The War of the Roses & Robin HOOD ballads

 

Сontents

Introduction……………………………………………….........................................................2

 1.The War of the Roses……………………………………………………………………….

     1.1 Phase I: Defeat and exile of Lancasters : 1453-1464…………………………….…...3-5

    1.2 Phase II: 1471—Warwick's Rebellion ……………………………………………......6-7

    1.3 Phase III: 1485—Usurper Richard III vs. Henry Tudor ……...……............................7-9

2. English ballads and Folk songs………………………………………………………….10-11

3. The Robin Hood ballads………………………………………………………………....12-13

      3.1 Barnsdale and Sherwood………………………………………………………………14

     3.2 The Early Ballads………………………………………………………………………15

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………. 16

References……………………………………………………………………………………..17

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Introduction

The War of the Roses was a terribly destructive, long-lasting, civil war in England between two families with rival claims to the throne, the Yorks and the Lancasters. Its net result was to kill off almost all the direct claimants to the throne on either side of the royal family, wreak havoc and destruction, turn long term resentments into blood-feuds, and bring the entire Plantagenet line, which had ruled England for over 300 years, to an ignominious end. Furthermore, in terms of convoluted plot twists, reversals, treachery, shifting alliances, military setbacks, and 'surprise' endings, it has few parallels in history. In other words, it is not an easy war to follow either in terms of alliances, or military progress.

The war takes its name from the two Roses that symbolized respectively, the houses of Lancaster (red rose) and York (white rose), among the English aristocracy. It had its roots in a disputed succession that had occurred two generations previously, when Henry IV (Bolingbroke, a Lancaster), ascended to the throne after Richard II had been deposed. It truth, his cousin Clarence, whose descendents were the Yorks, had a better claim, but Bolingbroke was able to make good his claim because his father, John of Gaunt, had been regent and was very influential. Henry V, who succeeded Bolingbroke was very popular due to his great victories in France, so no one disputed his claim to the throne, or that of his son, as long as he lived. Unfortunately, Henry V died young, and Henry VI proved to be a weak and indecisive king, surrounded by unpopular advisors. In this circumstance, the York family, spurred on by the Earl of Warwick, began to actively reassert their claim.

The political machinations to reclaim the throne for the York line started long before the actual fighting, and when, after the first several years of his marriage to Margaret of Anjou, Henry VI failed to produce an heir, there was great optimism that on his death, the throne would pass peaceably to the Yorks. An official agreement of succession was made, and for a long while, it appeared that the Yorks would prevail without bloodshed. But after seven years of marriage, Henry VI did unexpectedly produce an heir, and his wife Margaret of Anjou, who had all of the strength of character and decision that her husband lacked, abrogated the agreement on Yorkish succession, and insisted on the rights of her son to the throne of England.

In the early years of the war, Margaret of Anjou, rather than her husband was driving force behind the Lancaster cause, and she shrank at nothing, from leading armies herself, to beheading her enemies to promote the cause of her son. On the York side, the driving force was the Earl of Warwick, and the Duke of York, who were cousins by marriage. Warwick was the wealthiest and most influential man in England at the time, but had no male heirs and was therefore, determined that his daughters should marry into the Royal family.

The war itself occurred in three phases. The first phase was the longest and bloodiest, and resulted in a York victory. The second phase involved a rebellion within the York family which provided an opportunity for the Lancaster's to reassert their claim. They briefly succeeded, but the crown soon fell back into the hands of the Yorks. The third phase occurred following the death of the Yorkish King Edward IV, and was fought between Richard III, a usurper, and Henry Tudor a distant cousin on the Lancaster side.

