London, Sept 25: An American historian has locked horns with tourism authorities in Nottingham, England over the origins of Robin Hood, the man said to have robbed the rich to give to the poor.
According to Stephen Lawhead, Robin Hood was a Welsh freedom fighter and had never set foot in Nottingham let alone Sherwood Forest or met Maid Marian.
Blowing apart the widely accepted version of the legendary medieval outlaw, Lawhead says in his new book, Hood, that Robin Hood was really a hardened guerrilla based in the Valleys. The folk hero and his band of merry men carried out their thieving in the Marsh, a primeval forest in Wales in the 11th century, more than a 100 years before the English Robin Hood, the Daily Mail quotes Lawhead, as saying.
Lawhead claims that Robin would not have been able to hide out in Sherwood Forest because it would have been too small and well chartered.
Lawhead, however, says that there was a wronged nobleman, who turned heroic outlaw, and names him as Bran ap Brychan instead of the more recognised Robin of Loxley.
Not surprisingly, Lawhead's version of the legend has not been greeted with enthusiasm in Robin's spiritual home.
Stephen Richeux, from Nottingham City Council, said: "We laugh at this suggestion.
"We imagine this author is trying to make a name for himself with the outrageous suggestion that Wales is the home of our beloved Robin Hood.
The English Robin Hood is first mentioned by name in the official documents for Yorkshire of 1230, where he is described as Robertus Hood fugitivis who has failed to appear in court.
Many believe him to be nobleman, the Earl of Loxley, who was deprived of his lands by greedy churchmen.
Ancient stories tell how he even helped Richard the Lionheart reclaim the throne of England after his return from the crusades.
First Published: Friday, September 29, 2006, 00:00