The legend of Ragnar Lothbrok says that he died just like in the series: thrown into a pit of snakes by King Aelle, but the trick here is that Ragnar’s existence is unclear, and the Viking warrior everyone knows might actually be a combination of different real-life people, with a dose of fiction to add to the legend.
How many wives did Ragnar Lothbrok have in real life?
So the legend goes, Ragnar – the son of King Sigurd Hring – had three wives, the third of whom was Aslaug, who bore him such sons as Ivar the Boneless, Bjorn Ironside and Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye, and all three would grow greater in stature and fame than he.
Is Ragnar Lothbrok a hero or a villain?
Ragnar is a villain. He’s the protagonist of the show, but he’s also the villain. We see his life throughout and so we’re looking at him from a protagonist perspective, but looking at the show logically and from an outside perspective, it’s clear that he’s not the hero here. Ragnar is a hero. Of course in my opinion as a marketing expert.
Is Ragnar really dead in Vikings?
Vikings season 4 did something that TV shows rarely do: it killed off its main character, Ragnar Lothbrok. The Norse king's death — execution by being dropped into a pit of venomous snakes — was lifted straight from the Viking sagas, and was necessary for the show to move on and to focus on his sons.
Did Ragnar Lothbrok really exist?
Yes, Ragnar Lothbrok did exist, because we do have historical records of him residing near present-days Hamburg in Germany. He was probably a terrifying warrior, who fought in both Britain and France, and we know for sure that his sons also existed.
What is the real story behind Ragnar Lothbrok?
According to medieval sources, Ragnar Lothbrok was a 9th-century Danish Viking king and warrior known for his exploits, for his death in a snake pit at the hands of Aella of Northumbria, and for being the father of Halfdan, Ivar the Boneless, and Hubba, who led an invasion of East Anglia in 865.
Is there evidence of Ragnar Lothbrok?
The only legitimate source for information on Ragnar Lothbrok is the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a collection of documents detailing Anglo-Saxon history originally published around the time Ragnar was said to exist. His name does appear, but there is a debate within the historical community if that's the same man.
Is Vikings based on true events?
Vikings is created and written by Emmy Award-winning British screenwriter and producer Michael Hirst. The series mixes historical fact with Norse myths and legendary tales. For example, the majority of the show's characters are based on real people.
How old was the real Ragnar Lothbrok when he died?
Ragnar Lothbrok's precise history is unclear. But, by reading the romanticized traditional literature it seems he may have been born in 820. And that he died after being cast into a pit of snakes sometime before 865. This puts his age at 45.
Was Lagertha Lothbrok real?
Legend says the real Lagertha was in fact a Viking shieldmaiden and was the ruler of Norway. The legends do confirm she was once the wife of the famous Viking King, Ragnar Lodbrok.
Was Kattegat a real place?
Kattegat, where the series Vikings is set, is not a real place. Kattegat is the name given to the large sea area situated between Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Thanks to Vikings, many people assume Kattegat is a village in Norway but this is not the case.
Who is the most famous Viking in history?
Ragnar Lothbrok Arguably the most famous Viking warrior of them all, not least for his role as the leading protagonist in Vikings, the History Channel's popular drama.
Is Valhalla real?
Yes, it's based on history, but loosely so! Almost every character in Vikings: Valhalla is based on a real person. Leif Eriksson really did have an ambitious, murderous, hella cool sister named Freydis and Emma of Normandy (Laura Berlin) was a true medieval power player.
Did Vikings ever rule England?
Later Viking raids and rulers So the Vikings were not permanently defeated – England was to have four Viking kings between 1013 and 1042. The greatest of these was King Cnut, who was king of Denmark as well as of England.
Where is Kattegat now?
In Vikings, Kattegat is a city located in Norway. In reality, Kattegat is not a city at all, though it's still located in the Scandinavian area. Kattegat is actually a sea area located between Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.
What was Ragnar Lothbrok sickness?