 

 

1.1 Phase I—Defeat and exile of Lancasters : 1453–1464

 

Early battle in the War of the Roses

The most serious years of fighting between the Yorks and Lancasters occurred between 1459 and 1461, and resulted in a victory for the Yorks—the Lancaster Royal family was sent into exile in France, and Henry VI was imprisoned in England. There were however, very many striking reverses during this period of the fighting, and at times it seemed as though the Yorkish cause was lost. In 1453 at Stamford bridge, and again in 1455 at St. Albans, the conflict between the Lancaster's and Yorks had broken into armed combat, but on both of these occasions, the conflicts were temporarily resolved by compromise. The underlying issues however, and the conflict between the Queen, who was essentially running the country, and the Duke of York worsened over time and again broke into open warfare at the battle of Blore Heath.

Once both sides had settled on open war, the early victories went in favor of the Yorks, but at the battle of Wakefield, in December of 1460, the Yorks met with disaster. The Duke of York and his eldest son were both ambushed and beheaded, and the Yorkish forces were scattered. Far from discouraging the Yorks however, this horrid loss enraged their supporters and over the next few months, the Yorks raised more armies under Edward IV, the second son of the deceased Duke of York. The Yorks prevailed over the Lancasters first at (second) St. Albans, and then at Towton, the largest and bloodiest battle ever fought on English soil. Towton was as great a disaster for the Lancasters as Wakefield was for the Yorks, and the royal family scarcely escaped with their lives. London had been, from the beginning, a Yorkish stronghold, so with the Royals in exile, in 1461, Edward IV was crowned King of England and assumed control of the government in the south. Lancastrian strongholds in the north continued to hold out, however, and broke out in rebellion in 1464. When Somerset, the military leader of the Lancasters, was killed at the battle of Hexham however, all armed resistance ceased for almost a decade.

Battle / Outcome

Description

Battle of Stamford Bridge 
Drawn Battle (Yorks vs. Lancastrians)

An encounter between the retainers of Sir Thomas Neville, and those of Lord Egremont, which developed into a pitched battle, in August, 1453. It is considered to be the beginning of the Wars of the Roses.

Battle of St. Alban's 
Yorks defeat Lancastrians

Two engagements were fought here in the course of the war. On May 22, 1455, 2,000 Lancastrians, under Henry VI, posted in the town, were attacked by 3,000 Yorkists, under the Duke of York. The Duke pierced the Lancastrian centre, and drove them out of St. Alban's with heavy loss, among those who were killed being the Earls of Somerset and Northumberland.

Battle of Bloore Heath 
Yorks defeat Lancastrians

Fought September 23, 1459, between the Yorkists under the Earl of Salisbury, and the Lancastrians under Henry VI. The former, who were inferior in numbers, were attacked by Henry, who crossed a brook before the assault. As the Lancastrians were reforming after the crossing, the Yorkists charged down upon them, and dispersed them with heavy loss.

Battle of Northampton 
Yorks defeat Lancastrians

Fought July 10, 1460, between the Lancastrians, under Henry VI, and the Yorkists, under the Earl of Warwick. The king's entrenchments were betrayed by Lord Grey de Ruthyn, and the Lancastrians were defeated with a loss of 300 killed, including Buckingham, Shrewsbury, Egremont, and other prominent men. The King was made prisoner.

Battle of Wakefield 
Lancastrians defeat Yorks

Fought December 30, 1460, between the Lancastrians, under Somerset, and the Yorkists, under Richard, Duke of York. The Lancastrians advanced from Pontefract and offered battle to Richard, who, though weakened by the absence of foraging parties, accepted the challenge. Somerset prepared an ambush, into which the Duke fell as he marched out of Wakefield, and the Yorkists were defeated with heavy loss. The Duke and many other nobles were killed, and Salisbury captured and beheaded.

Battle of Mortimer's Cross 
Yorks defeat Lancastrians

Fought February 2, 1461, when Edward, Duke of York, defeated the Lancastrians, under the Earls of Pembroke and Wiltshire, and drove them back into Wales, thus preventing a concentration of the Lancastrian forces.

