Forest Days: A Romance of Old Times

About the book

An inn near Pontefract introduces a medieval England of travelers, local attachments, and sharp distinctions of rank. Hardy, a peasant whom others underestimate because of his appearance, observes more than his social superiors expect. The attentions of Richard de Ashby to the innkeeper's daughter threaten an existing attachment and show how personal rivalry can draw strength from inherited privilege. James places these conflicts within the baronial struggle against Henry III, bringing Robin Hood into that particular historical setting rather than the more familiar reign of Richard I. His prefatory defense makes the choice explicit. The romance moves between domestic feeling and political allegiance, using the forest as a space where conventional authority can be challenged and the worth of people tested outside their assigned stations.

• Rank and justice
• Outlaw loyalty
• Private conflict and rebellion

Why read it

James's unusual placement of Robin Hood in Henry III's reign connects the forest tradition to a different struggle over royal power.

English text of the 1843 Baudry's European Library edition, Paris