History Main / SwashBuckler

** ''TheAdventuresOfRobinHood''

* ''[[SinbadTheSailor1947 Sinbad the Sailor]]'' -- Perhaps the first in a surprisingly ample number of ArabianNightsDays {{Swashbuckler}}s

It can occasionally itself be mixed with other, less likely, genres, (as, say, ''TheCourtJester'' is swashbuckler mixed with comedy, ''ThePrincessBride'' is swashbuckler mixed with {{Fantasy}}, ''[[JohnCarterOfMars A Princess of Mars]]'' is swashbuckler [[PlanetaryRomance mixed]] with ScienceFiction, ''The Pirate'' and ''The Vagabond King'' are swashbucklers mixed with the {{Musical}}, and ''Salome, Where She Danced'' is a swashbuckler bizarrely mixed with the {{Western}} (complete with a SwordFight on the stage of a saloon(!)).

* BlackAndWhiteMorality: One of the hallmarks of the genre: heroes will be entirely heroic, and even sympathetic villains will rarely be allowed to be ''too'' sympathetic.
** There's some UnbuiltTrope in play, as two of the earlier ones, ''ThePrisonerOfZenda'' and ''TheThreeMusketeers'' are fairly cynical and more like GrayAndGreyMorality (although the film versions of them tend to go for BlackAndWhiteMorality).

The "penny dreadfuls" of the mid-[[VictorianBritain Victorian era]], very often adaptations of the adventures of [[FolkHero Folk Heroes]] such as KingArthur and RobinHood, contributed to the jettisoning of all the non-essential characterization and historicity of the stories, and when at the end of the period the genre was picked up by serious authors such as Richard Harding Davis, [[ThePrisonerOfZenda Anthony Hope]], and RobertLouisStevenson, it had essentially assumed the character it would bear throughout its future career, both in novels by authors such as [[{{The Thirty-Nine Steps}} John Buchan]], [[{{Zorro}} Johnston McCulley]], Stanley J. Weymouth, and RafaelSabatini, and supremely in the films (based, in theme if not in actual plot, on those novels) generally associated in the public mind with Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., and ErrolFlynn under the blanket of "{{Pirate}} movies."

The "penny dreadfuls" of the mid-[[VictorianBritain Victorian era]], very often adaptations of the adventures of [[FolkHero Folk Heroes]] such as KingArthur and RobinHood, contributed to the jettisoning of all the non-essential characterization and historicity of the stories, and when at the end of the period the genre was picked up by serious authors such as Richard Harding Davis, [[ThePrisonerOfZenda Anthony Hope]], and RobertLouisStevenson, it had essentially assumed the character it would bear throughout its future career, both in novels by authors such as John Buchan, Johnston [=McCulley=], Stanley J. Weymouth, and RafaelSabatini, and supremely in the films (based, in theme if not in actual plot, on those novels) generally associated in the public mind with Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., and ErrolFlynn under the blanket of "{{Pirate}} movies."

* ''SinbadTheSailor'' -- Perhaps the first in a surprisingly ample number of ArabianNightsDays {{Swashbuckler}}s

* ''SindbadTheSailor'' -- Perhaps the first in a surprisingly ample number of ArabianNightsDays {{Swashbuckler}}s

* ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean'': Will Turner was an ErrolFlynn {{expy}}.

* ''ThePrisonerOfZenda'': More in its film adaptations than in Hope's original novel.

** ''TheCountOfMonteCristo'': More in its film adaptations than in Dumas's original novel.
** ''{{The Man in the Iron Mask}}'': More in its film adaptations than in Dumas's original novel.

