Robin Hood Tales

ROBIN HOOD RESCUING THREE SQUIRES
No. 140, VERSION B

From The English and Scottish Popular Ballads
by Francis James Child, 1888.

AND

* BOLD ROBIN HOOD *

From The Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books,
The Toronto Public Library

Introduction

Bold Robin Hood from the Osborne CollectionThis is one of Robin Hood's most famous exploits. Most Robin Hood movies and television shows feature a scene where the outlaw prevents an unjust hanging. The men Robin rescues are called widow's sons in another version of the ballad. It is also is similar to the ballad where Robin Hood rescues Will Stutely. It is one of many stories where Robin uses a disguise to trick his enemies.

This isn't the only ballad where the Sheriff of Nottingham meets a bad end. In the much earlier ballad, A Gest of Robyn Hode, Robin cuts off the sheriff's head. In Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne, Little John shoots the sheriff in the back.

When Howard Pyle adapted the Robin Hood ballads into his classic 1883 children's novel The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, he linked this ballad with the Gisborne ballad and made Little John the one to save the three young men while Robin was busy dealing with Guy of Gisbourne. Click here to read Howard Pyle's version of the story.

This ballad has many different names and versions. Directly below this introduction is the second version to appear in Francis Child's great 19th century ballad collection. After Child's B-version, there's an alternative version using text of the 1830 broadside titled Bold Robin Hood available at the Toronto Public Library's Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books. This version closely resembles version C printed in Child's collection. The image is a photo of the Osborne copy.

Robin Hood Rescuing Three Squires, No. 140, Version B
also known as
Robin Hood Rescuing the Widow's Three Sons

    1  There are twelve months in all the year,
      As I hear many men say,
       But the merriest month in all the year
      Is the merry month of May.
       
    2  Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,
      With a link a down and a day,
       And there he met a silly old woman,
      Was weeping on the way.
       
    3  'What news? what news, thou silly old woman?
      What news hast thou for me?
       Said she, There's three squires in Nottingham
        town
      To-day is condemned to die.
       
    4  'O have they parishes burnt?' he said,
      'Or have they ministers slain?
       Or have they robbed any virgin,
      Nor with other men's wives have lain?'
       
    5  'They have no parishes burnt, good sir,
      Nor yet have ministers slain,
       Nor have they robbed any virgin,
      Nor with other men's wives have lain.'
       
    6  'O what have they done?' said bold Robin
        Hood,
      'I pray thee tell to me:'
       'It's for slaying of the king's fallow deer,
      Bearing their long bows with thee.'
       
    7  'Dost thou not mind, old woman,' he said,
      'Since thou made me sup and dine?
       By the truth of my body,' quoth bold Robin
        Hood,
      'You could not tell it in better time.'
       
    8  Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,
      With a link a down and a day,
       And there he met with a silly old palmer,
      Was walking along the highway.
       
    9  'What news? what news, thou silly old man?'
      What news, I do thee pray?'
       Said he, Three squires in Nottingham town
      Are condemned to die this day.
       
    10  'Come change thy apparel with me, old man,
      Come change thy apparel for mine;
       Here is forty shillings in good silver,
      Go drink it in beer or wine.'
       
    11 'O thine apparel is good,' he said,
      'And mine is ragged and torn;
       Whereever you go, wherever you ride,
      Laugh neer an old man to scorn.'
       
    12  'Come change thy apparel with me, old churl,
      Come change thy apparel with mine;
       Here are twenty pieces of good broad gold,
      Go feast thy brethren with wine.'
       
    13 Then he put on the old man's hat,
      It stood full high on the crown:
       'The first bold bargain that I come at,
      It shall make thee come down.'
       
    14 Then he put on the old man's cloak,
      Was patchd black, blew and red;
       He thought no shame all the day long
      To wear the bags of bread.
       
    15 Then he put on the old man's breeks,
      Was patchd from ballup to side;
       'By the truth of my body,' bold Robin can say,
      'This man lovd little pride.'
       
    16 Then he put on the old man's hose,
      Were patchd from knee to wrist;
       'By the truth of my body,' said bold Robin
        Hood,
      'I'd laugh if I had any list.'
       
    17 Then he put on the old man's shoes,
      Were patchd both beneath and aboon;
       Then Robin Hood swore a solemn oath,
      It's good habit that makes a man.
       
    18 Now Robin Hood is to Nottingham gone,
      With a link a down and a down,
       And there he met with the proud sheriff,
      Was walking along the town.
       
    19 'O save, O save, O sheriff,' he said,
      'O save, and you may see!
       And what will you give to a silly old man
      To-day will your hangman be?'
       
    20 'Some suits, some suits,' the sheriff he said,
      'Some suits, I'll give to thee;
       Some suits, some suits, and pence thirteen
      To-day's a hangman's fee.'
       
    21 Then Robin he turns him round about,
      And jumps from stock to stone;
       'By the truth of my body,' the sheriff he
        said,
      'That's well jumpt, thou nimble old man.'
       
