AD 1042
The Manor of IVANHOE, alias Ivinghoe

Keeping our History Alive

This manor is perhaps the most famous Manor in the world, as it gave its name to the world famous novel Ivanhoe, considered the "true epitome of chivalry". The manor has evolved over the centuries. It still exists today.

This Manor is one of the oldest and best documented in the United Kingdom. 

The Winchester Pipe Rolls, containing the records of the first 500 years of this Manor (and of other ones), have been placed under the UNESCO heritage list.

As fate would have it, for the past 300 years almost all the lords of Ivanhoe have upheld the ideals of chivalry. The current Lord appreciates the esteemed legacy of this Manor, now recognized both as a geographical landmark and a beacon of chivalry worldwide. In its halls, the "Institute of Chivalric Studies" is dedicated to the noble principles of chivalric initiation, weaving together the aristocratic profound teachings of the Perceval and Grail legends with the venerable traditions of the Templars, among others, guided by the most respected sources. Here, 'aristocratic' transcends social standing or class, symbolizing instead a commitment to excellence and the virtues of the soul.

In our view, chivalry is fundamentally a noble quality of the spirit, a way of life that engages us in the rigorous pursuit of personal growth and inner transformation.


We are pleased to welcome you to this website. You will discover one of the oldest manors in England, with nearly 1000 years of history and legend. This is the official website of the Manor and Lordship of Ivanhoe / Ivinghoe, and it is dedicated to its millennial history, its traditions, its culture, its wonderful and unspoiled natural landscape that truly evokes chivalric ideas and has been classified as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and the generous and hospitable local population. It is also dedicated to chivalric initiation. Perhaps unknowingly, the name of this Manor has found its way into mainstream Western culture. 

The name Ivanhoe is closely associated with chivalric ideals throughout the world. The territory of Ivanhoe itself has a chivalric vastness. Sir Walter Scott wrote his book, which made this manor famous all over the world. The Lord of the manor of Ivanhoe wants to live up to his name. The current Lord of the manor, as well as almost all previous Lords of the manor, held chivalry in high regard. The Lordship has evolved over the centuries. Chivalry has become a part of the culture and interests of this manorial lordship. 

A spiritual chivalry for the world of today

Today many orders of chivalry are only external and not spiritual.

We are not against the exterior if it is charitable, but we say that there is another level that distinguishes the Order of Chivalry from a simple charitable Order, and that is its original meaning. We want to use the power and fame of our name to contribute to a renewal of the chivalric institution, returning to its origins and its fundamental values. 

True spiritual chivalry in today's world should resemble in spirit the original chivalry we read about in "le comte du Graal." Only in this way can the world of today be truly helped and man truly transformed inwardly. 

We are not for the mass market, we are for selected fews. The Institute of Chivalric Studies and the chivalric groups to which the Lord belongs want to be a reference for people who follow and uphold the timeless and aristocratic heroic virtues of chivalry, who are concerned with the chivalric inner quest (the chivalric path of awakening), and who are interested in the powerful chivalric initiation rituals and spiritual chivalric codes . 

Initiatic comes from in itium, that is, to set on the way. 

For the entrance into the real knighthood, since the times of the Germans and the Celts, was always accompanied by the knowledge of its symbols and of some specific spiritual rituals. Symbols that can open the mind of the initiate to higher spiritual dimensions.  

In today's world, people always talk about goals. But most of the time people do not know why they have them and are not inwardly set on their results. A Chevalier has morals and sets goals. For a Chevalier, achieving a goal is not just something external, but it always has to do with the person himself.

And in this, a certain level of consciousness associated with initiation is very helpful. 

Even Sir Walter Scott spoke of the secret chivalric initiation

This Manor has provided Sir Walter Scott with the name for his most famous book - Ivanhoe. The name of this chivalric roman derives from the feudal title of the main character: Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe

The 54th Lord of this Manor holds under the Uk laws the same historical and famous feudal title of Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe. 

And he can transmit the secret and inner "chivalric inititation" of what even Scott spoke. 

Sir Walter Scott (author of Ivanhoe) knew the existence of this initiatic chivalry. He put some clear allusions in the article on Cavalry he wrote for Britannica the year before writing "Ivanhoe". He spoke of the real and secret transmission of cavalry, also called by many  with a latin word "Ordo", to distinguish it from the "Order". He points out that a person can be member of an Order of Chivalry, a person can be formally a Knight and never have received this "Ordo". The "Ordo" is the "essence of chivalry". Obviously this initation can be given only to people that are already formally in the cavalry and have followed a specific path. Dr. Paret got it, can give it,  and he is happy to do it in the frame of the prestigious reference of the Manor of Ivanhoe. A name that in the mind of many represent also the essence of chivalry. 

The institute of chivalric studies (ICS) deals mainly with Initiatic and Hermetic Chivalry that is a chivalry inside the Chivalry. 

The territory of the lordship

The Manorial Lordship is first of all an engagement. A Lord of the Manor today holds and represents a piece of the Culture and History of UK.

The Lordship area itself stretches across Ivinghoe and includes old buildings, the oldest windmill in Britain and a church dating back to 1200. It is a vast and impressive area and many important films have been shot here.

It is one of the oldest and best attested manors in England. The history of this private manor can be traced back to the time before the Norman Conquest, when it was part of the property of the Church of St. Peter in Winchester. 