** ''Robin Hood and His Merry Men'': A 1908 British film, perhaps the earliest in the genre.

** ''The Mark of Zorro''
** ''The Mask of Zorro'': One of the latest swashbuckler films made.

* ''TheAdventuresOfRobinHood''

** ''The Corsican Brothers''

!! Works Associated With the Swashbuckler Genre Include:

* Many works by AlexandreDumas ''(père)''.
* ''Bardelys the Magnificent''
* ''The Black Shield of Falworth''
* ''{{Captain Blood}}: His Odyssey''
* ''TheCountOfMonteCristo'': More in its film adaptations than in Dumas's original novel.
* ''The Curse of Capistrano'': The origin of the character of {{Zorro}}
* Many films starring ErrolFlynn

* ''{{Ivanhoe}}'': More in its adaptations than in [[WalterScott Scott]]'s original novel.
* ''Kidnapped''
* ''{{The Man in the Iron Mask}}'': More in its film adaptations than in Dumas's original novel.
* ''Mask of Zorro'': One of the latest swashbuckler films made.

* ''Robin Hood and His Merry Men'': A 1908 British film, perhaps the earliest in the genre.
* ''RobinHoodPrinceOfThieves''
* ''RobinHood'' in general.
** *ahem* ...''[[Film/RobinHood usually]]''.

* ''Scaramouche''
* ''TheScarletPimpernel''
** and its film adaptation, ''Film/TheScarletPimpernel''.
* ''The Sea Hawk'' and its film adaptation, ''Film/TheSeaHawk''.
* ''The Talisman'': More in its adaptations than in WalterScott's original novel.
* ''TheThreeMusketeers''

* ''{{Zorro}}'' series of [[LongRunningBookSeries novels and films]]. He's arguably the first {{superhero}} to boot.

* Most works by AlexandreDumas ''(père)''.

* AlexandreDumas ''(père)'' in general.

The genre flourished most vigorously in the years in which the ideals of Romanticism dominated popular fiction, ''ca''. 1830-1950. It found its original inspiration in the historical novels of Sir WalterScott. The "juvenile historicals" of authors such as Harrison Ainsworth, G. A. Henty, Luise Mühlbach, Charlotte Yonge, and above all, AlexandreDumas, '' père'' further defined the genre.

* ''RobinHood'' in general...

** and its [[Film/TheScarletPimpernel film]] adaptation.
* ''The Sea Hawk'' and its [[Film/TheSeaHawk film]] adaptation.
* ''The Talisman'': More in its adaptations than in [[WalterScott Scott]]'s original novel.

* ''{{Zorro}}'' series of [[LongRunningBookSeries novels and films]].

* ''{{Zorro}}'' series of [[LongRunner novels and films]].

* ''TheScarletPimpernel'' and its [[Film/TheScarletPimpernel film]] adaptation.

* ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean'': Will Turner was styled as an ErrolFlynn {{expy}}.

* ''The Man in the Iron Mask'': More in its film adaptations than in Dumas's original novel.

* ''Captain Blood: His Odyssey''

The '''{{Swashbuckler}}''' is the most rigidly conventionalized of all the sub-genres of the {{Adventure}} genre, and one with close affinities to the HistoricalFiction and {{Romance}} genres as well. A descendant of the ''capa y espada'' plays of the classical Spanish stage, it is nearly always set at some remote date, usually in the distant past (TheMiddleAges and TheCavalierYears being favorites), generally either European or heavily Europeanized.

Its eponymous [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe buckler-swashing]] hero (rarely a heroine) will be a GentlemanAdventurer, in ethos if not in rank; character motivations will be simplified to the point of BlackAndWhiteMorality, and the whole work will be heavily tilted toward the idealistic side of the SlidingScaleOfIdealismVsCynicism.

It will nearly always include a love-story as an important factor of its plot; despite the historical setting, the RuleOfCool will inevitably trump historical accuracy and HollywoodHistory (and [[HollywoodCostuming costuming]], an important factor in the swashbuckler -- one may expect the hero to wear a sword for the inevitable SwordFight) will be in full effect, as will [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade Historical Hero Upgrading]] and [[HistoricalVillainUpgrade Historical Villain Upgrading]]. {{Fantasy}}, {{Horror}}, and ScienceFiction elements will rarely be present, and if so, will be sidelined; and in general emphasis will rather be on beauty of appearance, movement, speech, and character.

