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Ivanhoe

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For other uses, see Ivanhoe (disambiguation).
Ivanhoe

Scenes from the Illustrated London News of an operatic adaptation by Arthur Sullivan.
Ivanhoe UK paperback cover
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AuthorSir Walter Scott
LanguageEnglish
SeriesWaverley Novels
GenreHistorical novel
PublisherA. Constable
Publication date
1819
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Media typePrint (Hardback & Paperback)
ISBNNA Parameter error in {{ISBNT}}: invalid character
Preceded byRob Roy 
Followed byKenilworth 

Ivanhoe is a novel by Sir Walter Scott. It was written in 1819 and set in 12th century England, an example of historical fiction. Ivanhoe is sometimes given credit for helping to increase popular interest in the middle ages in 19th century Europe and America (see Romanticism).

Plot introduction

Ivanhoe is the story of one of the remaining Saxon noble families at a time when the English nobility was overwhelmingly Norman. It follows the Saxon protagonist, Wilfrid of Ivanhoe, who is out of favour with his father owing to his courting the Lady Rowena and for his allegiance to the Norman king Richard I of England. The story is set in 1194, after the end of the Third Crusade, when many of the Crusaders were still returning to Europe. King Richard, having been captured by the Duke of Saxony, on his way back, was still supposed to be in the arms of his captors. The legendary Robin Hood, initially under the name of Locksley, is also a character in the story, as are his 'merry men,' including Friar Tuck and, less so, Alan-a-Dale. (Little John is merely mentioned.) The character that Scott gave to Robin Hood in Ivanhoe helped shape the modern notion of this figure as a cheery noble outlaw.

Other major characters include Ivanhoe's intractable Saxon father Cedric, a descendant of the Saxon King Harold Godwinson; various Knights Templar and churchmen; the loyal serfs Gurth the swineherd and the jester Wamba, whose observations punctuate much of the action; and the Jewish moneylender, Isaac of York, equally passionate of money and his daughter, Rebecca. The book was written and published during a period of increasing struggle for Emancipation of the Jews in England, and there are frequent references to injustice against them.

Plot summary

Wilfrid of Ivanhoe is disinherited by his father Cedric of Rotherwood, for falling in love with the Lady Rowena, Cedric's ward and a descendant of the Saxon Kings of England. Cedric had planned to marry her to the powerful Lord Aethelstan, pretender to the Saxon Crown of England, thus cementing a Saxon political alliance between two rivals for the same claim. Ivanhoe accompanies King Richard to the Crusades, where he is stated to have played a notable role in the Siege of Acre.

The book opens with a scene of Norman knights and prelates seeking the hospitality of Cedric the Saxon, of Rotherwood. They are guided thither by a Palmer, fresh returned from the Holy Land. The same night, seeking refuge from the inclement weather and bandits, the Jew Isaac of York arrives at Rotherwood. Subsequent to the night's meal, characterised in keeping with the times by a heated exchange of words between the Saxon hosts and their Norman guests, the Palmer observes one of the Normans, the Templar Brian de Bois-Guilbert issue orders to his Saracen soldiers to follow Isaac of York after he leaves Rotherwood in the morning and relieve him of his possessions a safe distance from the castle.

The Palmer then warns the Jewish money-lender of his peril and assists his escape from Rotherwood, at the crack of dawn. When he tries to get the swineherd Gurth to open the gates, he refuses to do so until the Palmer whispers a few words in his ear, which turn Gurth as helpful as he was recalcitrant earlier. This is but one of the many mysterious incidents that occur throughout the tale.

Isaac of York offers to repay his debt to the Palmer by offering him a suit of armour and a destrier, to participate in the tournament of Ashby whither he was bound. His offer is made on the surmise that the Palmer was in reality a knight, having observed his knight's chain and spurs. Though the Palmer is taken by surprise, he acquiesces to the offer, after the admonition that both armour and horse would be forfeit if he lost in combat.

