IVANHOE

'''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).

Contents

Plot introduction

Plot summary

Characters

Allusions/references from other works

Allusions to real history and geography

Influence on Robin Hood

Historical accuracy

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

See also

External links

Plot introduction

Ivanhoe is the story of one of the remaining Saxon noble families at a time when the nobility was overwhelmingly Norman. It follows the Saxon protagonist, Wilfred of Ivanhoe, who is out of favour with his father owing to his courting of the Lady Rowena (promised to another man) and his allegiance to the Norman king Richard I of England, who is returning from the Crusades incognito amidst the plotting of Richard's brother, Prince John of England. 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, a descendant of the Saxon King Harold Godwinson; various Knights Templar and churchmen; the loyal serfs Gurth the swineherd and the jester or fool Wamba, whose not-so-foolish observations punctuate much of the action; and the Jewish moneylender, Isaac, who is torn between love of money and love of his beautiful and heroic daughter Rebecca, who, in turn, steals the story (and probably Scott's heart) from Ivanhoe and Rowena. 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

Ivanhoe was thrown out of his father's home when he fell in love with the Lady Rowena (the ward of his father Cedric), who his father had planned to marry off to the powerful Lord Athelstane, cementing a Saxon political alliance. He goes off to war with King Richard, and as the book opens, his whereabouts are unknown, and the author follows a series of characters, including Cedric and Rowena, as they attend a tournament.
The victor of the tournament, a mysterious masked knight, is soon revealed to be Ivanhoe himself, returned from the Crusades. He is wounded in the competition and, still estranged from his father, is taken into the care of Isaac the Jew and his daughter Rebecca, a skilled healer.
A series of events follow that result in the capture of Rowena, her guardian Cedric, her betrothed Lord Athelstane, Rebecca and the wounded Ivanhoe by agents of Prince John. King Richard, secretly returned to England and in disguise, solicits the aid of Robin Hood and Friar Tuck to free them. Richard's party is successful at rescuing Ivanhoe and Rowena, but Rebecca is carried away by Ivanhoe's old nemesis, the Templar Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert, who lusts after her. In the fighting, Athelstane is killed attempting to rescue Rebecca, who he mistakes for Rowena.
The Grand Master of the Templars is angry at de Bois-Guilbert for his sinful infatuation with Rebecca. He charges the young healer with sorcery and sentences her to death. Rebecca's only hope is that a knight will agree to be her champion, dueling de Bois-Guilbert (her accuser) in a trial of combat.
Meanwhile, after Athelstane's funeral, King Richard calms Cedric and reconciles him to his son, convincing him to agree to the marriage of Ivanhoe and Rowena. Shortly afterwards, Athelstane appears -- not dead, but apparently having been buried alive by priests greedy for the funeral money. Rather than challenging Ivanhoe for Rowena, he wishes the couple the best. Meanwhile, Ivanhoe receives a message from Isaac the Jew and quickly leaves to save Rebecca.
Ivanhoe defeats de Bois-Guilbert in combat, but does not kill him -- he 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 then arrives and arrests the agents of Prince John and dissolves the chapter of the Templars, condemning them to exile. Fearing further persecution, Rebecca and her father leave England for Grenada; 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

★ ''Wilfred of Ivanhoe'' – a knight and son of a Saxon family

★ ''Rebecca'' – a Jewish healer

★ ''Rowena'' – a noble Saxon Lady

★ ''Prince John'' – the plotting regent of England

★ ''The Black Knight'' or ''Knight of the Fetterlock'' – his brother, King Richard the Lionheart, 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 money-lender

★ ''Prior Aymer'' – a rich churchman

★ ''Reginald Front-de-Boeuf''– local baron who was given Ivanhoe's estate by Prince John

★ ''Cedric the Saxon'' – Ivanhoe's father

★ ''Lucas Beaumanoir'' – Grand Master of the Knights Templars

★ ''Conrade of Montfichet'' – Templar

★ ''Maurice De Bracy''– Prince John's loyal minion

★ ''Waldemar Fitzurse''– Prince John's loyal minion

★ ''Athelstane'' – 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

★ In 1850, novelist William Makepeace Thackeray wrote a spoof sequel to ''Ivanhoe'' called ''Rebecca and Rowena''.

