Ivanhoe and the Invention of Merry England
(Lucy) There are some things that almost any Hollywood film set in the Middle Ages can count on. It will be set in England. There will be a lot of forests. The Norman nobility will oppress the Saxon peasantry. Other things are optional but frequent. There may be a tournament or a siege. There may be a reference to the Crusades. Robin Hood may turn up. There may be a trial for witchcraft. Sir Walter Scott’s Ivanhoe contains all of these things, and since its publication in 1819, this runaway bestseller has helped to shape Anglophone ideas of the Middle Ages. Click here for tips for Teaching with Podcasts! Or here to buy some FH Merch! We are now on Youtube with accessible captions checked by members of our team! And you can find out how to support us through our FH Patreon to help keep our content open access!