Unearthing Mansfield’s secret past in Sherwood Forest

Andy Gaunt of Mercian Archaeological Services CIC talking about medieval Sherwood Forest, Mansfield, and King John's Palace... in the Mansfield Chad

Full article: http://www.chad.co.uk/news/local/unearthing-mansfield-s-secret-past-1-6220209

Photo: Mansfield from the air- from Chad Newspaper.

Mercian Archaeological Services CIC

Medieval Outlaws: The Folville Gang

The first literary reference to  Robin Hood comes from Piers Plowman by William Langland from circa 1377: 

‘I kan nought parfitly my Paternoster
as the preest it singeth
but I kan rhymes of Robyn hood and
Randolf Earl of Chestre’
Translates to:
I do not know my Paternoster
perfectly as the priest sings it,
but I know rhymes of Robin Hood
and Randolf Earl of Chester.

The world famous outlaw Robin Hood was a hero of Medieval Ballads... 

Alongside Robin Hood in this same poem another collection of medieval outlaws gets a mention... the Folvilles.

‘..and fechen it for false men
 with Folvyles law…’

'and fix it for false men
with Folvilles law...'

This excerpt suggest that there were some people called the Folvilles who obeyed their own rules and sorted out deceitful or 'false' men with their own brand of the law.

Were these men honourable as the poem suggests? Fine upstanding sorts who brought justice to the land in the fashion of their literary more famous contemporary?

Perhaps you should read the following before committing to a decision...


The Folvilles: 


John de Folville, lord of Ashby-Folville, Leicestershire
and Teigh in Rutland died in 1310...

He left 7 sons...

John the eldest inherited the manor...

The other 6:

Laurence, Richard (priest of Teigh in Rutland),
Robert, Thomas and Walter

under the leadership of their elder brother Eustace...


...became a notorious gang of extortionists, robbers, vandals, hired thugs and murders.

In 1326 in one of the most famous crimes of the day also involving Roger de la Zouche they murdered Roger Bellers a Baron of the Exchequer on the road from Melton to Leicester. 

They were outlawed, and  fled the country…

Picture: Folvilles Cross (remains) said to mark the spot of the murder of Roger Bellers

In 1327 they had returned and are recorded as committing a series of robberies in Lincolnshire.

The Sheriff of Nottingham was informed by the government:

‘Robert and Simon de Folville, with a band of malefactors, were roaming abroad in search of victims to beat, wound, and hold to ransom’.

A Simon de Folville is listed in an inquisition Post Mortem in Nottingham in 1356 into a robbery in 1335 (see a robbery in the forest 1335 entry for more details)... is this the same Simon de Folville?

Between 1327 and 1330 Eustace alone was involved in 3 to 4 murders and 3 robberies.

In 1329 they were pardoned in exchange for fighting for the king .

However while garrisoned with the kings army in Leicester they robbed the burgesses of the town of their belongings!!!

In 1330. Their pardon was overturned.

Then in 1331 they were hired for £20 by the a Canon of Sepringham and the Cellarer of the Cistercian house of Haverholm to destroy a rivals watermill!!

But all that became merely a backstory to the main event on their CV when ...

...On the 14th January 1332 the Folville gang and a number of associates kidnapped the future Chief Justice of the Kings bench Sir Richard de Willoughby.

On the road from Melton to Grantham

They smuggled him into Lincolnshire and moved from wood to wood to avoid capture.

A ransom of 1200 marks was paid for his release


The kidnappers were as follows:


Robert Lovett the parson of Ashwell since 1316

James Coterel of the similarly notorious Coterel family gang from Derbyshire who ran riot in the High Peak Forest with his brothers John and Nicholas (more about the Coterels soon).

The aptly named Roger Savage!

and not forgetting… Alan Baston the Canon of Sepringham who had hired the Folvilles to smash the watermill.

A collection of thugs, thieves, scoundrels and ... Vicars!!!


The governments response:

A Trailbaston Commission (a sort of posse of judges) was sent to bring the felons to justice.

Not much seems to have availed except that James Coterel and Roger Savage were pursued to the wild forest of the High Peak in Derbyshire, but escaped after a tip-off

The commission in fact failed to bring anyone to justice!

Before too long Eustace was serving the King again, this time in the hundred years war which had recently started.

Once again serving the king seems to have earned him a pardon.