The genre flourished, of course, most vigorously in the years in which the ideals of Romanticism dominated popular fiction, ''ca''. 1830-1950. It may be said to have found its original inspiration in the historical novels of Sir WalterScott, which were distilled in the "juvenile historicals" of authors such as Harrison Ainsworth, G. A. Henty, Luise Mühlbach, Charlotte Yonge, and above all, AlexandreDumas, '' père''.

The "penny dreadfuls" of the mid-[[VictorianBritain Victorian era]], very often adaptations of the adventures of [[FolkHero Folk Heroes]] such as KingArthur and RobinHood, contributed to the jettisoning of all the non-essential characterization and historicity of the stories, and when at the end of the period the genre was picked up by serious authors such as Richard Harding Davis, [[ThePrisonerOfZenda Anthony Hope]], and RobertLouisStevenson, it had essentially assumed the character it would bear throughout its future career, both in novels by authors such as John Buchan, Johnston [=McCulley=], Stanley J. Weymouth, and RafaelSabatini, and supremely in the films (based, in theme if not in actual plot, on those novels) generally associated in the public mind with Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., and ErrolFlynn under the blanket ''sobriquet'' of "{{Pirate}} movies."

[[Film/CaptainBlood http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Swashbuckler.jpg]]

It can occasionally itself be mixed with other, less likely, genres, (as, say, ''TheCourtJester'' is swashbuckler mixed with comedy, ''ThePrincessBride'' is swashbuckler mixed with {{Fantasy}}, ''[[JohnCarterOfMars A Princess of Mars]]'' is swashbuckler mixed with ScienceFiction, ''The Pirate'' and ''The Vagabond King'' are swashbucklers mixed with the {{Musical}}, and ''Salome, Where She Danced'' is a swashbuckler bizarrely mixed with the {{Western}} (complete with a SwordFight on the stage of a saloon(!)).

The '''{{Swashbuckler}}''' is the most rigidly conventionalized of all the sub-genres of the {{Adventure}} genre, and one with close affinities to the HistoricalFiction and {{Romance}} genres as well: a descendant of the ''capa y espada'' plays of the classical Spanish stage, it is nearly always set at some remote date, usually in the distant past (TheMiddleAges and TheCavalierYears being favorites), generally either European or heavily Europeanized; its eponymous [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe buckler-swashing]] hero (rarely a heroine) will be a GentlemanAdventurer, in ethos if not in rank; character motivations will be simplified to the point of BlackAndWhiteMorality, and the whole work will be heavily tilted toward the idealistic side of the SlidingScaleOfIdealismVsCynicism; it will nearly always include a love-story as an important factor of its plot; despite the historical setting, the RuleOfCool will inevitably trump historical accuracy and HollywoodHistory (and [[HollywoodCostuming costuming]], an important factor in the swashbuckler -- one may expect the hero to wear a sword for the inevitable SwordFight) will be in full effect, as will [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade Historical Hero Upgrading]] and [[HistoricalVillainUpgrade Historical Villain Upgrading]]; {{Fantasy}}, {{Horror}}, and ScienceFiction elements will rarely be present, and if so, will be sidelined; and in general emphasis will rather be on beauty of appearance, movement, speech, and character.