He suffered from Kidney failure. Failure of a kidney can result in severe discomfort in the abdomen, bloody urine, and waste production build up which can cause illness, hallucinations and nausea. But even though he suffered from kidney failure, surviving with just 1 kidney is entirely possible.
How old was Lagertha when died?
Lagertha Lodbrok (born Hladgerd), 770 - 850 Ragnar was born in 765, in Upsala, Sweden. His occupations were King Of Uppsala and Legendary Viking, king of Sweden and Denmark, koning van Denemarken. They had 2 children: Björn Järnsida Ragnarsson and one other child. Lagertha passed away in 850, at age 80.
Who was Ragnar Lothbrok?
According to medieval sources, Ragnar Lothbrok was a Danish king and Viking warrior who flourished in the 9th century. There is much ambiguity in w...
How did Ragnar Lothbrok die?
According to the Gesta Danorum of Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus, Ragnar Lothbrok was captured by the Anglo-Saxon king Aella of Northumbria and...
What is Ragnar Lothbrok remembered for?
According to medieval sources, Ragnar Lothbrok was a 9th-century Danish Viking king and warrior known for his exploits, for his death in a snake pi...
When did Ragnall sail?
He first sails out of the realm of Norse mythology and into something like history in 845. At that time a leader of this name, or perhaps the similar sounding ‘Ragnall’, is recorded as leading a fleet of 120 ships up the Seine to besiege Paris.
Did the Vikings leave any records?
Finding historical Vikings in the 9th century to base a whole TV series around is no easy matter. In the first place, none of the Vikings of that early era left any written records whatsoever to tell of their exploits. What we do have are the scant chronicles of the people they attacked and the much later saga legends which embroider their history ...
Was Ragnar a real Viking?
Ragnar is the first real Viking personality to emerge from the hazy accounts of the period but in many ways, he still belongs more in the fable-filled pages of the sagas than amongst the sober entries in the chronicles. That there even was a single Ragnar is still a matter of some debate due not least to the eagerness of contemporary writers to kill him off – something which is dutifully recorded a number of times, at a number of dates and accompanied by a number of different reasons.
Who was Ragnar Lothbrok?
According to medieval sources, Ragnar Lothbrok was a Danish king and Viking warrior who flourished in the 9th century. There is much ambiguity in what is thought to be known about him, and it has its roots in the European literature created after his death.
What was Ragnar's motivation?
…brothers’ motivation was to avenge their father, who had died after being captured while raiding the kingdom of Northumbria. Ragnar supposedly had been cast into a pit full of venomous snakes by order of the Northumbrian king Aella. Ivar’s forces landed in the kingdom of East Anglia, where they met…
What is a legend?
Formerly the term legend meant a tale about a saint. Legends resemble folktales in content; they may include supernatural beings, elements of mythology, or explanations of natural phenomena, but they are associated with a particular locality….
Who was the Viking king who was killed by a snake pit?
According to medieval sources, Ragnar Lothbrok was a 9th-century Danish Viking king and warrior known for his exploits, for his death in a snake pit at the hands of Aella of Northumbria, and for being the father of Halfdan, Ivar the Boneless, and Hubba, who led an invasion of East Anglia in 865.
Who captured Ragnar?
According to Saxo’s legendary history, Ragnar was eventually captured by the Anglo-Saxon king Aella of Northumbria and thrown into a snake pit to die. This story is also recounted in the later Icelandic works Ragnars saga loðbrókar and Þáttr af Ragnarssonum.
Who played Ragnar in Vikings?
In the early 21st century he was a central figure in the popular television series Vikings. Vikings: Travis Fimmel as Ragnar Lothbrok. Travis Fimmel as Ragnar Lothbrok in the TV series Vikings, 2016.
Where did Ivar's forces land?
Ivar’s forces landed in the kingdom of East Anglia, where they met…. Viking. Viking, member of the Scandinavian seafaring warriors who raided and colonized wide areas of Europe from the 9th to the 11th century and whose disruptive influence profoundly affected European history.