In fact Eustace died a natural death in 1347 having never faced justice.

The other brothers were not so lucky:

In 1340 Richard Folville took refuge in the church of Teigh in Rutland where he had been priest for 20 years.

After he killed one of his pursuers and wounded two others with arrows shot from within the church...

He and his accomplices- most likely his brothers- were dragged out and beheaded…

A medieval final shoot-out!!!

We know all about this because it was recorded in a Papal Bull (from the Pope himself) into the incident.

Because Richard Folville was a priest taking refuge in a church (despite his rather dubiuos record) the execution was deemed unlawful.

The poor people who had carried out the 'crime' of bringing the Folvilles to justice, were forced to pray for forgiveness outside all the neighbouring parish churches...

They were beaten with a rod for their sins while a chantrist sang psalms of forgivness...

Unbelievable!!!!

Picture: A medieval Papal Bull

All these different incidents throughout the medieval period led to the belief around the country that:


‘disturbers of the peace are said to gather together daily to do evil; they ride in force by day and night taking and robbing people at their will, imprisoning some of them until they have made grievous (or sometimes ‘intolerable’) ransoms. They form congregations and conventicles and wander in woods and other public and private places, ambushing wayfarers whom they rob and sometimes slay.

In all these things they are aided and abetted by local people, who incite them to their evil deeds and shield them after they are done’.

(Stones, E. 1956. The Folvilles of Ashby Folville, Leicestershire, and their associates in crime, 1326-1347. Transactions of the Royal historical Society 77).

It is interesting to note that the common people of the time would shelter outlaws in safe houses. Outlaws were seen as heroes even in their own time- the Langland poem was written only a few years after the Folvilles crimes were committed.

It is easy to see how such characters became legendary.  Many of the exploits of the outlaws above have been absorbed into the myths of Robin Hood. The eariest ballads of the man in green show he was not against bouts of extreme violence himself (chopping off Guy of Gisbornes head and dancing around with it on a pole for starters). 

These accounts also go someway to explaining why in the early ballads Robin had a dislike for Bishops and the clergy. There aren't many religious men mentioned above who would make good role models to their flock.

The thirst for such tales (often full of violence and trickery) was as strong in medieval times as is it to this day.


History of the Folvilles from: Stones, E. 1956. The Folvilles of Ashby Folville, Leicestershire, and their associates in crime, 1326-1347. Transactions of the Royal historical Society 77

(more on medieval outlaws coming soon)

the Case of William Robehod

The oldest literary reference to Robin Hood comes from the medieval poem Piers Plowman by William Langland and dates from the year 1377.

However the use of the surname ‘Robinhood’ predates this considerably.

From the early 1980's onwards a number of ‘Robinhood’ surnames have been found in 13th century documents.

All of those found so far date from 1261-1290. This is a hundred years earlier than the Piers Plowman reference. 

This suggests that the legend- or the term ‘Robin Hood’ was in use by the second half of the 13^th century at least. 

Any original Robin Hood must therefore have been operating before or around this time.

The notorious Folville gang operated in the early 14^th century and were mentioned in Piers Plowman within a few years of their exploits (see outlaws page for more information).

Most of the surnames recorded are to do with law-breaking, and were suspected or outlawed criminals, as shown by the list below from the 1989 edition of J C Holt’s Robin Hood:

Alexander Robehod was sought for theft in Essex in 1272;

Gilbert Robehod was released to pledges by the justices after an unspecified charge in Suffolk in 1286;

Robert Robehod was indicted in Hampshire in 1294 on a charge of stealing sheep;

John Rabunhod was charged with others in 1272 with murder- after a quarrelsome brawl in a tavern near Fareham, Hampshire; he had fled and was outlawed.

And a William Robehod who appeared in 1261-2 in Berkshire as a member of an outlaw gang suspected of robberies and of harbouring robbers.

Coincidentally, along with these ‘Robin Hoods’ in a 1292 a Little John and a Petit Johan were both appealed of robbery.

(Holt 1989)

Of all these surnames the most significant is William Robehod of 1261.

His entry into history was discovered by David Crook formerly of the National Archives and former editor of the Transactions of the Thoroton Society.


William Robehod is listed for the crime stated above in the King's Rememberancer's Memoranda Roll of Easter 1262.

By a chance survival the crime is also recorded in the roll of the Justices in Eyre for Berkshire in 1261. 