The genre flourished, of course, most vigorously in the years in which the ideals of Romanticism dominated popular fiction, ''ca''. 1830-1950. It may be said to have found its original inspiration in the historical novels of Sir WalterScott, which were distilled in the "juvenile historicals" of authors such as Harrison Ainsworth, G. A. Henty, Luise Mühlbach, Charlotte Yonge, and above all, AlexandreDumas, '' père''. The "penny dreadfuls" of the mid-[[VictorianBritain Victorian era]], very often adaptations of the adventures of [[FolkHero Folk Heroes]] such as KingArthur and RobinHood, contributed to the jettisoning of all the non-essential characterization and historicity of the stories, and when at the end of the period the genre was picked up by serious authors such as Richard Harding Davis, [[ThePrisonerOfZenda Anthony Hope]], and RobertLouisStevenson, it had essentially assumed the character it would bear throughout its future career, both in novels by authors such as John Buchan, Johnston [=McCulley=], Stanley J. Weymouth, and RafaelSabatini, and supremely in the films (based, in theme if not in actual plot, on those novels) generally associated in the public mind with Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., and ErrolFlynn under the blanket ''sobriquet'' of "{{Pirate}} movies."

The measure of a true swashbuckler lies precisely in its mixture of the {{Adventure}}, HistoricalFiction, and {{Romance}} genres (''which compare and contrast''), combined with extreme simplification and stylization, particularly of the moral outlook. Since the swashbuckler is a mixture of other genres, its constituent elements will often be found in those genres. It can occasionally itself be mixed with other, less likely, genres, (as, say, ''TheCourtJester'' is swashbuckler mixed with comedy, ''ThePrincessBride'' is swashbuckler mixed with {{Fantasy}}, ''[[JohnCarterOfMars A Princess of Mars]]'' is swashbuckler mixed with ScienceFiction, ''The Pirate'' and ''The Vagabond King'' are swashbucklers mixed with the {{Musical}}, and ''Salome, Where She Danced'' is a swashbuckler bizarrely mixed with the {{Western}} (complete with a SwordFight on the stage of a saloon(!)).

The genre flourished, of course, most vigorously in the years in which the ideals of Romanticism dominated popular fiction, ''ca''. 1830-1950. It may be said to have found its original inspiration in the historical novels of Sir WalterScott, which were distilled in the "juvenile historicals" of authors such as Harrison Ainsworth, G. A. Henty, Luise Mühlbach, Charlotte Yonge, and above all, AlexandreDumas, '' père''. The "penny dreadfuls" of the mid-[[VictorianBritain Victorian era]], very often adaptations of the adventures of [[FolkHero Folk Heroes]] such as KingArthur and RobinHood, contributed to the jettisoning of all the non-essential characterization and historicity of the stories, and when at the end of the period the genre was picked up by serious authors such as Richard Harding Davis, [[ThePrisonerOfZenda Anthony Hope]], and Robert Louis Stevenson, it had essentially assumed the character it would bear throughout its future career, both in novels by authors such as John Buchan, Johnston [=McCulley=], Stanley J. Weymouth, and RafaelSabatini, and supremely in the films (based, in theme if not in actual plot, on those novels) generally associated in the public mind with Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., and ErrolFlynn under the blanket ''sobriquet'' of "{{Pirate}} movies."

The genre flourished, of course, most vigorously in the years in which the ideals of Romanticism dominated popular fiction, ''ca''. 1830-1950. It may be said to have found its original inspiration in the historical novels of Sir WalterScott, which were distilled in the "juvenile historicals" of authors such as Harrison Ainsworth, G. A. Henty, Luise Mühlbach, Charlotte Yonge, and above all, Alexandre Dumas, '' père''. The "penny dreadfuls" of the mid-[[VictorianBritain Victorian era]], very often adaptations of the adventures of [[FolkHero Folk Heroes]] such as KingArthur and RobinHood, contributed to the jettisoning of all the non-essential characterization and historicity of the stories, and when at the end of the period the genre was picked up by serious authors such as Richard Harding Davis, [[ThePrisonerOfZenda Anthony Hope]], and Robert Louis Stevenson, it had essentially assumed the character it would bear throughout its future career, both in novels by authors such as John Buchan, Johnston [=McCulley=], Stanley J. Weymouth, and RafaelSabatini, and supremely in the films (based, in theme if not in actual plot, on those novels) generally associated in the public mind with Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., and ErrolFlynn under the blanket ''sobriquet'' of "{{Pirate}} movies."