The story then moves to the scene of the famed tournament of Ashby-de-la-Zouche, which was presided over by Prince John Lackland of England. Besides the prince, the other characters in attendance are Cedric, Athelstan, the Lady Rowena, Isaac of York, his daughter Rebecca, Robin of Locksley and his men, Prince John's advisor Waldemar Fitzurse and numerous Norman knights.

In the first day of the tournament, a bout of individual jousting, a mysterious masked knight identifying himself only as "Desdichado", supposedly Spanish for the "Disinherited One" (though actually meaning "Unfortunate"), makes his appearance and manages to defeat some of the best Norman lances including the Templar Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert, the Hospitaller Maurice de Bracy and the baron Reginald Front de Boeuf. The masked knight declines to reveal himself despite Prince John's request but is, nevertheless declared the champion of the day and, as his due, is permitted to choose the Queen of the Tournament, which honour he bestows upon the Lady Rowena.

On the second day, which is a melée, the Desdichado, as champion of the first day, is chosen to be leader of one party. Most of the leading knights of the realm, however, flock to the opposite standard under which fight the Desdichado's vanquished opponents of the previous day. The Desdichado's side is soon hard pressed and he himself unfairly beset by multiple foes simultaneously, when a knight who had till then taken no part in the battle, and thus earning the sobriquet Le Noir Faineant or the Black Idler, rides to the Desdichado's rescue. The rescuing knight having evened the odds by his action, then slips away. Though the Desdichado was instrumental in wringing victory, Prince John being displeased with his behaviour of the previous day, wishes to bestow his accolades on the Black Knight who had ridden to the rescue. Since this latter is nowhere to be found, he is forced to declare the Desdichado the champion. At this point, being forced to unmask himself to receive his coronet, the Desdichado is revealed to be Wilfrid of Ivanhoe himself, returned from the Crusades. This causes much consternation to Prince John and his coterie who now fear the immiment return of King Richard.

Being severely wounded in the competition and, since Cedric refuses to have aught to do with him, he is taken into the care of Isaac of York, who had lent him his armour, and his daughter Rebecca, a skilled healer. They decide to take him with them to York, where he may be best treated.

There follows a splendid account of Robin of Locksley, or Robin Hood, winning the archery contest at the tournament, between the descriptions of the jousts.

In the meanwhile, Maurice de Bracy finds himself infatuated with the Lady Rowena and, with his companions-in-arms, plans to abduct her. In the forests between Ashby and York, the Lady Rowena, her guardian Cedric and the Saxon thane Aethelstan encounter Isaac of York, Rebecca and the wounded Ivanhoe, who were abandoned by their sevants for fear of bandits. The Lady Rowena, in response to the supplication of Isaac and Rebecca, urges Cedric to take them under his protection till York. Cedric acquiesces to it, being unaware of that the wounded man is Ivanhoe. En route, they are captured by Maurice de Bracy and his companions and taken to the castle of Torquilstone, belonging to Reginald Front de Boeuf. The swineherd and serf, Gurth, who had run away from Rotherwood to serve Ivanhoe as squire at the tournament, and who was recaptured by Cedric when Ivanhoe was identified, manages to escape.

The Black Knight having taken refuge for the night in the hut of a friar, volunteers his assistance on learning about the predicament of the captives from Robin of Locksley who comes to rouse the friar for an attempt to free them. They then set about besieging the Castle of Torquilstone with Robin Hood's own men, including the friar, who is none other than Friar Tuck, and the country levees they manage to raise, who are angered by the oppression of Reginald Front de Boeuf and his neighbour, Philip de Malvoisin.