Here William Robehod is actually revealled to be a William son of Robert le Fevere.


The Clerk in the 1262 roll had changed his name to Robehod!!!

Therefore the name in this instance is a nickname and not a surname. (Crook 1987).

Was Robin Hood a nickname for any 'Robbing Hoody'? 


Or was this clerk familiar with a legend already widely in circulation in 1261?


Whatever the reason the entry is incredibly significant as it means it would be very difficult if not impossible to be sure of the authenticity of any earlier ‘Robinhood’.

There are earlier names that could be the original Robin hood.

A 1225 entry for a Robert Hod on the Pipe Roll, with the form Hobbehod used in 1226 exists, and will be the subject of a future entry. 

But it could well be that the fame of Robin Hood may also be the insurance of his permanent obscurity (Holt 1989).

If anyone convicted of a crime, or outlawed in medieval England could potentially receive the nickname of a 'Robinhood' then maybe we can never be sure of the authenticity of anyone no matter how strong the case…

(More on Robert Hod or Hobbehod of 1225/6 coming soon, along with many other outlaws and their stories)…

 

the Great Famine 1315-16

The 14^th century was a dramatic time in Sherwood Forest and throughout the region around Medieval Nottinghamshire with many outlaws roaming the countryside!

It was a century of enormous social change and social strain.

Locally bands of evil doers and malefactors such as the Folville gang and the notorious Coterel gang roamed the countryside robbing and kidnapping (see outlaws page).

Edward III would storm into Nottingham Castle and regain control of his Kingdom from the usurper Roger Mortimer -who had taken the throne along with his mistress Queen Isabella from Edward II her husband.

(more of that and the red hot poker later)…

Nationally the peasants would revolt in 1381.

The Hundred years War was kicked off by Edward III in  1337.

and the Scottish raids of the Reivers wreaked havoc...

‘This social anarchy…’ saw ‘the creation of bands of vagabonds and outlaws in Sherwood Forest and other forests as the result of Scots’ raids and the famine of 1315-16’ (Cameron 1971).

Alongside The great political stories of the day and the impact this could have on the people; natural disasters also forced many into outlawry!

In 1315 great floods and famine struck the country.

The River Trent burst its banks destroying roads and bridges, and damaging crops.

The Hethbeth bridge (modern day Trent Bridge) was damaged along with the causeway linking it to Nottingham.

This would have had an impact on trade in the town.

Grain prices went through the roof as crops failed.

People began to starve!

The following dramatic entry from the Nottingham Date Book 850-1884 demonstrates the panic of the time:

‘Nottingham, at this time, along with the rest of the kingdom was grievously affected with famine… children were stolen and converted to food, and prisoners newly brought into jails, were, in several instances, torn to pieces by previous inmates , and eaten half alive…’

(Nottingham Date Book 850-1884).

Perhaps a little dramatic- but not likely to be entirely inaccurate…

This famine was followed by a sheep moraine and panic must have engulfed the area.

Many people died, and many of those who survived seem to have been forced by circumstance to take to the forest as outlaws- perhaps because they were behind on their rents and payments...

Normality did eventaully return to Sherwood Forest and the rest of the country in the aftermath of the great famine, and life settled back into the cycle of the seasons…

…. But it would not be long before King Death was roaming again… in 1348/9 up to a quarter of the population would fall to the horror of the Black Death as it spread like wildfire around the kingdom…. 

But more of that later…

The Great famine of 1315 is a stark reminder of how difficult and hard life could be in Medieval Sherwood Forest.

 

a Robbery in the Forest 1335

Evidence for the actions and lives of the people of medieval Sherwood Forest, the administration of the forest and often its landscape comes from many different primary sources. These include the court rolls of the shire, or the king’s Bench, charters, quit claims, writs and many other documents including the courts of the forest themselves. One such important source to the medieval historian are the Inquisitions Post Mortem.  These examine cases usually of inheritance.

The inquisitions post mortem for Nottinghamshire for 1335 reveal evidence of a robbery in Sherwood Forest.

This robbery is of a black horse worth 5 marks from a Henry de Cossale of Nottingham who was aged about 30 at the time. He was attacked by a gang of unknown robbers in the forest of Schirwode on the Wednesday after the feast of St. John in the 6^th year of the reign of Edward II - May 9th 1313.