What is the story of Ragnar Lodbrok?
The Saga of Ragnar Lodbrok, Tale of Ragnar's Sons, and Heimskringla all tell of the Great Heathen Army that invaded England at around 866, led by the sons of Ragnar Lodbrok to wreak revenge against King Ælla of Northumbria who is told to have captured and executed Ragnar.
What is Ragnar Lothbrok known for?
According to the traditional literature, Ragnar Lothbrok distinguished himself by conducting many raids against the British Isles and the Holy Roman Empire during the 9th century.
What was Ragnar's nickname?
The unusual protective clothes that Ragnar wore, when attacking the serpent, earned him the nickname Lodbrok ("shaggy breeches"). His sons with Thora were Erik and Agnar. After Thora died, he discovered Kráka, a woman of outstanding beauty and wisdom living with a poor peasant couple in Norway, and married her.
What was the name of the battle that the Vikings fought?
According to the contemporary Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and Asser 's Life of Alfred, in 878 the "brother of Hingwar and Healfden", with a naval fleet, a contingent of the Great Heathen Army invaded Devon in England and fought the Battle of Cynwit. There the Vikings lost, their king slain and many dead, with few escaping to their ships. After the battle the Saxons took great plunder, and among other things the banner called "Raven". The early 12th century Annals of St Neots further state that "they say that the three sisters of Hingwar and Hubba, daughters of Lodebroch (Lodbrok), wove that flag and got it ready in one day. They say, moreover, that in every battle, wherever the flag went before them, if they were to gain the victory a live crow would appear flying on the middle of the flag; but if they were doomed to be defeated it would hang down motionless, and this was often proved to be so." This is among the earlier references to the legendary hero Ragnar Lodbrok.
What does the Sagas of Scandinavian Prehistory tell us about Ragnar?
In their accounts of his reign, the Sagas of Scandinavian Prehistory, known as fornaldarsaga tell more about Ragnar's marriages than about feats of warfare. According to the Sögubrot, "he was the biggest and fairest of men that human eyes have seen, and he was like his mother in appearance and took after her kin".
Who was the king of Sweden and Denmark?
Legendary king of Sweden and Denmark. Lothbrocus and sons Ivar and Ubba, 15th-century miniature in Harley MS 2278 folio 39r. Ragnar Lothbrok or Lodbrok ( Old Norse: Ragnarr Loðbrók, "Ragnar shaggy breeches", Modern Icelandic: Ragnar Loðbrók) is a legendary Viking hero, as well as a legendary Danish and Swedish king.
Who is the father of Ywar?
The Chronicon Roskildense (c. 1138) mentions Lodbrok (Lothpardus) as father to the utterly cruel Norse King Ywar (rex crudelissimus Normannorum Ywar) and his brothers, Inguar (a double of Ywar), Ubbi, Byorn and Ulf, who rule the northern peoples. They call on the various Danish petty kings to help them ruin the realm of the Franks. Ywar successfully attacks the kingdoms of Britain, though not as an act of revenge as in the Icelandic sagas. The chronicle of Sven Aggesen (c. 1190) is the first Danish text that mentions the full name, Regnerus Lothbrogh. His son Sigurd invades Denmark and kills its king, whose daughter he marries as he takes over the throne. Their son in turn is Knut, ancestor of the later Danish kings.
Who is Ragnar Lothbrok?
In the ninth book of the Gesta Danorum, which was written by an English scholar many years after Ragnar's lifetime, Ragnar Lothbrok is listed as the grandson of Siward, the King of Norway.
What is the Krakumal about?
Ragnar Lothbrok is also mentioned in other historical sources. The Krakumal is an Icelandic poem from the 12th century that tells of Ragnar's death . Other Icelandic sources that also deal with Ragnar Lothbrok are the Ragnars saga loðbrókar and Þáttr af Ragnarssonum, both of which retell Ragnar Lothbrok's death at the hands of King Aelle.
What is the Anglo Saxon Chronicle?
