Kendal Green

Preserved but no longer current.

Meaning · English

Green cloth for foresters; so called from Kendal, Westmorland, famous at one time for this manufacture. Kendal green was the livery of Robin Hood and his followers. In Rymer's Fasdera (ii, 83) is a letter of pro- tection, dated 133 1, and granted by Edward III to John Kempe of Flanders, who established cloth-weaving in the borough. Lincoln was also famous at one time for dyeing green.

Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)

Sources & notes

Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.

Common questions

What does “Kendal Green” mean?

Green cloth for foresters; so called from Kendal, Westmorland, famous at one time for this manufacture. Kendal green was the livery of Robin Hood and his followers. In Rymer's Fasdera (ii, 83) is a letter of pro- tection, dated 133 1, and granted by Edward III to John Kempe of Flanders, who established cloth-weaving in the borough. Lincoln was also famous at one time for dyeing green.

Is “Kendal Green” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.