The evidence comes in a roundabout way… it is not a case into the robbery itself…

The inquisitions post mortem examines the case of Henry son of John de Nottingham, and is dated at York 25^th May in the 9th year of Edward III (1335).

The case is a proof of age case for inheritance.

Henry is reported as having been 21 on Monday after the feast of St. George the Martyr.

He was born at Nottingham and baptized in the church of St. Nicholas.

This is ascertained by the testimony of 12 jurors chosen because they know and remember the birth or baptism of Henry from that year.

Henry de Cossale gave the above statement as a reason as to why he remembered the birth of Henry- he was robbed of his black horse in Sherwood Forest shortly after…

The jurors each give reasons that they remember the baptism, they are sometimes bizarre to say the least, the following is a summary of these testimonies:

Stephen de Segrave knows this because he and Henry de Segrave together with Christiana de Segrave lifted him from the sacred font of the said church. He remembers the date because his daughter was born soon after and she too is now 21.

Another man (who’s name is damaged an illegible on the document) remembers the day because he buried his wife in the churchyard the week after and that was 21 years ago.

Another man (also lost) but listed as a knight knows it to be true he married Agnes, daughter of Richard de nelowe of Nottingham 21 years ago.

John de Colwick knows because he had a son William born soon after.

Robert Morewode knows because on the Monday that the said Henry was born he fell from a cart and broke his left arm!!!

Simon Folevile remembers because on Tuesday next before the feast of the Invention of the Holy Cross, 6th year of Edward II after the said Henry was born, he recovered a messuage and a carucate of land from Robert Raumpryn by writ of novel disseisin before the king’s Justices of the Bench, this was 21 years ago…

Laureance le Spicer took possession of a messuage and a virgate of land in Nottingham from William le Botiler by charter and that was 21 years before…

John Colier of Nottingham knowns because William his son was buried in the church of St. Mary’s Nottingham soon after Henry was born…

Ralph de Wolaton had a daughter Alice born at Nottingham at the same time…

Roger de Derby remembers because the Saturday after Henry was born he fell from a tree and broke his right leg!!!

Thomas Suthorp who had been in custody of the lands during Henry’s minority saw no reason as to why the lands should not be inherited…

This inquisition tells us much about the lives of people in Medieval Sherwood Forest, showing us the lives, births, marriages and deaths of everyday life.

We also get glimpse of how land and houses could change hands as deals were struck and people sought to make a living.

We can also get a feel for the jobs people undertook:

Was John Colier a trader in coal? Was Laurence le Spicer a trader in spices? Perhaps with a stall in the great saturday market?

Was Simon Folevile related to the notorious Foleville family who’s gang of outlaws terrorised the area for decades?

A Simon Foleville is recorded in 1327 as committing a series of robberies in Lincolnshire:

…and the Sheriff of Nottingham was informed by the government:

‘Robert and Simon de Folville, with a band of malefactors, were roaming abroad in search of victims to beat, wound, and hold to ransom’.

(See outlaws page for more)

…Had Ralphe de Morwode been drinking when he fell from his cart and broke his arm??...

…Was Roger of Derby a total buffoon? Falling from a tree and breaking his right leg at the age of 30?! What was he up to???

The inquest also show how much the life of the time was dominated by the feasts and festivals of the religious calendar- perhaps with ‘festas’ and parties similar to those which still take place in modern day Malta.

These festivals helped to divide the year and provided a religious structure to its passing. The medieval world followed the annual natural cycle of the seasons and of work and harvest. The church also marked this passing with constant reminders of the religious story. The church and religion were at the centre of peoples understandings of life and death.

This was a spiritual age.

The years were not recorded as we think of them now, but in terms of Regnal years (years of the King’s reigns). Showing the importance of the crown in every aspect of Medieval life.

The Medieval world was certainly a colourful place and its inhabitants were certainly no less colourful themselves.

More to come on the people of Medieval Sherwood Forest….

The above inquest is from: Blagg, T.M 1939. Abstracts of the Inquisitiones Post Mortem relating to Nottinghamshire Vol. III: Edward II and Edward III 1321-1350. Thotoron Society Record Series VI.

Robin Hood Interview BBC

In May 2010 Ridley Scotts Robin Hood film was released. It was claimed it would be the most historically accurate version of the legend ever.

Interest in Robin Hood and Sherwood Forest was high, and so the BBC sent a camera crew to Sherwood Forest to interview the author on BBC Breakfast News.

