p. xxix.
• Robin Hood: Bold Outlaw of Barnsdale and Sherwood. Excellent site with information on many aspects of the tradition, history etc.
• Withycombe, E. G. 'The Name Robin Hood', The Times Literary Supplement (7 Apr. 1927), p. 251; perhaps the first to suggest that Robinhood surnames may refer to the Robin Hood tradition.

Useful

• Anonymous. '[Untitled letter to the editor]', Gentleman's Magazine, vol. XXXVI (1766), p. 400. Believes Robin Hood was a historical character, a yeoman and not an Earl of Huntingdon or other nobleman; he would have flourished during the reign of Richard I (1189-99) and had the Christian name Ode or Eudo, "Robin" being a later addition suggested by its similarity in sound to "robbing"
• Bird, W. H. B. 'Robin Hood', The Times Literary Supplement (26 May 1927), p. 375. Points attention to the Robert Hood who as imprisoned at Rockingham in 1354
• Coote, H. C. 'The Origin of the Robin Hood Epos', The Folk-Lore Journal, vol. III (1885), pp. 44-52. Discusses the Gest of Robyn Hode to demonstrate "the disagreeable fact [...] that communism was publicly advocated in this country in the reign of that too glorious monarch Edward III". Crude and antagonistic as it is, Coote's paper in its essence anticipates the views of Hilton and Keen in his younger years
• Curtis, J. Lewelyn. 'Robes and Fees in the Days of Robin Hood', Notes & Queries, Series 1, vol. VI (1852), pp. 479-80
• Gutch, J.M. 'On the Veritable Existence of Robin Hood; and on the Ballads Relative to him', The Journal of the British Archæological Association, vol. VIII (1852), pp. 208-22. After discussing previous attempts to provide Robin Hood with a historical identity, Gutch discusses Joseph Hunter's hypothesis at length
• Halliwell, J.O. 'On the Era and Character of Robin Hood', The Journal of the British Archæological Association, vol. VIII (1852), pp. 223-29. Discusses and rejects Joseph Hunter's hypothesis. Sees Robin Hood as essentially a fictional character, thus foreshadowing Child's point of view
• Latham, Andrew; Brown II, Rand Lee. 'Robin Hood – The Man, The Myth, and The History – Part 1: Of Tales and Legends' (Medievalists.net)
• Latham, Andrew; Brown II, Rand Lee. 'Robin Hood – The Man, The Myth, and The History – Part 2: The Outlaws of Medieval England' (Medievalists.net)
• Nielsen, Henrik Thiil. 'Rabbenhut', Levende Billeder, vol. 7 (1991), pp. 36-39 (in Danish)
• Rahman, Sabina. Robin Hood and the Three Estates of Medieval Society (unpublished Master of Philosophy thesis; Sydney: University of Sydney, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, 2016).

Of some interest

• [Brooks, E. St. John], review. 'Robin Hood', The Times Literary Supplement (6 May 1944), p. 223. A remarkably naive review of: Walker, J. W. 'Robin Hood Identified', Yorkshire Archaeological Journal, vol. 36, part 1 (1944), pp. 4-46
• Harrison, Dick. 'Mannen bakom Myten', Populär Historia, No. 1 (Stockholm, 1998), pp. 18-23. In Swedish. The writer is a reader in history at the University of Lund, Sweden. While this is interesting, one might have expected more than a rather uncritical rehash of the Hunter/Harris/Bellamy thesis from a tenured academic with a degree in a relevant discipline.
• Harris, P. Valentine. 'Who Was Robin Hood?', Folklore, vol. 66 (1955), pp. 288-94
• Harris, P. Valentine. 'Who Was Robin Hood?', Folklore, vol. 67 (1956), pp. 103-105
• Harris, P. Valentine. 'More about Robin Hood', Folklore, vol. 88 (1977), pp. 236-37
• Harris, P. Valentine. 'Who was Robin Hood?', Journal of the Society of Archer-Antiquaries, vol. 24 (1981), pp. 19-20
• Harris, P. Valentine. 'Robin Hood', The Times Literary Supplement (5 Feb. 1982), p. 138
• Morris, John E. The Welsh Wars of Edward I: a Contribution to Mediaeval Military History, based on Original Documents (Oxford, 1901), pp. 33, 101-102; on the possible 13th cent. origin of the Robin Hood tradition and possible connection with the (aftermath of) the Barons' War; the longbow connected with a later period
  • "Strongbow". 'A Somewhat Slanted History', Journal of the Society of Archer-Antiquaries, vol. 22 (1979), pp. 3-6; discusses problematic statements on archery in this book; see p. 4 for discussion of Morris's passage on Robin Hood
• Orange, James. History and Antiquities of Nottingham, in which are Exhibited the Various Institutions, Manners, Customs, Arts, and Manufactures of the People; their Social and Domestic Habits; Civil and Political Conditions, under Every Successive Government, from their Conquests by the Normans, Danes, Saxons, Romans, and Early British Dependency, down to the Present Time: Forming a Condensed but Comprehensive English as well as Local History, Chronologically Arranged (London; Nottingham, 1840), vol. I, pp. 202-224 (Book VII, Ch. VII), "Robin Hood". On the Robin Hood figure and tradition in general, including the supposed historicity of Robin Hood
• Owen, L. V. D. 'Robin Hood', The Times Literary Supplement (13 May 1944), p. 236
• Pringle, Patrick. Stand and Deliver: the Story of the Highwaymen (London, 1951). Ch. I: 'The Father of Highwaymen' (pp. 13-15). Rather disappointing.
  • Pringle, Patrick. Stand and Deliver: the Story of the Highwaymen (New York, [1951]). Ch. I: 'The Father of Highwaymen' (pp. 13-15)
  • Pringle, Patrick. Stand and Deliver (New York, 1991). Ch. I: 'The Father of Highwaymen' (pp. 13-15)
  • Pringle, Patrick. Stand and Deliver: the Story of the Highwaymen (San Francisco, ©2016). Ch. I: 'The Father of Highwaymen' (pp. ?-?)
• Rodgers, Joseph. The Scenery of Sherwood Forest with an Account of Some Eminent People once resident there (London, 1908), pp. 21-52: 'Robin Hood', refers to and comments on the Hunterian hypothesis (among other topics)
  • Rodgers, Joseph. The Scenery of Sherwood Forest with an Account of Some Eminent People once resident there (New York, 1908). As preceding
• S., E. 'May Day: Moldekin of the Thirteenth Century', The Antiquary, vol. V (1882), pp. 188-94. Develops the well-known thesis that Robin Hood was a historical earl of Huntingdon
• Walker, J. W. 'Robin Hood Identified', Yorkshire Archaeological Journal, vol. 36, part 1 (1944), pp. 4-46
• Walker, J. W. The True History of Robin Hood (Wakefield, 1952)
  • Walker, J. W. The True History of Robin Hood (East Ardsley, Wakefield, 1973)
• Wilson, Geoff. Robin Hood: the New Evidence (London, Cambridge, New York, Sharjah, 2019). Exploration of the historical and topographical background of the Gest, mainly in the field. Has valuable insights, but the author rather too often goes astray because he does not know the Gest well enough (an example is his claim that it offers no clues that the 'Lee' from which the knight comes is situated in Lancashire), does not know most of the essential secondary literature, and advances novel place-name etymologies apparently without any knowledge of the methodology of place-name studies or the specialist literature on the topic.

