Ivanhoe, Chapter 43 summary

What happens

1. Spectators gather at Templestowe, where Dennet, Allan-a-Dale, and Friar Tuck discuss conflicting stories about Athelstane.
2. The Templars bring Rebecca to the pyre, and Malvoisin prevents a public oath by claiming Bois-Guilbert has already sworn.
3. Rebecca maintains her innocence, receives more time for a champion to appear, and rejects Bois-Guilbert’s proposal to escape together.
4. The exhausted Ivanhoe arrives, identifies himself, and provokes Bois-Guilbert into accepting combat despite his wounds.
5. Both knights fall in the charge, but Ivanhoe rises and demands that his motionless opponent surrender.
6. The Grand Master declares Bois-Guilbert defeated, discovers his death, and accepts the outcome as divine judgment.

In this chapter

What to notice

The narrator identifies emotional conflict, not Ivanhoe’s weapon, as the cause of death. This distinguishes the stated cause from Beaumanoir’s religious interpretation.

Quick check