Will Stutely
Encyclopedia
Will Stutely or Will Stutly is in English
folklore
a prominent member of Robin Hood
's Merry Men
.
s in the Child collection, although not ones dating from the early medieval period. Sometimes Stutely is just another name for Will Scarlet
, a character appearing in the early ballads under many last names.
In Robin Hood Rescuing Will Stutly
, Will was set to spy on the sheriff and captured; the ballad recounts his rescue from the gallows.
In the ballad Robin Hood and Little John, Stutely is one of the men summoned by Robin's horn when John Little bests him, and when Robin takes him into the band, it is Stutely who christens Little John
and gives him his outlaw name.
's The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
, which includes the tale of Will's rescue and also mentions that he likes to play pranks, and the occasional film. In some versions, he was the most trusted of Robin Hood's inner circle because he had been his father's steward at Locksley castle (in the tales where Robin originally comes from an aristocratic family). It is said that Stutely was the eldest and wisest of the merry men, and that he was Robin Hood's confidant
and advisor in strategy.
In the 1952 film The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men
, Stutely is played by Bill Owen. Robert Desmond plays Stutely in "A Guest for the Gallows", an episode of the television series The Adventures of Robin Hood
; the episode depicts Robin rescuing Stutely, combining elements of the Stutely ballad with the ballad "Robin Hood and the Butcher
").
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
a prominent member of Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
's Merry Men
Merry Men
The Merry Men are the group of outlaws who followed Robin Hood, according to English folklore. An early use of the phrase "merry men" occurs in the oldest known Robin Hood ballad, "Robin Hood and the Monk", which survives in a manuscript completed around 1450. The word "merry" in this and other...
.
Ballads
He was present in two of the balladBallad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
s in the Child collection, although not ones dating from the early medieval period. Sometimes Stutely is just another name for Will Scarlet
Will Scarlet
Will Scarlet was a prominent member of Robin Hood's Merry Men. He was present in the earliest ballads along with Little John and Much the Miller's Son....
, a character appearing in the early ballads under many last names.
In Robin Hood Rescuing Will Stutly
Robin Hood Rescuing Will Stutly
-Synopsis:Robin Hood is brought news that the Sheriff of Nottingham surprised Will Stutely, and though he killed two of the Sheriff's men, he was captured. They set out to rescue him, confirm the story from a palmer, and arrive as he is being brought out. Will Stutly offers to fight the sheriff's...
, Will was set to spy on the sheriff and captured; the ballad recounts his rescue from the gallows.
In the ballad Robin Hood and Little John, Stutely is one of the men summoned by Robin's horn when John Little bests him, and when Robin takes him into the band, it is Stutely who christens Little John
Little John
Little John was a legendary fellow outlaw of Robin Hood, and was said to be Robin's chief lieutenant and second-in-command of the Merry Men.-Folklore:He appears in the earliest recorded Robin Hood ballads and stories...
and gives him his outlaw name.
Later adaptions
Stutely appears in various Robin Hood children's novels, such as Howard PyleHoward Pyle
Howard Pyle was an American illustrator and author, primarily of books for young people. A native of Wilmington, Delaware, he spent the last year of his life in Florence, Italy.__FORCETOC__...
's The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood of Great Renown in Nottinghamshire is an 1883 novel by the American illustrator and writer Howard Pyle. Consisting of a series of episodes in the story of the English outlaw Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men, the novel compiles traditional material into a...
, which includes the tale of Will's rescue and also mentions that he likes to play pranks, and the occasional film. In some versions, he was the most trusted of Robin Hood's inner circle because he had been his father's steward at Locksley castle (in the tales where Robin originally comes from an aristocratic family). It is said that Stutely was the eldest and wisest of the merry men, and that he was Robin Hood's confidant
Confidant
The confidant is a character in a story that the lead character confides in and trusts. Typically, these consist of the best friend, relative, doctor or boss.- Role :...
and advisor in strategy.
In the 1952 film The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men
The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men
The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men is a 1952 live action Disney version of the Robin Hood story in Technicolor which was filmed in Buckinghamshire, England...
, Stutely is played by Bill Owen. Robert Desmond plays Stutely in "A Guest for the Gallows", an episode of the television series The Adventures of Robin Hood
The Adventures of Robin Hood (TV series)
The Adventures of Robin Hood is a popular British television series comprising 143 half-hour, black and white episodes. It starred Richard Greene as the outlaw Robin Hood and Alan Wheatley as his nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham. The show aired weekly between 1955 and 1959 on ITV in London in the...
; the episode depicts Robin rescuing Stutely, combining elements of the Stutely ballad with the ballad "Robin Hood and the Butcher
Robin Hood and the Butcher
Robin Hood and the Butcher is Child ballad 122. It may have been derived from the similar Robin Hood and the Potter.-Synopsis:Robin Hood meets with a butcher. In some variants, he fights with him. He always buys his goods and goes into Nottingham, where he sells the meat at ridiculously low...
").