- Roger Godberd
Roger Godberd is a possible historical basis for the legend of
Robin Hood . [ Maurice Hugh Keen "The Outlaws of Medieval England", 1987, Routledge ]Godberd served under Simon de Montfort, the 6th Earl of Leicester, as well as two other barons.
In 1265 Godberd was outlawed for fighting on the wrong side in the Battle of Evesham. [ http://home.att.net/~sylveastan/mayday/indextimeline.htm ] Nearly two centuries later, in about 1446, Walter Bower claimed that Robin Hood also became an outlaw as a result of this battle. [http://www.skygaze.com/content/mysteries/RobinHood.shtml]
In October 1267, Godberd settled in
Sherwood forest . He lived there for four years defying the authorities. He could call upon 100 men but was eventually caught in 1272.Reginald de Grey was the sheriff of
Nottingham at this time.Godberd was first captured in the grounds of
Rufford Abbey . He was taken to Nottingham castle but managed to escape.A local prominent knight named "Richard Foliot" helped Godberd and his fellow fugitives and protected them from the Sheriff. In 1270 Foliot's castle Fenwick was besieged by royal troops under the command of Reginald de Grey in order to capture Godberd and his companions sheltered within, but the outlaws managed to flee before the arrival of the Sheriff. In 1272 Foliot was accused for his protection of Godberd and had to surrender Fenwick. This knight resembles the figure of
Richard at the Lee in the ballads of the Robin Hood story. [J. C. Holt: "Hood, Robin." In: "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography". vol. 27 (2004), p. 928.]Godberd was eventually captured and sent to jail. He was kept in three different prisons over three years while awaiting trial. That took place at the Tower of London where he was pardoned.
He returned to his farm and lived there until his death, never heading down the outlaw road again. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/nottingham/content/articles/2008/04/30/real_robin_hood_feature.shtml] [But J. C. Holt (Article "Hood, Robin." In: "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography". vol. 27 (2004), p. 928) says that Godberd died in Newgate Prison in 1276.]
Books about Roger Godberd
Robin Hood: The Real Story by Brian Benson
References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