Battle of St. Alban’s 
Lancastrians defeat Yorks

The second battle took place February 17, 1461, when the army of Margaret of Anjou, led by Somerset, Exeter, and others, attacked the Yorkists, under Warwick, Warwick withdrew his main body, leaving his left unsupported to withstand the Lancastrian attacks, and these troops, after a feeble resistance, broke and fled. Henry VI, who was a prisoner in Warwick's camp, escaped and rejoined the Queen, and a rapid advance on London would probably have led to his reinstatement. Warwick, however, took such prompt measures as to render the Lancastrian victory practically fruitless.

Battle of Ferrybridge 
Lancastrians defeat Yorks

Fought 1461, shortly before the battle of Towton, when a force of Lancastrian cavalry, under Lord Clifford, defeated the Yorkists, under Lord Fitzwalter, who was endeavouring to secure the passage of the Aire at Ferrybridge. Lord Fitzwalter was killed.

Battle of Towton 
Yorks defeat Lancastrians

Fought March 29, 1461, when Edward IV, immediately after his proclamation, marched against the Lancastrians, under Henry VI, and vigorously attacked their entrenched position at Towton. Aided by a heavy snowstorm, blowing in the faces of the defenders, Edward defeated them all along the line, with heavy loss, among the killed being Northumberland, Dacre and de Manley. Henry and Margaret escaped from the field, and fled northward.

Battle of Hedgeley Moor 
Yorks defeat Lancastrians

Fought April 25, 1464, between the Lancastrians, under Margaret of Anjou and Sir Ralph Percy, and the Yorkists, under Lord Montague. The Lancastrians were totally defeated, Percy falling in the battle.

Battle of Hexham 
Yorks defeat Lancastrians

Fought May 15, 1464, when the Yorkists, under Montague, surprised the Lancastrians, under Somerset, in their camp at Linnels, near Hexham. The Lancastrians were practically in a trap, and had no option but to surrender. Somerset and many other important leaders were taken, and promptly executed. This success secured Edward IV on the throne.

Commander

Short Biography

Earl of Warwick Primary figure in war of the Roses. Changed sides from York to Lancaster. Killed at Barnet.

 Margaret of Anjou Ruled in stead of her weak husband, Henry VI. Led armies against Yorks. Deposed after the York victory at Hexham.

Duke of York Aspirant to the thrown in the early years of War of the Roses. Killed in action with eldest son.

Henry VI of England Lancastrian king of England whose weak rule, and loss of much of France, inspired the Yorks to oppose him in the War of the Roses.

 Somerset Leading general on the Lancaster side. Killed at the battle of Hexham.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1.2 Phase II: 1471—Warwick's Rebellion : 

 

Battle of Barnet

The second phase of fighting in the War of the Roses broke out because of discontent with Edward IV within the Yorkist camp. The influential Earl of Warwick (a.k.a. Richard Neville) had been allied with the father of Edward, and had orchestrated the Yorkist victories, but he became disillusioned with Edward when the young king married into a rival family against Warwick's wishes, and failed to heed Warwick's advice on other important issues. Warwick allied himself with Clarence, one of Edward's brothers, and attempted to depose Edward and place Clarence on the throne. At the battle of Edgecote, the king's army was defeated and Edward IV himself, was captured. Warwick's victory was short lived however—the tide soon turned again in favor of Edward when his faithful brother Richard came to the rescue, and most of the nobles stayed loyal to the king. Warwick and Clarence were declared traitors and driven out of England.

At this point, the most curious twist of the war occurred. Warwick, approached Queen Margaret, his old arch-rival, and negotiated an agreement by which her son, Prince Henry would marry Warwick's daughter, and Warwick, with the help of the French King, would raise and army and invade England on behalf of the Lancaster's claim to the throne. Edward IV, whose popularity had suffered significantly over the last few years, fled as soon as Warwick landed with his army and King Henry VI, who had been imprisoned for most of the last ten years was briefly restored to the throne. Within a year however, Edward IV raised an army in Burgundy and met Warwick in the Battle of Barnet. Due to an unfortunate series of setbacks, the Lancaster army was defeated and Warwick himself was killed. A few weeks later Prince Henry was killed at the Battle of Tewkesbury, and Henry VI was murdered. With both Lancastrian claimants dead, Warwick dead, and Clarence back in the fold, Edward IV regained the throne and ruled the rest of his life without opposition.