The Anglo Saxon Chronicle is a collection of seven manuscripts written in relation to the history of England. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, this chronicle is the "primary source for the early history of England."
How long after Ragnar died was his story written down?
YouTube. Ragnar's story wasn't even written down until 350 years after his death, which is part of what makes some historians skeptical of his existence. According to the Ancient History Encyclopedia, most of the sources that mention Ragnar are old, and a lot of the information in those sources is conflicting.
Who plays Ragnar Lodbrok?
If you're a fan of the History Channel series Vikings, you know him as the extra super testosteronish sweaty bloodstained sexy manly man Ragnar Lothbrok, played by Travis Fimmel.
What animal did Ragnar find in the house?
When Ragnar arrived at her home he found it guarded by a bear and a large dog, but being the hero he was he managed to slay both animals and claim Lagertha as his bride, seemingly indifferent to the part where Lagertha was totally not into him because, you know, BEAR and LARGE DOG, dude.
What is Ragnar's name?
Ragnar appears in a number of different stories and he doesn't always have the same name, which means he may actually be a combination of different historic people. According to the Ancient History Encyclopedia, the best-known of these stories is The Saga of Ragnar Lothbrok, which is one of the famous Icelandic sagas written during the 13th century. He was also the star of an Old Norse skaldic poem called Ragnarsdrapa, which is loosely translated as "The Poem About Ragnar," and a 12th-century poem called Krakumal or "Words of the Crow." Various other Norse sources name him, too, and he even has a starring role in Latin texts such as Gesta Normannorum ducum ("Deeds of the Norman Dukes") and a couple of chronicles of Danish kings. The 9th century Frankish Annals of St. Bertin talks about a Viking chieftain named "Reginherus," who led an invasion on Paris in 845 — the name isn't exactly the same, but it's typically assumed that Reginherus and Ragnar are the same person.
Why did Ragnar Junior froze his snakes?
To harden them against his foe (in this case a very large snake), he boiled them in pitch, rolled them in sand, and then froze them so they'd be difficult for the snake to bite through. So it was a very uncomfortable battle especially for, you know, Ragnar Junior, but he came away victorious and the name stuck.
What is Ragnar's most famous line?
That's where Ragnar utters his most famous line: "How the little piglets would grunt if they knew how the old boar suffers.". The snake pit version of Ragnar's death is easily the most epic, which is why it's repeated in multiple versions of his story.
Why didn't Ragnar's parents die?
If Ragnar was a myth then his parents didn't die tragically (or at all) because myths don't have parents. If he wasn't a myth, well, some bad stuff happened in his childhood but hey, in the 9th century a lot of bad stuff happened in pretty much everyone's childhoods, so at least he was in good company.
Who is Ragnar Lothbrok based on?
The figure of Ragnar Lothbrok is believed to have been based on three different men: Viking leader Reginherus , King Horik I of Denmark (who appears in the series), and King Reginfrid. With that in mind, the “real” Ragnar died in different ways.
Who threw Ragnar Lothbrok into the pit of snakes?
The legend of Ragnar Lothbrok says that he died just like in the series: thrown into a pit of snakes by King Aelle, but the trick here is that Ragnar’s existence is unclear, and the Viking warrior everyone knows might actually be a combination of different real-life people, with a dose of fiction to add to the legend.
What episode did Ragnar get thrown into a pit of snakes?
Ragnar Lothbrok, for example, is a big mystery, but Vikings took many details from the legends of the great Ragnar. In season 4’s episode “All His Angels”, after torturing him and cutting a cross into his head, King Aelle threw Ragnar into a pit of snakes, from which he couldn’t (nor tried to) escape. The legend of Ragnar Lothbrok says that he died ...
When did Vikings season 4 start?
Season 4 of Vikings saw the demise of its lead, Ragnar Lothbrok, but how did the real Ragnar die? Created by Michael Hirst, Vikings made its debut on History Channel in 2013, and was originally planned to be a miniseries.
