The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood of Great Renown in Nottinghamshire is an 1883 novel by the American illustrator and writer Howard Pyle.

Each chapter tells a different tale of Robin as he recruits Merry Men, resists the authorities, and aids his fellow man.

[2] In the original "A Gest of Robyn Hode", the knight saves the life of an anonymous wrestler who had won a bout but was likely to be murdered because he was a stranger.

In his novelistic treatment of the tales, Pyle thus developed several characters who had been mentioned in only one ballad, such as David of Doncaster or Arthur a Bland.

Pyle's book continued the 19th-century trend of portraying Robin Hood as a heroic outlaw who robs the rich to feed the poor; this portrayal contrasts with the Robin Hood of the ballads, where the protagonist is an out-and-out crook, whose crimes are motivated by personal gain rather than politics or a desire to help others.

Pyle did not have much concern for historical accuracy, but he renamed the queen-consort in the story "Robin Hood and Queen Katherine" as Eleanor (of Aquitaine).

It helped solidify the image of a heroic Robin Hood, which had begun in earlier works such as Walter Scott's 1819 novel Ivanhoe.

In Pyle's wake, Robin Hood has become a staunch philanthropist protecting innocents against increasingly aggressive villains.