Robin Hood and Allan Dale is a traditional English

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

, catalogued as Child Ballad No. 138 and as Roud Folk Song Index No. 3298.

Structure

The ballad uses the kinds of rhyme, rhythm and metre commonly found in English ballads of the 13th and 14th centuries. It has from six to ten syllables per line, and no strict metrical scheme, but the

rhyme scheme A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhymes at the end of each line of a poem or song. It is usually referred to by using letters to indicate which lines rhyme; lines designated with the same letter all rhyme with each other. An example of the ABAB r ...

is throughout of ABCB quatrains. It was first published in 1765 in Bishop Thomas Percy's three volume compilation of ballads entitled ''

Reliques of Ancient English Poetry The ''Reliques of Ancient English Poetry'' (sometimes known as ''Reliques of Ancient Poetry'' or simply Percy's ''Reliques'') is a collection of ballads and popular songs collected by Bishop Thomas Percy and published in 1765. Sources The basis ...

''. Many English

Romantic poets Romantic poetry is the poetry of the Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. It involved a reaction against prevailing Enlightenment ideas of the 18t ...

, for example

William Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication '' Lyrical Ballads'' (1798). Wordsworth's ' ...

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake ...

and John Keats, took a great interest in Old English poetry, often going back to old ballads and rewriting them, sometimes even composing their own: ''Percy's Reliques'' were hugely influential.

Synopsis

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is dep ...

one day sees a cheerful young man dressed in red, singing and playing in the greenwood: it is Alan Dale. The next day, he sees him again, dejected. He sends two of his

Merry Men The Merry Men are the group of outlaws who follow Robin Hood in English literature and folklore. The group appears in the earliest ballads about Robin Hood and remains popular in modern adaptations. History The Merry Men are Robin Hood's gr ...

Little John Little John is a companion of Robin Hood who serves as his chief lieutenant and second-in-command of the Merry Men. He is one of only a handful of consistently named characters who relate to Robin Hood and one of the two oldest Merry Men, al ...

and

Much the Miller's Son Much, the Miller's Son is one of the Merry Men in the tales of Robin Hood. He appears in some of the oldest ballads, ''A Gest of Robyn Hode'' and ''Robin Hood and the Monk'', as one of the company. History In ''A Gest of Robyn Hode'', he helps ...

, to apprehend him. Robin asks Alan for money; but he explains that he has but little, and that the cause of his sorrow is that his true love is to be married to an elderly

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

. When Alan agrees to serve Robin, the latter springs into action. He turns up at the church as a harper, but refuses to play: firstly, until he has seen the bride and groom; secondly, after he has seen them, because he does not consider the old man and the young girl a suitable match. He blows his horn: and his Merry Men, now including Alan, appear. The

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

refuses to marry Alan and the girl, because it is the law that consent must be asked three times. Robin puts the bishop's cloak on Little John, who mockingly asks the question seven timesand then marries the young couple, Robin giving away the bride ''

in loco parentis The term ''in loco parentis'', Latin for "in the place of a parent" refers to the legal responsibility of a person or organization to take on some of the functions and responsibilities of a parent. Originally derived from English common law, ...

''. All then - except, presumably, for the old knight and the bishop - repair to the greenwood.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Robin Hood and Allan-a-Dale Child Ballads Robin Hood ballads