Is Vikings a historical drama?
Although Vikings is a historical drama and Hirst made a lot of research when developing the series, thus taking many elements from history, it also had to make some up so it could tell the desired stories, more so as there are not many records on the characters depicted in the show. Ragnar Lothbrok, for example, is a big mystery, ...
Why is Ragnar so famous?
Ragnar, alongside his brother Rollo who later became the creator and first Duke of Normandy, became loosely famous in Scandinavia due to their successive raids in the Baltics as well as what is today Russia and Ukraine. According to Christian Danish chronicler Saxo Grammaticus, Ragnar was a son of the legendary Swedish king Sigurd Hring, yet no mention is given to him having another son, leading to claims that Rollo was a half brother to Ragnar.
Did Ragnar exist?
Although many notable historical characters of Viking origins in early Medieval ages were associated with Ragnar, they resulted in failure, suggesting that the legendary king did in fact exist. Debatable for his exploits and mere existence or not, it is for certain that his death had greatly angered his sons who already were kings and men of their own renown, sparking the creation of the Great Heather Army that descended upon Anglo Saxon England, forever changing its history.
Is Ragnar Lothbrok a Viking?
Historical evidence as to the existence of Ragnar Lothbrok is debatable. What information can be gathered about the legendary Viking king comes from Old Norse literature as well as the sagas. Although he is associated to be multiple characters ascribed with the name Ragnar Lothbrok, it is for certain that his legacy had changed how Anglo Saxon England looked in the early Medieval ages.
Overview
Ragnar Lodbrok was a legendary Viking hero, as well as a legendary Danish and Swedish king. He is known from Old Norse poetry of the Viking Age, Icelandic sagas, and near-contemporary chronicles. According to the traditional literature, Ragnar distinguished himself by conducting many raids against the British Isles and the Holy Roman Empire during the 9th century. He also appears in Norse le…
Accounts
According to the Tale of Ragnar Lodbrok, Tale of Ragnar's Sons, Heimskringla, Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks, Sögubrot af nokkrum fornkonungum, and many other Icelandic sources, Ragnar was the son of the king of Sweden Sigurd Ring. Nearly all of the sagas agree that the Danish king Randver was Sigurd's father, with the Hervarar saga citing his wife as Åsa, the daughter of King Harald of the Red Mo…
Ragnar's sons
The Great Heathen Army is said to have been led by the sons of Ragnar Lodbrok, to wreak revenge against King Ælla of Northumbria who had previously executed Ragnar by casting him into a pit full of venomous snakes. Among the organizers were at least some of the brothers: Ivar the Boneless, Ubba, Halfdan, Björn Ironside, Hvitserk, and Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye, all of whom are known as …
Sources and historical accuracy
Whereas Ragnar's sons Ivar the Boneless, Halfdan Ragnarsson, Björn Ironside, Ubba and Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye are historical figures, opinion regarding their father is divided. Contemporary academia regards most of the stories about him to be fiction. According to Hilda Ellis Davidson, writing in 1979,
Certain scholars in recent years have come to accept at least part of Ragnar's …
In literature and media
Ragnar Lodbrok features prominently in the following works:
• Edwin Atherstone's 1830 novel Sea-Kings in England.
• Edison Marshall's 1951 novel The Viking.
• "Ragnar le Viking", a 1955 comic book feature written by Jean Ollivier with art by Eduardo Teixeira Coelho, that ran in the French Vaillant magazine up to 1969.
See also
• List of legendary kings of Denmark
• List of legendary kings of Sweden
Further reading
• Forte, Angelo, Richard Oram, and Frederik Pedersen (2005). Viking Empires. Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-82992-5.
• "Krákumál", Reallexikon der germanischen Altertumskunde, Vol. 17 (2001), p. 299-302.
• McTurk, Rory (1991). Studies in Ragnars saga loðbrókar and Its Major Scandinavian Analogues. Medium Aevum Monographs. Vol. 15. Oxford. ISBN 0-907570-08-9.