 

 

Battle / Outcome	Description
Battle of Edgecote Moor  Nevilles defeat Yorks	Fought July 26, 1469, between the Yorkists under Pembroke, and the troops of the revolted Nevilles under the Earl of Warwick. Neville's army attacked Pembroke, whose troops were chiefly Welshmen, and, notwithstanding a stubborn resistance, defeated them with heavy loss, no less than Welsh knights falling, besides rank and file. Edward IV, who was in the neighbourhood, though not present at the battle, was captured soon after.
Battle of Barnet  Yorks defeat Lancastrians	Fought April 14, 1471, between the Yorkists under Edward IV, and the Lancastrians under the Earl of Warwick. Warwick prepared to attack the king as he issued from Barnet, but Edward came out during the night and took up a position opposite Warwick unseen. The left of the Yorkists was outflanked and beaten, but their right outflanked and defeated the Lancastrian left, and then fell upon and routed the centre. Warwick was slain. The losses on the two sides are said to have amounted in all to 1,100 killed.
Battle of Tewkesbury  Yorks defeat Lancastrians	Fought May 4, 1471, when the Yorkists, under Edward IV, defeated the Lancastrians, under Prince Edward, Somerset and others, with heavy loss. Prince Edward and other leading Lancastrians were killed, and Margaret of Anjou promptly surrendered.

Commander

Short Biography

Earl of Warwick Primary figure in war of the Roses. Changed sides from York to Lancaster. Killed at Barnet.

Edward IV of England Son of the Duke of York. Became King of England when other aspirants were dead or deposed.

Prince Henry Son of Henry VI and Lancaster heir to the throne. Killed at Tewkesbury.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1.3 Phase III: 1485—Usurper Richard III vs. Henry Tudor : 

 

The days seemed very long and dreary to the two little boys.

Edward IV lived for fifteen years after his victory at the Battle of Barnet, and when he died, Edward V, his eldest son was the heir apparent. Since Edward V was too young to rule for himself, his uncle Richard, who had been a faithful ally of his father was appointed regent. Not content with this honor however, Richard quickly began forming a plan to usurp the throne from his nephews. He first captured the Princes and kept them in the Tower of London for "safe-keeping", and later put forward accusations of illegitimacy based on an alleged previous marriage of Edward IV. No one is quite sure what happened to the Princes, but they were never seen alive again.

The palace politics involved in the elevation of Richard III to the throne of England and the probable murder of the rightful princes was highly contentious at the time, and remains controversial. Richard was enthusiastically supported by the nobles who disliked the Queen Mother's family, and desired a strong, capable and proven leader, and greatly distained by those who felt he had usurped the throne and murdered his nephews. It was into this contentious situation that Henry Tudor, a distant cousin, asserted his claim to the throne on the Lancaster side. Although his own claim was somewhat dubious—all of the direct Lancaster descendents were deceased, and his claim was no greater that of other cousins—Henry believed he could count on Richard's manifold enemies to assist him. In this he was correct. Landing in Wales, Henry gained many followers, and at the Battle of Bosworth Field, several of Richard's generals either deserted to the enemy or held back from battle. Richard was slain in the fiercely fought battle, and the crown passed to Henry Tudor.

Henry Tudor knew that in order to rule England he must reconcile with the Yorks, so his first order of business was to marry Elizabeth of York, the eldest daughter of Edward IV. This move assured the York family of continued influence in the government, and the country, weary of war, accepted the new monarch.

