Little John

Little John was a fellow outlaw of Robin Hood, and was said to be Robin's chief lieutenant and second-in-command of the Merry Men.

Folklore

He appears in the earliest recorded Robin Hood ballads and stories. [Jeffrey Richards, "Swordsmen of the Screen: From Douglas Fairbanks to Michael York", p 190, Routledge & Kegan Paul, Lond, Henly and Boston, 1988] He also appears in the earliest chronicle references to Robin Hood, by Andrew of Wyntoun in about 1420 and by Walter Bower in about 1440, neither of whom refers to any other of the Merry Men, suggesting that Little John was particularly associated with him.Fact|date=March 2007 In the early tales, Little John is shown to be intelligent and highly capable. In "A Gest of Robyn Hode", he captures the sorrowful knight and, when Robin Hood decides to pay the knight's mortgage for him, accompanies him as a servant. [Holt, J. C. Robin Hood p 17 (1982) Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-27541-6.] In "Robin Hood's Death", he is the only one of the Merry Men that Robin takes with him. [Holt, J. C. Robin Hood, p 25, Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-27541-6.] He is also known to have disagreements with Robin Hood. In the 15th-century ballad most commonly called "Robin Hood and the Monk", after being ill-treated by Robin, Little John leaves in anger. When Robin Hood is captured, it is Little John who plans his leader's rescue. In thanks, Robin offers Little John leadership of the band, but John refuses. Later depictions of Little John portray him as somewhat less cunning than his medieval incarnation.

The earliest ballads do not feature an origin story for this character, but one was soon to follow. According to a 17th-century ballad, he was a giant of a man (at least seven feet tall) who was named John Little. Robin Hood first encountered him when he tried to prevent Robin from crossing a narrow bridge. The two men then fought with quarterstaves, and Robin was knocked into the river. Despite having won the duel, John agreed to join his band and fight alongside him. He was baptised by the Merry Men and then called Little John, as he most certainly was not Little. This scene is almost always re-enacted in movie and television versions of the story. In some modern film versions, Little John loses the duel to Robin. Starting from the ballad tradition, Little John is commonly shown to be the only Merry Man present at Robin Hood's death.

Despite a lack of historical evidence for his existence, Little John is reputed to be buried in a churchyard in the village of Hathersage, Derbyshire. A modern tombstone marks the supposed location of his grave, which lies under an old yew tree. This grave was owned by the Nailor/Naylor family, and sometimes some variation of "Nailer" is given as being John's surname.

Little John was also a figure in the Robin Hood plays or games during the 15th to 17th centuries, particularly those held in Scotland.

There are many historical figures named Little John and John Little, but it is debatable which — if any — are the inspiration for the legendary character.

Alias Reynold Greenleaf

There is an episode in the "Gest" in which Little John enters the Sheriff's service as a ruse, calling himself "Reynold Greenleaf", which (it is implied) was his real name before he became "Little John". This story was used by Howard Pyle and other adaptors of the Robin Hood legend. However, elsewhere in the "Gest", Reynold is a separate character. It appears from this, and from external evidence (a late ballad telling how Reynold joined the Merry Men, and a couple of fifteenth century court references that make it clear his name was proverbial for an outlaw), that Reynold Greenleaf was originally a Merry Man in his own right, before the author of the "Gest" confused him with Little John.

Appearances in other media

Alan Hale, Sr. played the role of Little John in three movies. He first played Little John as a young squire in 1922's Robin Hood starring Douglas Fairbanks. He reprised the role opposite Errol Flynn's Robin in 1938's "The Adventures of Robin Hood". And finally, he played an older Little John opposite John Derek, as Robin's son, in "Rogues of Sherwood Forest" from 1951.

Other notable film and TV Little Johns include Archie Duncan in the 1950s TV series, Nicol Williamson in "Robin and Marian", Clive Mantle in the 1980s TV series "Robin of Sherwood", Phil Harris as the voice of Little John the Bear in the 1973 Disney animated film "Robin Hood" and Nick Brimble in 1991's "".

In the BBC's 2006 version of the tale, "Robin Hood", Little John is played by Gordon Kennedy. John meets Robin when his band of outlaws tie up and steal from Robin's band. He dislikes Robin immediately, but soon accepts that Robin is trying to help the people of Nottingham and joins with him. John also has a wife called Alice and a son, both of whom believe he is dead until late in the first series. John is the oldest of the outlaws, and fights with a quarterstaff.

References

External links

* [http://www.boldoutlaw.com/rhbal/bal125.html Robin Hood and Little John, a 17th-century ballad with additional information]
* [http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/teams/monkint.htm Robin Hood and the Monk: An Introduction, Information presented before a 15th century Robin Hood ballad that features Little John in a prominent role. Edited by Stephen Knight and Thomas H. Ohlgren] Disputed/alleged burial locations:
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=2580 Derbys, England]
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=4293 Kirklees, England]