Ivanhoe, one of the best of the novels of Sir Walter Scott, was published by him in 1819. The book takes the hero’s name, Ivanhoe is the son of a Saxon freeholder who has not lost his mistrust of the Normans nor his own independence. Ivanhoe himself, however, is well-versed in Norman arms and manners; and in the Holy Land has been the bravest of the warriors of the lion-hearted Richard I of England. His return in the guise of a pilgrim, his victory in the admirably described tournament, his adventures, together with those of his royal master, and a motley but representative assemblage of characters (including the sluggish but powerful Saxon Athelstan, the greedy Norman Baron Front-de-Boeuf, the Templar Brian-de-Bois-Guilbert, the old Jew Isaac and his brave and lovely danghter Rebecca, the outlaw Robin Hood, the hedge-priest Friar Tuck, the swine-herd Gurth and the jester Wamba) make Ivanhoe one of the most delightful tales of the early middle ages written by any modern novelist.
See the full text of Ivanhoe.