Some sources note that Ivinghoe was granted to the church by Queen Emma, the wife of Ethelred in 1042, in commemoration of her son Harthacanute who had ruled as king of England for just two years before his death. After the Norman conquest 24 years later the Manor remained as part of the church’s lands. The village was within the Domesday manor of Ivinghoe which remained in the ownership of the Bishops of Winchester until 1551 (when it was surrendered to the Crown). After , through various passages, went to the Egerton Family and finally to the actual and 54th Lord of the Manor.

The mission today of a Lord of the Manor is both cultural as historic, we want also to be ambassador for our territory, helping it to be known.  

A Lord of the Manor represents the Manor itself and the tradition and the higher values of a Manor.

The Lordship and the Manor of Ivanhoe have a legal and official existence recognized by the Law. In english law a manorial Lordship is both a dignity and as well as a form of incorporeal landed property. In the case of Ivinghoe it is not just incorporeal because it is also connected to some Rights. The Lordship in fact involves also a historic legal jurisdiction in the form of the court baron.  Our Lordship has regularly held courts for hundreds of years in the forms of Court Baron, Court Leet and Court and, as it has also a Right to the Market, a Court of Pie and Powder.

Even today, the Lord of the Manor of Ivinghoe, i.e. Dr Marco Paret, who is also an internationally recognised trainer and author, has historical rights such as the right to hold markets and fairs and to appoint a Baron Court, which is actually more of a court of honour, even though manorial courts are still recognised by law and this court can still perform some duties, such as administering the Order of the Manor of Ivanhoe. This order aims to uphold the principle of chivalric code and spiritual chivalry, as expected of a manor with such a distinguished name 

The actual Lord of the manor has also the intellectual property of the concept of Lordship of the Manor of Ivanhoe, and just as a city or a person has the responsibility for the proper use of its name and the right to defend it if necessary, he has the same. 

Historical forms of  Ivinghoe

Ivinghoe derives its name from the old english Ifinga-ho(g)e and means 'the hoh of Ifa's people'.

The same name is found in Ivington (He) and its strong form in Iveston and Ivesley (Du).The place stands at the base of a considerable spur of land jutting out from the main range of the Chilterns (Harman).For the DB form v. IPN 113 (top) and cf. the DB form for Tingewick.

The form Ivanhoe is historical and attested in the 1665. 

It is interesting that this document was not yet published when Walter Scott wrote Ivanhoe. A possibility is he got the ancient form "Ivanhoe" through personal research in the archives. He was a fine researcher. Another possibility is that Walter Scott got it from how the name was pronounced by older people in his period. He said he got it from an ancient rhyme. 

Dr. Paret, the 54th and actual Lord of the Mnor of Ivinghoe, asked on this point Prof. Paul Kerswill (one of the foremost Prof. of Linguistics in UK. Since 2012, He is Professor in the Department of Language and Linguistic Science at the University of York.  Research Assistant from 1985 to 1986 at the University of Cambridge, lecturer at the University of Reading until his appointment in 2004 as a professor at Lancaster University. In July 2017, Kerswill was elected a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA), the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and social sciences.):  "it is very likely that older, rural people in the Ivinghoe area would have pronounced the name in the same way as Ivanhoe, also dropping the h. Something like 'ivanoe'. the suffix -ing is pronounced 'in' in most dialects in the English-speaking world - and has been for many centuries."  


The Lord of Ivanhoe: guardian of a secret ancient tradition and  some powerful inner rituals. 

Ivanhoe is a mythical name. It evokes chivalry. And nowadays the true chivalry of the third millennium is the chivalry of the spirit. The real Lord of Ivanhoe preserves and continues an ancient tradition of hermetic chivalry based on powerful rituals 

What is hermetic and initiatic chivalry? How can be useful for our life and open us to our limitless possibilities? What is its meaning for inner transformation and to change our conscioussness? Discover Chivalry, Initiatic Chivalry  and Tradition

Being a Chevalier is not something from the past. It is something very current. It is true that one does not fight with the physical sword. But even in today's world, there are still battles. And in those battles, the spirit and the faith we have make the difference. This is the true meaning of chivalric initiation and what the chivalric rituals prepare you for. There are many chivalric orders in the world, but most of them have become mere externals and have lost their original meaning and initiation. 

Dr. Paret has researched and received the inner chivalric initiation from various sources, he knows its inner meaning and can not only pass it on but also guide you through the necessary meditations, exercises and ancient rituals. Our institute accompanies the person who really wants to discover the chivalric initiation and how it can be a path of transformation. 

Entering initiatic Chivalry. Operating under the Authority of the Lord of Ivanhoe

Initiatic Chivalry Orders connected to this Manor

In order to achieve the goal of developing and deepening the awareness of the chivalric ideal, we give selected individuals the opportunity to enter the prestige of some European orders. This access is based on inner dedication.

At present, we have two orders that operate under the authority of the current Lord and with the seal of this manor, which have a so-called "Initiatic Depot". This means that the participants in these orders have the opportunity to enter into a certain kind of secret knowledge and symbolism.

The other two orders are only for awards and merit.

These orders are open only to men and women by invitation, after they have completed a conditional admission, followed by postulancy. 

Some old Photos from our village

Some Photos from the territory of our Manor

The Windmill

The Street

The Hills

The Church