Ragnar Lothbrok

Ragnar Lothbrok (flourished 9th century) was a Viking whose life passed into legend in medieval European literature.

Ragnar is said to have been the father of three sons—Halfdan, Inwaer (Ivar the Boneless), and Hubba (Ubbe)—who, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and other medieval sources, led a Viking invasion of East Anglia in 865. They may have sought to avenge Ragnar’s death, which may or may not have been murder, or they may have been claiming land to which they believed they had a right as a result of a previous invasion by Ragnar that may or may not have actually happened. This sort of ambiguity pervades much that is thought to be known about Ragnar, and it has its roots in the European literature created after his death.

In the Gesta Danorum (c. 1185) of the Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus, for example, Ragnar was a 9th-century Danish king whose campaigns included a battle with the Holy Roman emperor Charlemagne. 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.

The 12th-century Icelandic poem Krákumál provides a romanticized description of Ragnar’s death and links him in marriage with a daughter of Sigurd (Siegfried) and Brynhild (Brunhild), figures from the heroic literature of the ancient Teutons. The actions of Ragnar and his sons are also recounted in the Orkney Islands poem Háttalykill.

Despite the lack of clarity regarding the historical Ragnar, he appeared as a character in various novels and films. In the early 21st century he was a central figure in the popular television series Vikings.