Well, we arrived back in Kattegat and it went much as I expected. Rollo was devastated by the news of Siggy, just I as feared. I think his devastation and grief went much deeper though, and the loss of Siggy was just the final breaking point for him?
https://timeslipsblog.wordpress.com/2015/03/21/vikings-a-long-held-secret-revealed-deleted-scenes/
Just to give you a better understanding and feeling for Rollo’s unsaid feelings about Siggy, you can view this deleted scene in which he expresses his rage when Siggy put distance between herself and him.
/3×01-rollo-siggy-extended-scenehttp://voices-in-the-breezes.tumblr.com/post/111615649799
I believe that Siggy knew in her heart that it was not their fate to be together. Perhaps she was already having premonitions about the future. Some would say that her treatment of him was cold, harsh and even cruel but I think that she knew his destiny and path would go elsewhere and she wanted him to be strong enough to face it on his own without her. She was one of the few people who could push him to that limit and force him to face himself and his fears. So, yes he was devastated and broken by her loss, it also caused him to face all of the losses and failures in his life. The question now is, how will he choose to go on with his life. Siggy saw something great within him but he needs to see it himself and stop doubting himself. Ahhhh, he should also probably stop drinking to excess… it is causing him nothing but problems and seriously clouding his judgement!
Before we go on with everything else that has happened, we should talk about that mysterious advice the Seer gave to Ragnar and Rollo about the future. It was a cryptic message, “Not the living but the dead will conquer Paris and The Bear will be crowned by a Princess” He told Ragnar that this did not bode well for him, but he told Rollo that if he knew the things the God has in store for him he would dance naked on the beach!
ragnar seeks advice and recieves a criptic answer that does not bode well for his future
Not living but the dead will conquer Paris
I tell you as I told Ragnar The bear will marry a princess and you will be there in attendance to see it
I don lie but sometimes I with hold things for human beings can not bear to much of reality
As I said, this was a stranger than usual message and many have speculated over it’s possible meanings? Some have pondered on whether this pertains to Rollo himself marrying a Princess… I have it on good authority that he does eventually, but this may not be exactly what the Seer was referring to. A long time ago, Ragnar asked the Seer about his sons and the Seer foresaw much greatness for one who would travel the seas and become most powerful… I believe that the Seer is again making reference to one of Ragnar’s sons in this most recent message.
In order to understand this message better, we need to know more about the history and the futures in store for some of these men… namely Rollo and Bjorn! I have read a great deal about Rollo’s destiny and have never read any reference to him being referred to or described as a bear. Bjorn, however is a different matter… his name literally means Bear! So, let us look at what the future, or history tells us of Bjorn?
Björn Ironside (Old Norse: Bjǫrn Járnsíða, Icelandic: Björn Járnsíða, Swedish: Björn Järnsida) was a legendary king of Sweden who lived sometime in the 9th century. Björn Ironside is said to have been the first ruler of the Munsö dynasty. In the early 18th century, a barrow, on the island of Munsö was claimed by antiquarians to be Björn Järnsidas hög or Björn Ironside’s grave. Hög, from the Old Norse word haugr, means barrow or mound.
Bjorn Ironside’s grave site at Munso
The Tale of Ragnar’s Sons (Ragnarssona þáttr) tells that he was the son of the Scandinavian king Ragnar Lodbrok and Aslaug, and that he had the brothers Hvitserk, Ivar the Boneless and Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye, and the half-brothers Fridleif, Eric and Agnar.
Later Björn and his brothers pillaged in England, Wales, France, and Italy, until they came to the town Luna in Italy. When they came back to Scandinavia, they divided the kingdom so that Björn Ironside took Uppsala and Sweden.
History of House of Munso:
It is also known as the House of Ivar Vidfamne, the House of Uppsala, or simply the Old Dynasty. Munsö is the island where a barrow has been claimed to be the grave of Björn Ironside, a legendary founding member.
The sagas, such as the Hervarar saga, contain extensive information on this dynasty for as many as 10 generations, but although, some of the 9th-century kings are held to be historical, modern Swedish historiography begins it with the late 10th-century king, Eric the Victorious. The king Björn, who was the father of Eric the Victorious, according to the sagas, is not accepted as historical by critical historians. Uunlike another 10th-century king named Emund Eriksson who appears in the work of Adam of Bremen.
