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The Roman Roads joined existing roads, for example there was an earlier road between Templeborough and Doncaster and also between Templeborough and Bawtry.
The Roman road from Buxton and Glossop passed through the Royal Forest of the Peak, shown as “High Peak,” “Peak District,” and “Peak Forest” on the map. The road then went to Hathersage, Loxley and Templeborough. From Templeborough the road went to Roach Abbey at Maltby, then to Tickhill Castle that was known as Blyth Castle in Robin Hood's day, this was built by Roger-de-Busli and was later held by Ranulf, earl of Chester. This led to Wattling Street, Barnsdale, and the Saylis.
Bradfield and Loxley are above the “I” in Sheffield. The Derwent Valley/Reservoir was Royal Forest.
In Robin Hood’s day Blyth Castle was in Nottinghamshire where Roger-de-Busli controlled both Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire from his castle in Tickhill which was just to the west of Watling Street. This may be the place spoken of in Robin Hood’s death scene when Will Scarlet said to Robin Hood, “I won’t let you go, for bad Red Roger lives close to the route, he loves so to fight he won’t let you pass, without a good guard a challenge he’ll make.”
The area comprising York, Barnsdale, Blyth, Doncaster, Hathersage, Loxley, and the Royal Forest is the region that features in the legend of Robin Hood.
The country between Bawtry/Blyth and the River Humber down as far as the River Trent and Nottingham was covered with swamps ruling out much of Nottinghamshire and Sherwood Forest as the area of Robin Hood's activity due to this being a flood plain in the Trent Basin. |