Click on the image below to see the interview

 

The outlaw Roger Godberg

As well as the legend of Robin Hood...

Medieval Sherwood Forest had its own recorded outlaw at large, Roger Godberg.



Outlawed for his involvement in the 2nd Barons’ War (Simon De Montfort against Henry III 1264-1267).

Roger Godberg fled to Sherwood Forest.

Roger de Leyburn, the lieutenant of Reginald de Grey, the king’s Constable at Nottingham castle fought 2 engagements with him and his followers… 

One in the heart of Sherwood Forest!

In 1270 they were still at large:

‘through outlaws, robbers, thieves and malefactors, mounted, or on foot, wandering by day and by night, in the counties of Nottingham, Leicester and Derby, so many and great homicides were done that no one with a small company could pass through most parts without being taken and killed or spoiled of his goods…’

A price was put on their heads:

Henry III ordered that a sum of a hundred marks be levied from the three counties and paid to Reginald de Grey to hunt them down.

They were eventually captured and Roger was sent to the castle at Bruges- probably a more terrible punishment than it sounds...

For more on outlaws and villains, see the outlaws page...more outlaws and crime to come soon...

The Legend of Robin Hood

Almost all that is known of the Medieval legend of Robin Hood comes from 5 surviving ballads or poems, and a small part of a play.

The oldest is known as Robin Hood and the Monk. This is from a manuscript written circa 1450.

Another tale written around 1503 is called Robin Hood and the Potter.

These are chance survivals.

By this time the legend was well known enough to warrant printing.

Between the end of the 15^th century and the middle of the16th century no less than 5 versions of a lengthy poem called A Gest of Robyn Hode were made.

One of these was made by the early English printer Wynken de Worde who worked between 1492 and 1534.

The 2 remaining poems come from the Percy Folio.

This was written in the middle of the 17^th century- but the poems are far older.

These are Robin Hoode his death, and Robin Hood and Guy of Gisbourne.

These tales were written down from the 15^th century onwards, but the legend was clearly far older.

The oldest literary reference comes from William Langland’s Piers Plowman, written in about 1377.

The legend was older still than this… dating back before 1261- but that is another story.

(See Holt 1989 in the bibliography for more information)

And check out the Outlaws page for more anti-heros and villains

Outlaws and Nottinghamshire Domesday Customs

The Domesday Book was written in 1086 at the command of William the Conqueror.

The Nottinghamshire section lists all the vills and parishes in exixtence at Domesday, listing the amount of arable, pasture, woodland, mills and ploughs that belonged to the different manors for taxation purposes.

As well as taxable property people are sometimes mentioned:

In Warsop (a village within Sherwood Forest- although not described as such) Domesday lists a blind man living with 1 bovate (an area of land equivalent to that which an ox could plough in one season- around 15 acres) in alms from the King.

Obviously charity existed in Medieval times- William the Bastard may have had a softer side too...

With regards to Outlaws Domesday lists in its section on Shire Customs:

'anyone exiled according to the law for any crime, no one but the king can restore peace to him'.

Outlaws were clearly a part of day to day life in the time of the conquest...

  

Robin Hood Guardian Interview

My search for the real Robin Hood The Guardian newspaper April 2010. Interview including comments by Andy Gaunt

Ridley Scott claims his new film starring Russell Crowe will be the most historically accurate ever. But what do we actually know about the real outlaw and his merrie men?

by Stephen Moss

 
...'In the cafe, Andy Gaunt, an archaeologist with Nottingham county council, tells me not to think of medieval Sherwood as just a forest. It was a working community, governed by forest law (a draconian code introduced by William the Conqueror to protect his hunting land). The inhabitants of areas governed by forest law loathed it, and would have been likely to lionise anyone who flouted it. It is easy to see how outlaws became heroes, and common criminals could be confused with freedom fighters.

People were being outlawed all the time," Gaunt says. "It was quite common in medieval times – it was a violent society. The forest was seen as a wild place and after dark it would be pitch black. I wouldn't want to go there on my own (though there are parts of Nottingham I wouldn't want to go on my own now). Robin Hood in the ballads is quite a brutal character, but people didn't seem to worry about that, just as people in the Wild West didn't worry that Billy the Kid was actually a serial murderer."' 

See the full article by clicking on the title or see Stephens profile by clicking on his name.