The Real Robin Hood – Fulk FitzWarin III
Fulk III was brought up at the court of King Henry II, most likely as a noble page. There he became friends with the young prince John – the same John Lackland who would later become king. But during their youth, the friendship went awry, and Fulk and John became enemies.
The legend says that their animosity was born from a game of chess – young John broke the chessboard over Fulk’s head and was punished and humiliated by a whipping. John would never forgive this. After they quarreled over it this fight would remain strong throughout their lives. So, when John unexpectedly became king, Fulk was placed in a bad position.
At the time when Fulk III became Lord FitzWarin, Whittington Castle was held by Maurice de Powis. As soon as his father died, Fulk III offered a feudal relief in hopes of regaining his inheritance of Whittington.
But the son of Maurice de Powis, Roger, offered half of that sum, under pressure from King John. This was done to spite Fulk III. One year later, Fulk III FitzWarin rebelled against the king. This disinherited and disrespected marcher lord took to the woods in 1201 AD.
He renounced his liege and gathered a handful of supporters – a retinue of some 50 men, and the support of several nobles. These included Eustace de Kivilly, Gilbert de Duure, Fulk’s brothers William, John, and Phillip, Sir William Marsh, and many more.
Historical accounts on this rebellion are not thorough, and much of it was summarized in the ‘ancestral romance’ of Fulk III FitzWarin – a romanticized account of his adventures. What we do know is that the rebellion must have been of some significance – King John ordered his justiciar, the powerful lord Hubert de Burgh, 1st Earl of Kent, with a force of 100 knights, to descend upon Fulk and hunt him down.
The events during the rebellion itself are not known. What the legends say is fictionalized, but perhaps rooted in history. The famous medieval ‘romance’ which was titled Fouke le Fitz Waryn recounts many of his daring adventures, most of which are identical to the latter legend of Robin Hood . This leads to the possibility that the popular hero Robin Hood is in fact the fictionalized account of Fulk III FitzWarin.
One such story speaks of how Fulk and his merry band of outlaws disguised themselves as peasants and coal burners and chanced upon King John and his hunting party in a forest. Masking his appearance, Fulk claims to the king that he spotted a magnificent great-horned elk and would lead the hunting party to it. He then leads them into an ambush and his merry men capture the king and his knights.
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Thank you kgn for sharing this story! I have always enjoyed the many tales of Robin of the Hood as well as those of King Arthur. Have also read that the fairy tale Cinderella was also based on historical facts.
History that has become entertainment has been going on since man started writing on cave walls. History has been an interesting subject for me most likely because of such tales.
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Take from the rich and give to the poor is the policy of democratic party leftists. Nothing good ever comes from socialism and so I despise the quaint tale of Robin Hood and likewise this Fulk fellow if there is truly correlation.
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I find a story about a man vs a king or gov't that controls many aspects of freedom itself to be a good basis in the creation of a HERO. Just my opinion
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