That's very interesting, Jim.

Another example would be the two Ballads of Chevy Chase. Ostensibly based on the Battle of Otterburn, fought in 1388 between Henry 'Harry Hotspur' Percy, Earl of Northumberland, and the Scottish Lord Douglas, the ballads are historically inaccurate, implying that the battle resulted from a hunt on disputed land. Must have been a pretty big hunt as 2000 men were killed and, in fact, the ballads may refer to skirmishes that occurred up to 50 years later.

My own interest in this is that I live in a village in the East Riding of Yorkshire that contains the remains of a once-large castle owned by the Percy family. Local legend has it that Hotspur took all the able-bodied men from the village to fight at Otterburn and that every one was killed (except, of course, Hotspur, who met his end rather later). I have actually written a song which is based on this legend.

Legend, myth or historical fact – what's important is that there's a good song in it!