Sheriff of Nottingham (Robin of Sherwood)

"Irritating little man. What does he want Wales for? I've a hundred court in two days' time, I'm supposed to be attending six executions on Thursday…and my mother's coming for the weekend."

The Sheriff of Nottingham or Robert de Rainault is the main antagonist in the first season of Robin of Sherwood, the secondary antagonist in the second season and a major antagonist in the third season.

He was portrayed by Nickolas Grace.

History
Years before the series began, the Sheriff was responsible for the burning of Locksley village, which he saw as the centre of Saxon rebellion, and the death of Alldric, the father of Robin of Locksley. In the process, he took the silver arrow, which he saw as a Saxon symbol. He would always be sceptical about the mystic side of it, although he had a hard time ignoring his occasional ally Simon de Belleme coming back from the dead.

With his brother Abbot Hugo and lieutenant Guy of Gisburne, the Sheriff controlled the local population. He initially showed no concern at the emergence of Robin Hood, believing his cause would soon fall apart, until he started robbing tax collectors. He blackmailed Jennet, a woman who had been accused of withcraft, into helping trap Robin but the scheme was exposed by Marian. Never a fighter, the Sheriff was easily defeated by Robin in a sword fight and forced to pardon Jennet and her husband.

Despite never showing interest in women, the Sheriff planned to marry a young heiress named Mildred for the dowry. She was rescued by Robin and reunited with her true love Allan but the Sheriff was pleased with the outcome, which allowed him to keep the dowry, claiming it had been stolen by Robin, without having to put up with a bride. Even the return of King Richard did little to slow him down, as he soon paid to keep his position. When a Jewish moneylender tried to call in the Sheriff's debt, the Sheriff stirred up the people of Nottingham against Jews, resulting in most of them being slaughtered.

Robin had tried to prevent the accession of King John, who instructed the Sheriff to trap him or be dismissed. The Sheriff set a trap in the outlaw-friendly village of Wickham, catching most of Robin's band, then trapped Robin, Marian and Much on the moors. Robin helped the other two get to safety as the Sheriff's men encircled and killed him. However, a mysterious hooded man rescued his followers.

A year later, after making a failed attempt to gain the lands of Sir Richard of Leaford by lending him an army to rescue Marian and then having them desert him, the Sheriff heard that a new Robin Hood was leading the outlaws. He initially disbelieved Gisburne's theory that it was Robert of Huntingdon, the son of an earl, but Gisburne was proved correct and the Sheriff had a new enemy.

The Sheriff assisted King John with a failed attempt to discredit Robin by having fake outlaws raid villages. He captured Much and threatened to have him hanged if Robin didn't rescue his nephew Martin from an aging outlaw, Adam Bell: The Sheriff had little interest in the boy but wanted to control his inheritance. The Sheriff inevitably betrayed Robin but only succeeded in showing Martin his true colours. Tired of his constant failures, King John had him dismissed and replaced with Philip Mark. De Rainault was sent into exile and soon captured by the outlaws, who forced him to help them infiltrate Nottingham Castle to rescue villagers who had been taken hostage. The outlaws were captured but escaped, killing Mark in the process. De Rainault quickly spun events so he came out looking best and was reinstated.

He was not to remain in favour for long, as King John requested grain for his army and, when the Sheriff confiscated the supplies from the local villages, Robin soon stole it back. The Sheriff tried to put the blame on Gisburne but they both fell foul of the evil sorcerer Gulnar. Fleeing together, they came across what appeared to be Robin's body. The Sheriff loaded it into a cart, attempting to present it to the king and gain his favour. He was unaware that the body was actually a homunculus created by Gulnar, which turned back into clay as they journeyed on.