 

 

 

Battle / Outcome

Description

Battle of Bosworth Field  Tudors defeat Yorks

Fought August 21, 1485, between Richard III and Henry Duke of Richmond (Henry VII). Richmond had received a promise from Lord Stanley and his uncle that they would desert during the battle, and, after holding aloof for some time, they came over, with their followers, at a critical moment of the engagement, and Richard was routed and slain. He fought to the end, and among others who fell with him were the Duke of Norfolk and Lord Ferrers.

 

Commander	Short Biography
Richard III	On death of his brother Edward IV, he killed his nephews and usurped the throne.
Henry VII of England	Descendent of John of Gaunt (Lancasters), who fought Richard the Usurper for the throne.

 

 

   

   

 

 

The white rose of the House of York.      

The red rose of the House of Lancaster.

Rosa Tudor created at the end of the civil war, joining both emblems.

 

 

 

 

2. English ballads and Folk songs

A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of the British Isles from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many ballads were written and sold as single sheet broadsides. The form was often used by poets and composers from the 18th century onwards to produce lyrical ballads. In the later 19th century it took on the meaning of a slow form of popular love song and the term is now often used as synonymous with any love song, particularly the pop or rock power ballad.

Whether in traditional or lyrical form, the ballad has been omnipresent in Western culture for the past millennium. It has informed and presented tales to listeners and readers throughout the Western world with themes of religion, love, tragedy, and political propaganda. Its rhythmic, alternating 4-3-4-3 line beat per quatrain stanza presents one of literature’s most natural and musical tension-then-release cadences. Verse writers, storytellers, and musicians all instinctively know this most basic, essential form – as do millions of readers and listeners.

Medieval roots.

The ballad evolved and grew from several medieval roots, most notably Provencal folk music. The form had been known orally for centuries prior, with storytellers using the line breaks and rhythm to enrapture their audiences as they passed along tales and histories – many of them important to survival. Troubadour poets developed the cadence we know today, and then spread the sweet, lilting features of the ballade to Spain, post-Norman England, and Italy. Spanish court poets immediately seized on the form, producing beautiful works through the latter Middle Ages. Italians, particularly Tuscan song-poets, created a shorter version, the ballad.

The Renaissance ballad.

The ballad was a favorite form during the Renaissance, joining other lyrical expressions such as rispetto, madrigal, canzone, and the sonnet. Dante Alighieri, Guido Cavalcanti, and Giovanni Boccaccio found the ballad to be an even sweeter means to convey the love and passion that filled many of their works. Interestingly, the ballad flipped the envoi (the final lines), using it not as a tail-piece (like most English-language ballads), but as an introduction. While Dante wrote beautiful ballad, Boccaccio immortalized the form by having a storyteller sing a ballad in each of the ten main days (chapters) of The Decameron, as evidenced by a song imbedded in the eighth story of the ninth day:

    A girl am I and gladly do rejoice

    in the new season of the year,

    Thanks be to Love and to my happy thoughts.

 

    Through the green meadows do I go

    to see the yellow flowers and the white and red,

    the roses on their thorns and the white-flowers-deluce;

   and I go likening them to the face of him

    who loving me hath captured me,

    even as she that doth desire

    naught else save her delight.

 

By the 15th century, Geoffrey Chaucer began to fine-tune the structure of the ballata to create the modern ballad. Within a century, ballad broadsides written by so-called "pot poets," and shunned by artists who favored the more formal sonnet, spread across the English countryside and into the popular culture. In fact, the effectiveness of these broadsides (single sheets of paper upon which poetry was printed) inspired the pamphleteers who, two centuries later, helped America win its revolution against England.

A writer’s sport.

The ballad maintained a strong presence in England for three centuries. When the Romantic poets came along, they found a perfect form for their lilting verbal melodies, and turned the ballad into a writer’s sport. Lord Byron, John Keats, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Robert Southey, and other Romanticists wrote numerous ballads, but it was the succeeding generation that immortalized the form. Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" is perhaps the most famous poetic ballad, while William Wordsworth and Thomas Percy also wrote extensively with the ballad form. With the arrival of the 20th century, William Butler Yeats became the foremost ballad writer in English poetry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.The Robin Hood ballads.

