Is not story really a bit different? Prince John usurps King Richard's throne, while Richard is off fighting against the warlords of islam, and with the Sheriff of Nottingham rules tyrannically, using the power of government to steal from everyone and give to themselves. Robin and his band, and the peasants (Saxons) are being systematically starved to death by the Normans. They resist the government, and they take back what is theirs and distribute it to the oppressed Saxon peasants while waiting for King Richard to return from the Crusades to make the government right.
That does not quite sound like a socialist who is "stealing from the rich to give to the poor". He is resisting tyranny.
>>> That does not quite sound like a socialist who is “stealing from the rich to give to the poor”. He is resisting tyranny. <<<
Which may be the reason why a UK paper wants to present him in a negative light. Don’t want the little laddies to get any foolish ideas about resisting tyranny, don’t ya know. Not to mention the fact that Robin and his Merry Men used swords, which are like very long and sharp knives. And all law-abiding Britons should know that knives are very dangerous, and their ownership should be strictly regulated by the Crown!
I have an even different picture to paint. King Richard the Lionheart, a Norman viking, was a bloodthirsty tyrant always looking for an excuse to go to war, and the pope gave him one in the form of the crusades. He leaves his brother, Prince John an able administrator, to mind the kingdom while he is away and to ensure that the English crusaders stay adequately equipped and paid.
Getting all the odds and ends that an army in the field needs across a long distance doesn’t come cheap. In his efforts to raise the necessary cash to support his brother, Prince John raises taxes. Which results in decreased productivity and more taxes, which starts civil unrest and the brigands we know as Robin Hood and his merry men.
Of course, then King Richard comes home to restive populace and finds an easy scape goat in his brother for costs that he made necessary.