★ In Alfred Hitchcock's film ''Shadow of a Doubt'' (1943), ''Ivanhoe'' is read by the character Ann.

★ In Maud Hart Lovelace's book ''Betsy in Spite of Herself'' (1946), the character Mr. Gaston, an English teacher, assigns the book to be read over the summer.

★ Edward Eager's book ''Knight's Castle'' (1956) magically transports four children into the story of Ivanhoe.

★ In ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' (1960) by Harper Lee, Jem reads the book to Mrs. Dubose.

★ In ''Slaughterhouse Five'' (1969), written by ''Kurt Vonnegut'', Maggie White was said to have last read this story.

★ In a 1992 episode of ''The Simpsons'', Bart feigns getting sick several times to avoid taking a test (an allusion to The Boy Who Cried Wolf). When he finally takes the test, he writes "the story of Ivanhoe is about a Russian farmer and his tool".

★ 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.

★ Christopher Vogler wrote a sequel called ''Ravenskull'' (2006), published by Seven Seas Publishing.

★ Pierre Efratas also wrote a sequel called ''Le Destin d'Ivanhoe'' (2003), published by Editions Charles Corlet. He replies this question : what happens with Ivanhoe when his enemy prince John becomes king ?

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 having been built later) 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 '') take on Wilfred 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. Most notably, its depiction of an England in which Saxon and Norman nobles are at odds is highly anachronistic. By the late 12th century, there were no such distinctions among an upper class that generally had a common Norman French culture, with elements of English nobility, mainly due to intermarriage between the two nationalities.
Possibly this error arose because Scott appears sometimes to have confused his time period with the late 11th century. Occasionally, a character refers to a father or other near relative who was alive during the Norman Conquest, which was actually 130 years earlier.
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.
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 titled ''Ivanhoe'';

★ The 1913 film : Directed by Herbert Brenon. With King Baggot, Leah Baird, Brenon. Filmed at Chepstow Castle, Wales

★ The 1952 MGM Technicolor film ''Ivanhoe'' was directed by Richard Thorpe and starred Robert Taylor as Ivanhoe, Elizabeth Taylor as Rebecca, Joan Fontaine as Rowena, George Sanders as Bois-Guilbert, Finlay Currie as Cedric, and Sebastian Cabot. The film has a notable jousting scene as well as a well choreographed castle siege sequence. The visual spectacle is given more attention than the dialogue and underlying story, though the main points of the plot are covered. The film was nominated for three Oscars:

★
★ Best Picture - Pandro S. Berman

★
★ Best Cinematography, Color - Freddie Young

★
★ Best Music Score - Miklós Rózsa
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:

★ Late 1950s: A television series based on the character of Ivanhoe starred Roger Moore as Ivanhoe.

★ 1982: A television movie starring Anthony Andrews as Ivanhoe, Michael Hordern as his father, Cedric, Sam Neill as Sir Brian, Olivia Hussey as Rebecca, James Mason as Isaac, Lysette Anthony as Rowena, Julian Glover as King Richard, and David Robb as Robin Hood. In this version, Sir Brian is a hero. Though he could easily have won the fight against the wounded and weakened Ivanhoe, Brian lowers his sword and allows himself to be slaughtered, thus saving the life of his beloved Rebecca.

★ 1997: ''Ivanhoe the King's Knight'' a televised cartoon series produced by CINAR and France Animation. General retelling of classic tale.

★ 1997: This version of ''Ivanhoe'' was released as a 6-part, 5-hour series, a co-production of A&E and the BBC. It stars Steven Waddington as Ivanhoe, Ciarán Hinds as Bois-Guilbert, Susan Lynch as Rebecca, and Victoria Smurfit as Rowena.

★ 2000 A Channel 5 adaptation entitled ''Dark Knight'' attempted to adapt Ivanhoe for an ongoing series. Ben Pullen played Ivanhoe and Charlotte Comer played Rebecca.
An operatic adaptation by Sir Arthur Sullivan (see Ivanhoe (opera)) ran for over one hundred performances in 1891. Other operas based on the novel have been composed by John Parry, Otto Nicolai (''Il Templario''), Heinrich Marschner (''Der Templer Und Die Jüdin''), and Michael William Balfe (''Il Talismano'').

See also

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

External links

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★ Online edition at eBooks@Adelaide

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★ The Edinburgh Sir Walter Scott Club