 

Robin is famous for his gallantry, robbing the rich to feed the poor and fighting against injustice and tyranny. Anyone who knows of Robin has also heard the stories of his outlaw band. The names of Little John, Friar Tuck, Maid Marion, Allan a Dale, Will Scarlet, Much the Miller and the evil Sheriff of Nottingham are as much a part of the legend as Robin Hood himself.

The stories of Robin portray him as a fearless outlaw leading his band of "merry men" (and women) against the tyranny of Prince John, The Sheriff of Nottingham and Sir Guy of Gisbourne. A brilliant archer, Robin lived a life of adventure - poaching the King's deer from the outlaws' retreat in Sherwood Forest.

Stories about the adventures of Robin have been told and retold for over six hundred years. In Robin's time, few people could read or write and consequently little was written down about the exploits of our hero. Instead, people learnt about Robin and his band through the ballad and song of wandering minstrels who weaved a patchwork of fact and fiction into the contemporary culture of the time.

 

From the first time men spoke of him, Robin Hood was believed to have been a real person. Through the centuries there has been much speculation as to who he was, however his identity remains unknown. No one could provide authentic records of his activities, but five of the oldest surviving poems or ballads as they are now called, tell us much of what is known about the legend of this English outlaw. Robin Hood and the Monk, Robin Hood and the Potter, Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne, Robin Hoode his Death, and A Lytell Geste of Robyn Hode, existed in the fifteenth or early sixteenth centuries. The Gest, the longest of the ballads, is divided into eight sections or ‘fyttes’. There were eight printed editions before 1600; one of the earliest came from the press of Wynken de Word, printed between 1492 and 1534. Another edition is possibly from the press of Jan van Doesborch at Antwerp and is dated 1510-1515; it is simply titled the Gest of Robyn Hode. Yet another edition is from William Copland; this has the title of the Mery Geste of Robyn Hoode, and is dated around 1560. There is also an edition by Richard Pynson that has survived in fragments. The word ‘Gest’ meant a tale of exploits or a romantic story. This enigmatic tale could have been written down as early as 1400. 

In a text of William Langland’s Piers Plowman, the character named Sloth says:

I do not know my paternoster perfectly as the priest sings it.

But I know rhymes of Robin Hood and Randolph Earl of Chester. 

This was written about 1377, which proves there were ‘rhymes’ of Robin Hood in the fourteenth century.

The Gest begins with:

Lythe and listin gentilmen

That be of frebore blode

I shall you tel of a gode yeman

His name was Robyn Hode 

 

The third fytte begins with:

Lyth and lystyn gentilmen

All that nowe be here

Of Litell Johnn that was the knightes man

Goode myrth ye shall here 

 

Robin Hood and the Monk was originally described as the ‘talkyng of the munke and Robyn Hode’. These two ballads at least, were possibly written by minstrels who recited or read them to an audience.

 

 

 

The Tales of Robin Hood 
 
Many of us today will know of the legend of Robin Hood through stories like:

Robin and the Knight:	In which Robin saves an impoverished Knight from losing his lands to the Abbot of St. Mary's in York.
Robin and the Potter:	where Robin, disguised as a potter, tricks the Sheriff of Nottingham into travelling to Sherwood Forest where the Outlaws capture him.
Robin Hood and the Monk:  (click for the full story)	In Which Robin is betrayed by a monk and imprisoned by the Sheriff of Nottingham. The story ends with the rescue of Robin by Little John and Much the miller's son.
Robin and the Curtal Friar:	Where Friar Tuck and Robin Hood first meet.
Robin and the Silver Arrow:	in which Robin wins the archery contest set up to trap him by the Sheriff of Nottingham.
The death of Robin Hood:	where, after the deaths of Maid Marian and King Richard, Robin ends his days in the grounds of Kirklees Priory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.1 Barnsdale and Sherwood