At Torquilstone, Maurice de Bracy presses his suit with the Lady Rowena, while his love goes unrequited. In the meantime, Brian de Bois-Guilbert, who had accompanied de Bracy on the raid, takes Rebecca for his captive and tries to force his attentions, which are rebuffed, upon her. Front de Boeuf, in the meantime, tries to wring a hefty ransom, by torture, from Isaac of York. Isaac refuses to pay a farthing unless his daughter is freed from her Templar captor

When the besiegers deliver a note to yield up the captives, their Norman captors retort with a message for a priest to administer the Final Sacrament to the captives. It is then that Wamba manages to slip in as a priest and take the place of Cedric, who thus escapes, bringing important information of the strength of the garrison and its layout.

Then follows an account of the storming of the castle. Front de Boeuf is killed while de Bracy surrenders to the Black Knight, who identifies himself to the Hospitaller, and is ordered to leave England never to return. However, Brian de Bois-Guilbert manages to escape with Rebecca and Isaac is released from his underground dungeon by Friar Tuck. The Lady Rowena is saved by Cedric, while the crippled Ivanhoe is plucked from the flames of the castle by the Black Knight. In the fighting, Aethelstan is grievously wounded while attempting to rescue Rebecca, whom he mistakes for Rowena.

Subsequently, in the woodlands, Robin Hood plays the host to the Black Knight and in the course of this carousal that the latter reveals himself to be King Richard I of England. Word is also conveyed by De Bracy to Prince John of the King's return and the fall of Torquilstone.

In the meantime, Bois-Guilbert rushes with his captive to the nearest Templar Preceptory, which is under his friend Philip de Malvoisin, expecting to be able to flee the country. However, Lucas Beaumanoir, the Grand-Master of the Templars is unexpectedly present there. He takes umbrage at de Bois-Guilbert's sinful passion, which is in violation of his Templar vows and decides to subject Rebecca to a trial for witchcraft, for having cast a spell on so devoted a Templar brother as Bois-Guilbert. She is found guilty, through a flawed trial and pleads for a trial by combat. De Bois-Guilbert who had hoped to fight as her champion incognito, is devastated by the Grand-Master's order to fight against her champion. Rebecca then proceeds to write to her father to procure a champion for her.

Meanwhile Cedric organises Aethelstan's funeral at Kyningestun, in the midst of which the Black Knight, having been invited, arrives with a companion. Cedric, who had not been present at Robin Hood's carousal, is at first ill-disposed towards the Black Knight, on learning his true identity. King Richard calms Cedric and reconciles him with his son, convincing him to agree to the marriage of Ivanhoe and Rowena. Shortly afterwards, Aethelstan emerges - not dead, but having been laid in his coffin alive by avaricious monks, desirous of the funeral money. Over Cedric's renewed protests, Aethelstan pledges his homage to the Norman King Richard and urges Cedric to marry the Lady Rowena to Ivanhoe. Cedric yields, not, as it seems, unwillingly.

Soon after this reconciliation, Ivanhoe receives a message from Isaac of York beseeching him to fight on Rebecca's behalf. Upon arriving at the scene of the witch-burning Ivanhoe forces de Bois-Guilbert from his saddle, but does not kill him - the Templar dies "a victim to the violence of his own contending passions", which is pronounced as the judgment of God by the Grand Master, and proof of Rebecca's innocence. King Richard who had quit the funeral feast soon after Ivanhoe's departure, then arrives at the Templar Preceptory, banishes the Templars from England and declares their possessions forfeit, for having aided in the plots against him. Perhaps it would be noteworthy to observe here, that the banishment of the Templars did not actually occur until a century later, when in the reign of King Edward II of England, the order was dissolved.

Fearing further persecution, Rebecca and her father leave England for Grenada, prior to which she comes to bid Rowena a fond farewell. Ivanhoe and Rowena marry and live a long and happy life together, though the final paragraphs of the book note that Ivanhoe's long service was cut short when King Richard met a premature death in battle.

