Joseph Ritson’s Robin Hood (1795)

In 1795, Joseph Ritson published a two-volume set titled, A Collection of All the Ancient Poems, Songs, and Ballads, Now Extant, Relative to that Celebrated English Outlaw (1795). This collection included all known Robin Hood texts, and provided excellent reference to authors and antiquarians alike, resulting in the publication of Ivanhoe (1819) and numerous other literary works during the 19th century including Howard Pyle’s influential The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood (1883). Without Joseph Ritson’s collection (and Ivanhoe), it’s unlikely that Robin Hood would exist as we know him today.

Ritson’s Robin Hood marks the first time that A Lytell Geste of Robyn Hode (c.1450) was made accessible to the public in printed form. Other ballads found in Ritson’s work include Robin Hood and the Potter, Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne, and Robin Hood and the Tanner. Notably, Robin Hood and the Monk was not included, because Ritson did not find it until after publishing his manuscript.