For easy reference on legendary, semi-legendary and historical members of the dynasty (including some generations before Björn Ironside), the following family tree is based on Hervarar saga, and the uncertain identification of Styrbjörn the Strong and Tyra as the parents of Thorgils Sprakalägg. The connection with the House of Estridsen which began with Sweyn II of Denmark is consequently uncertain (the Swedish kings are in bold):
Sigurd Ring
|
Ragnar Lodbrok
|
------------------------------------------------------
| | | | |
Ivar [9] Björn Ironside [10] Sigurd [11] Ubba Halfdan/Hvitserk
|
------------------
| |
Erik Björnsson Refil
| |
| Erik Refilsson
|
----------------------
| |
Björn at Hauge Anund Uppsale
|
Erik Anundsson
|
Björn (III) Eriksson Gorm "den Gamle (the Old)" King of Denmark
| |
-------------------------------- Harold I "Bluetooth" of Denmark
| | |
Eric the Victorious Olof (II) Björnsson ---------------
| | | |
Olof Skötkonung Styrbjörn the Strong Tyra |
| | | |
------------------------- ------------------------------- |
| | | |
Anund Jacob Emund the Old Thorgils Sprakalägg[12] Sweyn Forkbeard
| | |
| | |
Anund Emundsson, heir | |
| |
Ulf Jarl Estrid Svendsdatter
| |
------------------------------
|
Sweyn Estridson
|
Danish kings
Full list of Swedish kings. The names in parentheses are kings who are not mentioned in Hervarar saga, but who are mentioned in other sources:
- Sigurd Ring
- Ragnar Lodbrok
- Björn Ironside
- Erik Björnsson perhaps co-ruling with Refil (early 9th century)
- Erik Refilsson (early 9th century)
- Anund Uppsale (early 9th century)
- Björn at Hauge (c. 829 – c. 831)
- (Olof, mid-9th century)
- Erik Anundsson (Erik Emundsson or Erik Weatherhat?, mid-9th century)
- (Ring, c. 910 – c. 940)
- (Erik Ringsson, c. 940 – c. 950)
- (Emund Eriksson, mid-10th century)
- Björn (III) Eriksson (second half of the 10th century)
- Olof (II) Björnsson (second half of the 10th century)
- ?– 995 : Eric the Victorious (Erik Segersäll)
- 995–1022 : Olof III of Sweden (Olof Skötkonung)
- 1022–1050 : Anund Jacob (Anund Jakob)
- 1050–1060 : Emund the Old (Emund den gamle)
Aslaug, Ragnar’s wife and the mother of his sons, was the daughter of Sigurd, whose ancestor Sigi was a descendant of Odin. Therefore, the entire house of Munso (and all their descendants) are descended from Odin.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Muns%C3%B6
There has been no mention of who Bjorn’s wife ever was, so we can not say for certain who he marries. Does former slave girl turned shieldmaiden, Porunn recover enough from her physical and emotional injuries to marry Bjorn? At this point, unless she is withholding some unknown secret as to her identity and really is a princess, I doubt that this will happen. I think ultimately, Porunn and Bjorn are probably history… even though she does bear him a child. She is suffering emotionally from her injury and I’m just not sure whether their relationship will withstand the pressure and turmoil that she is putting on both of them.
porrun’s face in the mirror
porunn how can you help me no one can help me
I do not want help from anyone!
She has told Bjorn to leave her alone and he takes her at her word, saying she is a grown woman, if she needs my help, she will ask for it. So, Bjorn leaves her alone and goes on with his own plans to head to Paris with his Father. The proposed attack on Paris brings us to the Seer’s message of “Not the living, but the dead shall conquer Paris”. This message could be referring to an event that Bjorn Ironside was involved in. A powerful Viking chieftain and naval commander, Björn and his brother Hastein conducted many (mostly successful) raids in France in a continuation of the tradition initiated by their father Ragnar Lodbrok. In 860, Björn led a large Viking raid into the Mediterranean. After raiding down the Spanish coast and fighting their way through Gibraltar, Björn and Hastein pillaged the south of France, where his fleet over-wintered, before landing in Italy where they captured the coastal city of Pisa. They proceeded inland to the town of Luna, which they believed to be Rome at the time, but Björn found himself unable to breach the town walls. To gain entry, he sent messengers to the bishop to say that he had died, had a deathbed conversion, and wished to be buried on consecrated ground within their church. He was brought into the chapel with a small honor guard, then amazed the dismayed Italian clerics by leaping from his coffin and hacking his way to the town gates, which he promptly opened, letting his army in. Flush with this victory and others around the Mediterranean (including in Sicily and North Africa) he returned to the Straits of Gibraltar only to find the Saracen navy from Al-Andalus waiting for him. In the desperate battle that followed, Björn lost 40 ships, largely to a form of Greek fire launched from Saracen catapults. The remainder of his fleet managed to return to Scandinavia, however, where he lived out his life as a rich man.