Characters

  • Wilfrid of Ivanhoe – a knight and son of a Saxon family
  • Rebecca – a Jewish healer
  • Rowena – a noble Saxon Lady
  • Prince John – brother of King Richard and regent of England in his absence
  • The Black Knight or Knight of the Fetterlock – King Richard the Lionhearted, incognito
  • Locksley – i.e., Robin Hood
  • The Hermit or Clerk of Companhurst –– i.e., Friar Tuck
  • Brian de Bois-Guilbert – a Templar Knight
  • Isaac of York – the father of Rebecca; a Jewish merchant and money-lender
  • Prior Aymer – a rich churchman
  • Reginald Front-de-Boeuf– a local baron who was given Ivanhoe's estate by Prince John
  • Cedric the Saxon – Ivanhoe's father
  • Lucas Beaumanoir – fictional Grand Master of the Knights Templars
  • Conrade of Montfichet – Templar
  • Maurice De Bracy– a Hospitaller
  • Waldemar Fitzurse– Prince John's loyal minion
  • Aethelstan – last of the Saxon royal line
  • Albert de Malvoisin – Templar
  • Philip de Malvoisin – local baron (brother of Albert)
  • Gurth – Cedric's loyal Swineherd
  • Wamba – Cedric's loyal Jester

Allusions/references from other works

  • Arthur Conan Doyle, while discussing the book Ivanhoe in his book Through the Magic Door, says: "I remember the late James Payn telling the anecdote that he and two literary friends agreed to write down what scene in fiction they thought the most dramatic, and that on examining the papers it was found that all three had chosen the same. It was the moment when the unknown knight, at Ashby-de-la-Zouche, riding past the pavilions of the lesser men, strikes with the sharp end of his lance, in a challenge to mortal combat, the shield of the formidable Templar. It was, indeed, a splendid moment! What matter that no Templar was allowed by the rules of his Order to take part in so secular and frivolous an affair as a tournament? It is the privilege of great masters to make things so, and it is a churlish thing to gainsay it."
  • Edward Eager's book Knight's Castle (1956) magically transports four children into the story of Ivanhoe.
  • The band Dschinghis Khan had a song called Ivanhoe on the album "Helden, Shurken, und Der Dudelmoser".
  • In the comic strip, Zits, protagonist Jeremy labors over Ivanhoe as assigned reading.
  • In the British television series Life on Mars, Sam Tyler's childhood cat is called Ivanhoe, as witnessed in Episode 5, when he calls out to it. Later the cat snuggles up to his leg.
  • Simon Hawke uses the story as the basis for The Ivanhoe Gambit the first novel in his time travel adventure series TimeWars.
  • The film Ivanhoe (1982) has been shown on Swedish television every New Years Day 1st of January for many years now.
  • It is noted that the phrase "Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott" is an anagram of "A novel by a Scottish writer."
  • In the movie Matilda, (which was based on a book by Roald Dahl), Matilda appears to be reading "Ivanhoe".
  • 'Look your last upon the sun' is said by De Bois-Guilbert[1] and used on several Opeth tshirts designs.
  • In the ABC and Disney Channel series, Life with Derek, Casey McDonald has read Ivanhoe and is obsessed with finding a man like Wilfrid.

Allusions to real history and geography

The location of the novel is centred upon South Yorkshire and North Nottinghamshire in England. Castles mentioned within the story include Ashby de la Zouch where the opening tournament is held (now a ruin in the care of English Heritage), York (though the mention of Clifford's Tower, likewise EH and still standing, is anachronistic, it not having been called that until later after various rebuilds) and 'Coningsburgh', which is based upon Conisbrough Castle near Doncaster (also EH and a popular tourist attraction). Reference is made within the story, too, to York Minster, where the climactic wedding takes place, and to the Bishop of Sheffield. These references within the story contribute to the notion that Robin Hood lived or travelled in and around this area.

The ancient town of Conisbrough has become so dedicated to the story of Ivanhoe that many of the streets, schools and public buildings are named after either characters from the book or the 12th-century castle.