Robin Hood has been associated with two different regions from an early date; Barnsdale in South Yorkshire and Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire. ‘Robin Hood in Barnesdale Stood’ was quoted by a judge in the court of Common Pleas in 1429. ‘Robin Hood in Sherwood stood’ was written in a Lincoln cathedral manuscript in about 1410. In the fifteenth century Robin  was more often associated with Barnsdale than Sherwood, although the two regions are less than forty miles apart. In Robin Hood and the Monk the outlaws adventures are confined to Sherwood and Nottingham. Robin Hood and the Potter names Wentbridge (Went breg)  in the Barnsdale region and Nottingham. In Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne, the action takes place in  Barnsdale, and the sheriff is slain when he tries to flee to Nottingham. The Gest names Barnsdale and Nottingham, but of the early ballads, only Robin Hood and the Monk mentions Sherwood. The sheriff of Nottingham intrudes into Barnsdale where he has no jurisdiction, and both he and the outlaws travel between the two regions at lightening speed, which leads to the possibility that there was one cycle of tales that placed Robin in Barnsdale and another that placed him in Sherwood. Over time these may have become joined together, resulting in a confused scenario. On the other hand, the two regions may have been included in the original tales, to appeal to a wider audience, without any regard for accuracy.

Barnsdale or Bernysdale was known as a region between Pontefract and Doncaster, a lightly wooded area that was not officially a forest, but it was a place of ambush in the fourteenth century. All of the following are within this region. The Sayles (Saylis) is mentioned in the Gest, and Wentbridge (Went breg) is mentioned in Robin Hood and the Potter. To the south of Wentbridge, on the western side of the A1, is the Church at Skelbrooke, believed to be on the site of the chapel alluded to by Robin in the closing verses of the Gest, and near the A1 in Skelbrooke Park, there once stood Bishop’s Tree, where according to tradition, Robin intercepted the Bishop of Hereford and made him dance in his boots. To the north of Bishop’s Tree is the probable location of where once stood the Stone of Robert Hode, recorded in a Monk Bretton charter of 1422, and on the eastern side of the A1 to the south, is Robin Hood’s Well.  The Gest and Robin Hoode his Death, both name Kirklees (Kyrkesly, Churchlees) twenty miles west of Barnsdale, as the place of Robin’s death and burial. (see Robin Hood’s Grave) There is a third locality in the Gest, northern Lancashire and Bowland.

Sherwood Forest was a royal forest, deep and inaccessible, it was frequented by hunters and poachers, and over the centuries, has been a hiding place for outlaws. Once a hunting ground for the kings and queens of England, ‘Shire Wood’ covered a large area of the county of Nottinghamshire, stretching twenty miles from Nottingham north to Worksop, and it was over eight miles wide. Today Sherwood is a scattering of woodland, heathland, and open field, the last refuge for ancient oaks. The Sherwood Forest National Nature Reserve near Edwinstowe has the Major Oak and attracts thousands of visitors each year. 

 

 

 

3.2The Early Ballads

Robin Hood and the Monk

This ballad was found in a manuscript collection written about 1450, it is believed to be the oldest surviving written ballad of Robin Hood. It begins with Robin and Little John in the greenwood, they argue then go their separate ways; Robin goes to Saint Mary’s Church in Nottingham, Little John goes to Sherwood. After being recognized in church by a ‘gret hedit Munke’ who runs to Nottingham to inform the sheriff, Robin is captured by the sheriff of Nottingham and his men. The other outlaws learn of their masters capture, so consequently, Little John and Much the Millar’s son set off to find the monk who is on his way to London with a letter, to convey the news to the king. John kills the monk, and Much kills his page, so they themselves make the delivery. Unaware of who they are, the king makes them yeomen of the crown, and sends them back to Nottingham with a letter ordering the sheriff to send Robin to him. On their return, John and Much are received by the sheriff who invites them to dine. After dinner while he is asleep, they free Robin and all return to Sherwood. The sheriff realizes he has been tricked, and is afraid he will be punished, however luckily for him, the king is impressed by the outlaw’s cleverness and he forgives both Robin and the sheriff.