Unacademic

• Benison, Brian. Robin Hood in Sherwood Stood: the Real Story (Forest Town, Mansfield, Nottingham, 2014)
• Greenwood, David; Greenwood, Aldona, introd.; Pakey, Neil, introd.; Ryall, David, introd. The Origins of Robin Hood ([Nottingham], 2004)
• Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence (London, 1951)
  • Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Existence. Revised ed. (London, [1953])
  • Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence. 3rd edition (London, 1954)
  • Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence. 4th edition (London, 1955)
  • Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence. 5th edition (London, 1956)
  • Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence. 6th edition (London, 1957)
  • Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence. 7th edition (London, 1959)
  • Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence. 8th edition (London, 1960)
  • Harris, P. Valentine. Title: The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence (Mansfield, 1969)
  • Harris, P. Valentine. The Truth about Robin Hood: a Refutation of the Mythologists' Theories, with New Evidence of the Hero's Actual Existence (Mansfield, 1973)
• Lewis, Brian. Robin Hood: a Yorkshireman (Featherstone, 1994)
• Phillips, Graham; Keatman, Martin. Robin Hood: the Man behind the Myth (London, 1995)
• Reuel, Michael. Robin Hood Existed ([s.l.], ©2016).

Not seen

• Ayton, Andrew. 'Robin Hood and Military Service in the Fourteenth Century', Nottingham Medieval Studies, vol. XXXVI (1992), pp. 126-47
• Crosland, Jessie. Outlaws in Fact and Fiction (London, 1959). Includes discussion of Robin Hood.
• Davis, Stephen M. Robin Hood's England (Time Traveler Guide) (Washington, D.C., 1991)
• Fox, Adam. 'Remembering the Past in Early Modern England: Oral and Written Tradition', Transactions of the Royal Historical Society, vol. 9 (1999), pp. 233-56
• Kirtley, Bacil F. 'Theories and Fantasies concerning Robin Hood', Southern Folklore Quarterly, vol. 19 (1956), pp. 108-15
• La'Chance, S.A., The Origins and Development of the Legend of Robin Hood. M.A. thesis (Leeds: The University of Leeds, 2013)
• McGlynn, Sean. 'The Real Robin Hood', History Today, vol. 63, No. 3 (March 2013), pp. 22-28
• Richmond, Colin. 'An Outlaw and Some Peasants: The Possible Significance of Robin Hood', Nottingham Medieval Studies, vol. XXXVII (1993), pp. 90-101
• Seal, Graham. 'The Robin Hood Principle: Folklore, History, and the Social Bandit', Journal of Folklore Research, vol. 46 (2009), pp. 67-89
• Ville, Oscar de. 'The Deyvilles and the Genesis of the Robin Hood Legend', Nottingham Medieval Studies, vol. XLIII (1999), pp. 90-109.

Brief mention

• Coss, Peter. 'R. H. Hilton', Past and Present, No. 176 (2010), pp. 7-10. Obituary; briefly discusses Hilton's foundational role in the modern historical debate on the significance of the early Robin Hood tradition
• Planché, J. R. 'On the Family of Peverel of Nottingham, as Connected with the Castle and the Earldom', The Journal of the British Archæological Association, vol. VIII (1852), pp. 194-208; see p. 202: on "Ralph Fitz Odo, the reputed ancestor of Robert Fitz Odo, or Fitzooth, one of the presumed historical originals of the popular legendary hero, Robin Hood"
• Reid, A.G. 'Was Robin Hood at the Scottish Court?', Notes & Queries, Series 5, vol. IV (1875), pp. 61-63.

Historiography