    22 'I was neer a hangman in all my life,
      Nor yet intends to trade;
       But curst be he,' said bold Robin,
      'That first a hangman was made.
       
    23 'I've a bag for meal, and a bag for malt,
      And a bag for barley and corn;
    A bag for bread, and a bag for beef.
      And a bag for my little small horn.
       
    24 'I have a horn in my pocket,
      I got it from Robin Hood,
       And still when I set it to my mouth,
      For thee it blows little good.'
       
    25 'O wind thy horn, thou proud fellow,
      Of thee I have no doubt;
       I wish that thou give such a blast
      Till both thy eyes fall out.'
       
    26 The first loud blast that he did blow,
      He blew both loud and shrill;
       A hundred and fifty of Robin Hood's men
      Came riding over the hill.
       
    27 The next loud blast that he did give,
      He blew both loud and amain,
       And quickly sixty of Robin Hood's men
      Came shining over the plain.
       
    28 'O who are you,' the sheriff he said,
      'Come tripping over the lee?'
       'The 're my attendants,' brave Robin did say,
      'They'll pay a visit to thee.'
       
    29 They took the gallows from the slack,
      They set it in the glen,
       They hangd the proud sheriff on that,
      Releasd their own three men.'
       
       

Bold Robin Hood

A shorter version of the tale above appears in a broadside edition at the Toronto Public Library's magnificent Osborne Collection. The collection dates their edition from 1830. "Printed by J. Catnach, 2, Monmouth-Court, 7 Dials." The text closely resembles that of version C from Child's collection, although with some differences. In Child's version C, Robin's question in the final lines of the second stanza and the widow's response in the third stanza are more specific and explicit.

I note in this version that there are at least "ten hundred and ten" members of Robin`s outlaw band, among the largest groupings of the Merry Men in the legend's history.

I have retained most features of the original in the Osborne Collection, such as the inconsistent spelling of beggar and a few typos, but have not kept its method for when lines run over the available space. (In a few places, the final word of a line would appear after a bracket on the line above or below where it actually belonged.)

BOLD Robin Hood ranged the forest all round
     The forest all round ranged he,
And there he did meet with a gay lady,
     Come weeping along the highway.

Oh why do you weep, my gay lady,
     Do you weep for gold or fee?
Oh why do you weep for any thing else,
     That was taken from any body?

I do not weep for gold she said,
     Nor do I weep for any fee,
Nor do I weep for any thing else,
     That was stolen from any body.

Then why do you weep, said Jolly Robin,
     I pray come tell unto me,
Why I do weep for my three sons,
     For they're all condemned to die.

What church have they robbed said Jolly Robin,
     Or what parish priest have they slain.
What maid have they forced against her own will
     Or with other men's wives have they lain

No church have they robbed, the lady replied
     Nor no parish priest have they slain,
No maid have they forced against her own will,
     Or with other men's wives have they lain.

Then what have they done said Jolly Robin
     I pray come tell unto me,
They have killed 16 of the kings fallow deer,
     And they're all condemned to die.

O go your ways said Jolly Robin,
     Go your ways home said he,
And I will go to fair Nottingham town,
     For the sake of the squires all three.

Then Robin Hood went to fair Nottingham
     To fair Nottingham went he,
And there did he meet with an old begger man,
     Come weeping all on tbe highway.

What news, what news my old begger man
     What news hast thou brought unto me
There's weeping and wailing in fair Nottingham
     For the sake of the squires all three.

The old beggar man had a coat on his back
     That was patched both yellow and red.
And Robin Hood thought it would be no disgrace
     To dress in the beggar man's dress.

Robin Hood went to fair Nottingham,
     To fair Nottingham town went he,
And there he did meet with the master sheriffs
     Likewise the squires all three.

One boon, one boon says Jolly Robin,
     One boon I beg on my knee,
That is for the three squires sake,
     There hangman I might be.

Soon granted, soon granted says the master sheriff,
     Soon granted unto thee,
And you shall have their gay clothing,
      And all their white money.

I`ll have none of their gay clothing,
     Nor none of their white money,
But I`d have three blasts of my bugle horn
     As their souls into heaven may flee.

Then Robin Hood mounted the gallows so high
     He blew both loud and shrill,
Ten hundred and ten of Bold Robin Hoods men,
     Came tripping all down the green hill.

Whose men are all these said the master sheriff,
     I pray thee come tell unto me,
Why they are all mine, and none of them thine.
     For they are come for the squires all three.

Go take them, go take them says the master sheriff,
     Go take them along with thee,
There's never a man in fair Nottingham
     Shall borrow three more of me.

Click here to see a larger picture of the original broadside held in the Osborne Collection.

NEXT: Robin Hood and the Bishop of Hereford

ALSO: Read Howard Pyle's adaptation in The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood - he combined this ballad with Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne.

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Introductory text copyright, © Allen W. Wright, 1997 - 2012
Image and Text of Bold Robin Hood appears by the kind permission of the Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books, part of the Toronto Public Library

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