Robin Hood Library No. 1: Sweet Liberty or Death

# Museum Catalog Note

Sweet Liberty or Death! presents the origin narrative of Robin Hood. Set during the reign of Richard I in Sherwood Forest, the story follows young Robin Fitzooth, a Saxon forester of noble birth (heir to the earldom of Huntingdon), as he defies Norman authority. When Sheriff Oswald de Burgh orders the maiming of foresters' hounds under forest law and demands Robin's father vacate his lands, Robin physically defeats the ranger sent to enforce these commands. This act of defiance triggers Norman retaliation: armed men burn Fitzooth's homestead and hang his father. His henchman Will Scarlet, badly wounded, reports the death with Robin's father's dying command to seek revenge. The narrative concludes with Robin vowing vengeance against de Burgh and renouncing his birth name, adopting his mother's maiden name instead. The serial emphasizes Saxon resistance to post-Conquest Norman oppression and establishes Robin's transformation from youth to outlaw avenger.