Influence on Robin Hood

The modern vision of Robin Hood as a cheerful, patriotic rebel owes much to Ivanhoe. "Locksley", although first mentioned as Robin's birthplace in 1600 and used as an epithet in one ballad, becomes Robin's title in this novel and hereafter: Robin Hood from Locksley becomes Robin of Locksley, alias Hood. The Saxon-Norman conflict first mooted as an influence on the legend by Joseph Ritson is made a major theme by Scott, and remains so in many subsequent retellings. Although Scott actually shuns the convention since the sixteenth century of depicting Robin as a dispossessed nobleman, Ivanhoe has contributed to this strand of the legend too: because subsequent Robin Hoods (e.g. in the 1922 Douglas Fairbanks film, and 1991's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves) take on Wilfrid of Ivanhoe's own characteristics - they are returning Crusaders, have quarrelled with their fathers, and so forth.

Robin's feat of splitting his competitor's arrow in an archery contest appears for the first time in Ivanhoe.

Historical accuracy

Although the general political events depicted in the novel are relatively accurate – it tells of the period just after King Richard's imprisonment in Austria following the Crusade, and of his return to England – the story is heavily fictionalised.

There has been criticism, as unsupported by the evidence of contemporary records, of the enmity of Saxon and Norman, represented as persisting in the days of Richard I, which forms the basis of the story.[2] Most historians have assumed that there was substantial intermarriage between the Normans and the English, but genealogical analyses of the 11th century Domesday Book and 12th century manuscripts have shown that this was not the case. In fact, the Normans considered themselves to be socially and ethnically élite, and operated a medieval version of apartheid.[3] Scott's depiction of late 12th century society fits well with this research.

One inaccuracy in Ivanhoe created a new name in the English language: Cedric. The original Saxon name is Cerdic but Sir Walter committed metathesis. The satirist H. H. Munro, with his typical caustic wit, commented: "It is not a name but a misspelling."

A major inaccuracy is that it would be quite impossible for Rebecca to be sentenced to burn for witchcraft in England in 1194. The Church did not undertake the finding and punishment of "witches" until the 1250s, and death did not become the usual penalty until the fifteenth century; even then, the form of execution used for witches in England (unlike Scotland and Continental Europe) was hanging, burning being reserved for those also convicted of high or petty treason. However, it should be noted that the method of Rebecca's execution was proposed by Lucas Beaumanoir, Grand Master of the Knights Templars, a Frenchman and a fanatic. Determined to root out corruption from the Templars, it is quite possible that Beaumanoir, like many nobles of the time, considered himself above the law and entitled to execute a witch in his power in any way he chose.

The novel's references to the Moorish king Boabdil are also anachronistic, since he lived about 300 years after Richard.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

The novel has been the basis for two movies, each also entitled Ivanhoe;

There is also a Russian movie The Ballad of the Valiant Knight Ivanhoe (Баллада о доблестном рыцаре Айвенго) (1983), directed by Sergey Tarasov, with songs of Vladimir Vysotsky, starring Peteris Gaudins as Ivanhoe.

There have also been many television adaptations of the novel, including:

An operatic adaptation by Sir Arthur Sullivan (see Ivanhoe) ran for over 150 consecutive performances in 1891. Other operas based on the novel have been composed by Gioachino Rossini (Ivanhoé), John Parry, Otto Nicolai (Il Templario)and Heinrich Marschner (Der Templer Und Die Jüdin).

See also

  • Trysting Tree - several reference are made to these trees as agreed gathering places.

References

  1. ^ Google Books[1]
  2. ^ ”Ivanhoe”, page 499. The Oxford Companion to English Literature, 1989
  3. ^ Keys, D: Normans practised apartheid on English”, The Independent (London) 13.3.1999

External links

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wood, James, ed. (1907). The Nuttall Encyclopædia. London and New York: Frederick Warne. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

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