Robin Hood and the Potter

Robin Hood and the Potter formed part of a manuscript collection written about 1503; this ballad has more of a comic element. The story begins with Robin and Little John fighting with a proud potter in “Wentbreg”, (Wentbridge in Yorkshire) who has refused to pay “pavage” for crossing their territory. Little John has a bout of fisticuffs with the potter then Robin fights him with the sword. The potter uses the quarter-staff and he knocks Robin to the ground. Taking his defeat in good stead, he suggests they exchange clothes for a joke. In the guise of a potter, Robin goes to Nottingham to sell pots. He sells his last pots to the sheriff’s wife who invites him home to dine. After dinner Robin shoots in an archery contest with the sheriff’s men, he wins the contest, which impresses the sheriff who asks the “potter” if he knows Robin Hood. Robin says he will show him the whereabouts of the outlaw’s camp, but predictably the sheriff falls into a trap and is then forced to walk home barefoot. The story ends with Robin paying the potter for his goods.

Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne

This complex tale or at least a version of it, was probably in existence before 1475, and was found with others in a manuscript that was rescued from a burning house in Shropshire by Thomas Percy. The manuscript is now known as the Percy Folio. Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne appeared in his Reliques of Ancient English Poetry, published in 1765. The ballad is archaic in language and has some similarity to the play of 1475. This is a much deeper and dramatic story. It begins with Robin dreaming that he has been captured by two yeomen, and on awakening, he goes to the greenwood with Little John to seek these two men. Here they see a yeoman clad in horsehide leaning against a tree. Little John offers to investigate but Robin objects and they quarrel. Little John returns to Barnsdale, where the sheriff’s men have killed two of the merry men and are now persuing Will Scarlett. Little John prepares to shoot, but his bow breaks and he is captured and tied to a tree to await execution.

 

 

Conclusion

The war of the Roses (also called the war of the two Roses) is a very important period for the British culture and history. It has been a turning point in the history of the United Kingdom : a very large part of the aristocracy was killed (some noble families even disappeared) and the royal dynasty changed. It has also been a vast source of inspiration for English authors, such as Shakespeare.

The history of the war of the two Roses is really propitious to literary narration : you have a Queen with a strong personality (Marguerite), a mad King, traitors, multiple reversal of situation, ... But the myth is different from the reality : what is disappointing is that the version of Shakespeare is a bit far from the reality whereas it needed not to be thrilling. For instance, Richard III was not the ‘‘nice’’ King of Shakespeare’s play. However we must not forget that he could not question the foundation of the Tudor dynasty and its legitimity !

This period will remain one of the most epic in the English history, even if it concerned principally the aristocracy (the armies were small and one implicit rule was to kill the nobles, not the simple peasants).

Robin Hood's Death is the 120th ballad of the Child ballads collection published by Houghton Mifflin. The fragmentary Percy Folio version of it appears to be one of the oldest existing tales of Robin Hood; there is a synopsis of the story in the fifteenth century A Gest of Robyn Hode.A later broadside version of the ballad also exists, which includes the famous detail of Robin Hood's last bowshot.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References:

 

 

• J. R. Lander, The Wars of the Roses (1965);
• C. D. Ross, Wars of the Roses: A Concise History (1976);
• E. Hallam, Wars of the Roses and Chronicles of the Wars of the Roses (1988);
• Pollard, Wars of the Roses (1995); A. Weir, Wars of the Roses (1995).
• http://www.robinhoodlegend.com
• http://www.robinhood.info