Robin Hood and the Curtal Friar earlier version, Robin Hood good-humoredly refuses further combat; in both earlier and later versions Robin invites him to join the band. Howard Pyle used this tale in his "The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood" as part of the tale of Alan-a-Dale: Robin needed a priest who would perform the wedding ceremony in defiance of authority, and Will Scarlet proposed Friar Tuck. The Percy Folio version of the ballad begins with the stanza: Robert Graves in his "English and Scottish Ballads" used this stanza to support his argument for pagan survivals in the Robin Hood legend, and for the popular survival
The Adventures of Robin Hood Robin devises a plan to sneak into Nottingham Castle. He coerces the Bishop of the Black Canons to include his men, disguised as monks, in his entourage for John's coronation. In the great hall Richard reveals himself to the assembled nobles, and a huge melee breaks out. Robin and Sir Guy engage in a prolonged sword fight, ending with Gisbourne's death. Robin releases Marian from her prison cell, and Prince John's men, now defeated, throw down their swords, shields, and banners in surrender. Richard exiles John and his followers for his lifetime and pardons the outlaws. He elevates Robin Hood