A controversial literary critic and commentator‎,‎ Joseph Ritson ‎(‎1752‎-1803‎)‎ made his reputation identifying and exposing literary forgeries‎.‎ His enduring legacy‎,‎ however‎,‎ stems from his interest in the legend of Robin Hood‎.‎ The combination of his passion for collecting literary antiquities‎,‎ particularly medieval ballad poetry‎,‎ and his political convictions in support of republican government‎,‎ drew him to the tale of the English outlaw‎.‎ This two‎-volume work‎,‎ first published in 1795‎,‎ is an important collection of texts relating to the legend‎.‎ Ritson‎'‎s aim was to present all the known poems and songs‎,‎ and his research was so thorough that very little further material has been found since‎.‎ This work helped transform the perception of the Robin Hood tradition‎,‎ encouraging its serious study‎.‎ As well as a selection of texts‎,‎ Volume 1 contains a lengthy scholarly discussion of the tradition‎.‎