The Robin Hood legend as we know it today primarily developed in the 14th and 15th centuries as the subject of countless
ballads sung by wandering
minstrels and
London street musicians. As with any oral tradition these tales were constantly embellished and added to, producing a tremendous variety and richness of versions and incidents in the legend. There were several common threads however, that were popular and keep recurring in the surviving ballads. So without further ado, here is a brief sketch of the legend...
Robin Hood is born Robin of Locksley, a minor noble, and grows up in a troubled time in England's history. The Norman Conquest was only a century before, and the Normans are still thought of as foreign usurpers by the disempowered Saxon majority. The Norman king, Richard the Lion-Hearted, who in the legend is said to have been kind to the Saxons, is off on the Crusades, while his evil brother Prince John rules in his stead. Prince John supports the oppression of Saxon landholders by Norman lords.
In his youth Robin falls in love with a Norman lady, Maid Marian, but before he can marry her, he is caught hunting the king's deer, and becomes an outlaw (The Saxons particularly resented a series of laws that disallowed hunting of most large game, which was considered to belong to the crown. Hunting was a favorite Saxon passtime, but now only Norman lords could hunt).
Robin flees into Sherwood Forest (which was much bigger back then) to avoid capture, and begins to gather an outlaw band, taking on the alias Robin Hood. The first man he encounters after becoming an outlaw is the seven-foot tall Little John. In one of the most famous and most often recounted incidents in the legend, Robin and Little John meet when they both try to cross a stream a the same point. Because both are proud, neither will give way and they agree to fight it out. After fighting to a standstill, they agree to become friends. In later adventures Robin meets the other famous members of his band, such as the fat, funloving Friar Tuck, the lovelorn minstrel Alan-a-dale, the poor miller's son Much, and the daring fellow outlawed noble Will Scarlett.
Robin and his Merry Men embark on a series of fantastic adventures, most of which involve helping oppressed Saxon lords against rich Norman nobles and abbots who want their land. Thus Robin was not actually helping the poor - he was helping the the less rich against the more rich. Robin's two greatest enemies are the Sheriff of Nottingham and the local Norman lord, Sir Guy of Guisborne. In between adventures Robin and the gang always seem to be feasting at their secret hideout in Sherwood, taking great pleasure in killing as many of the King's deer as possible. Robin always carries a silver hunting horn with him at all times that he blows to summon any of his men who can hear it whenever he meets danger.
Robin's biggest talent is that he is the greatest archer who ever lived. Most of the ballads about him try to outdo each other in describing the most fantastic feats of archery that he achieves. Many of his adventures involve archery tournaments, which he always wins with style. Little John is the master of the oaken cudgel, his favorite weapon, yet like all the merry men he is no slouch with the bow.
Robin's adventures come to an end when Richard finally returns from the Crusades. Many versions have Richard disguising himself and adventuring at Robin's side before he finally reveals himself, gets rid of Prince John, and restores peace and wellbeing to the Saxons. Robin gets his noble status restored and gets to marry Marian at last, who must have had the patience of a saint to remain chastely unmarried for so long. Unlike most modern movies, there are a lot of ballads about how Robin dies, usually involving a final act of revenge by one of his enemies.
Ironically, from a historical standpoint, King Richard left to fight in France less than two years after his return, and John became king of England a few years later when Richard was killed during a siege in the Aquitaine.