The earliest surviving narrative text featuring that rogue we now know as the Prince of Thieves, the Fox of Sherwood, the guy with the bow, is the ballad of “Robin Hood and the Monk.” Our copy is believed to date back to around 1450, although the tale is likely older. But even that long ago, many of the elements we associate with Robin Hood are already in place: the Merry Men, Little John, and an antipathy toward the Sheriff of Nottingham.