Robin Hood (Bassenthwaite)
Locality | |
---|---|
Coordinate | 54.684352, -3.199286 |
Adm. div. | Cumberland |
Vicinity | c. 500 m NNW of Bassenthwaite |
Type | Building |
Interest | Robin Hood name |
Status | Extant |
First Record | 1867 |
By Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2017-08-29. Revised by Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2021-01-07.
'Robin Hood' is the name of a vicinity c. 2 km NE of Bassenthwaite Lake and c. 0.5 km NNW of Bassenthwaite village. It is included on the 6" O.S. map of the area published in 1867 as well as subsequent revisions. Unless it originated as a name for the vicinity, 'Robin Hood' was perhaps initially used of the present Robin Hood Cottage or the adjacent Robin Hood Farm.
A Robin Hood Wood, c. 200 m SSE of 'Robin Hood', may have provided the inspiration for the name of the latter, but one would be happier to draw this conclusion if the name of the wood had been recorded considerably earlier than that of the area, yet so far the earliest record we have for either is the 1867 map. There is another, still more speculative explanation. Within the 'Robin Hood' area was a well (see the 25" maps listed below), and 'Robin Hood's Well' is one of the most frequently occurring Robin Hood place-name (cf. the page on Places named Robin Hood's Well). Perhaps the well was known as 'Robin Hood's Well' and this was then shortened to 'Robin Hood' tout court, but we have no evidence of this. For the wood and various Robin Hood-related place-names within or immediately outside 'Robin Hood', see Bassenthwaite place-name cluster.
Gazetteers
- Not included in Dobson, R. B., ed.; Taylor, J., ed. Rymes of Robyn Hood: an Introduction to the English Outlaw (London, 1976), pp. 293-311.
Maps
- 25" O.S. map Cumberland XLVI.16 (1900; rev. 1898)
- 25" O.S. map Cumberland XLVI.16 (1925; rev. 1923)
- 25" O.S. map Cumberland XLVI.16 (1900; rev. 1898) (georeferenced)
- 6" O.S. map Cumberland XLVI (1867; surveyed 1864-65)
- 6" O.S. map Cumberland XLVI.SE (1900; rev. 1898)
- 6" O.S. map Cumberland XLVI.SE (1900; rev. 1898) (georeferenced)
- 6" O.S. map Cumberland XLVI.SE (1926; rev. 1923).
Background
Also see
Image gallery
Click any image to display it in the lightbox, where you can navigate between images by clicking in the right or left side of the current image.