In history, Rollo was also involved in raids on Paris.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rollo
In 885, Rollo was one of the lesser leaders of the Viking fleet which besieged Paris under Sigfred. Legend has it that an emissary was sent by the king to find the chieftain and negotiate terms. When he asked for this information, the Vikings replied that they were all chieftains in their own right. In 886, when Sigfred retreated in return for tribute, Rollo stayed behind and was eventually bought off and sent to harry Burgundy.
Later, he returned to the Seine with his followers (known as Danes, or Norsemen). He invaded the area of northern France now known as Normandy. In 911 the Vikings under Rollo again launched an attack on Paris before laying siege to Chartres. The Bishop of Chartres, Joseaume, made an appeal for help which was answered by Robert, Marquis of Neustria, Richard, Duke of Burgundy and Manasses, Count of Dijon. On 20 July 911, at the Battle of Chartres, Frankish forces defeated Rollo despite the absence of many French barons and also the absence of the French King Charles the Simple.
While Rollo’s historical conquest of Paris ended in defeat, he did end up making an alliance with King Charles. In the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte (911) with King Charles, Rollo pledged feudal allegiance to the king, changed his name to the Frankish version, and converted to Christianity, probably with the baptismal name Robert. In return, King Charles granted Rollo land between the Epte and the sea as well as parts of Brittany and according to Dudo of St. Quentin, the hand of the King’s daughter, Gisela, although this marriage and Gisela herself are unknown to Frankish sources. He was also the titular ruler of Normandy, centered around the city of Rouen. There exists some argument among historians as to whether Rollo was a “duke” (dux) or whether his position was equivalent to that of a “count” under Charles. So, while he may have lost Paris, he gained Normandy and a princess for a wife! This fact causes us to wonder just which of the two men the Seer is referring to in his prophecy of the Bear and the Princess!
My personal thought is that it has more to do with Bjorn right now, since the Seer made reference to Ragnar that it would not bode so well for him? Of course seeing Rollo best him in this way would not necessarily sit well with him… but there is more the idea that a Father holds jealousy of sons and fears of his sons achieving more greatness than him. In the Tale of Ragnar’s sons, Ragnar was jealous of his sons.
Ragnar was jealous with his sons’ successes, and set Eysteinn Beli as the jarl of Sweden, telling him to protect Sweden from his sons. He then went east across the Baltic Sea to pillage and to show his own skills.
Ragnar’s sons Eric and Agnar then sailed into Lake Mälaren and sent a message to king Eysteinn that they wanted him to submit to Ragnar’s sons, and Eric said that he wanted Eysteinn’s daughter Borghild as wife. Eysteinn said that he first wanted to consult the Swedish chieftains. The chieftains said no to the offer, and ordered an attack on the rebellious sons. A battle ensued and Eric and Agnar were overwhelmed by the Swedish forces, whereupon Agnar died and Eric was taken prisoner.
Eysteinn offered Eric as much of Uppsala öd as he wanted, and Borghild, in wergild for Agnar. Eric proclaimed that after such a defeat he wanted nothing but to choose the day of his own death. Eric asked to be impaled on spears that raised him above the dead and his wish was granted.
In Zealand, Björn, Aslaug and her son Hvitserk, who had been playing tafl, became upset and sailed to Sweden with a large army. Aslaug, calling herself Randalin, rode with cavalry across the land. In a great battle they killed Eysteinn.
Ragnar was not happy that his sons had taken revenge without his help, and decided to conquer England with only two knarrs. King Ælla of Northumbria defeated Ragnar and threw him into a snake pit where he died.
Björn and his brothers attacked Ælla but were beaten back. Asking for peace and wergild, Ivar the Boneless tricked Ælla into giving him an area large enough to build the town of York. Ivar made himself popular in England and asked his brothers to attack again. During the battle Ivar sided with his brothers and so did many of the English chieftains with their people, in loyalty to Ivar. Ælla was taken captive and in revenge they carved the blood eagle on him.
There is something else, a forgotten event from the past that makes me think this has much to do with Bjorn right now. That has to do with the events of King Horik’s death and his son’s return with new wife Torvi. Before King Horik died, he had a discussion with his son about the importance of the sword? “This is sword of Kings, one day if the Gods will it, it will belong to you.”
this is the sword of kings one day if the gods will it this will belong to you
Ragnar of course killed Horik, and the last image we saw of that sword was in Bjorn’s hand.
Bjorn’s destiny….
Bjorn, the Bear, will eventually be crowned a King… will he marry a princess? Or is the Seer leading us all along and mixing the prophecies just to confuse us more than we already are? And, if he has a destiny to be crowned by a princess or married to a princess, who is that princess. For historical purposes, let’s clear up a bit more on this prophecy. While Rollo does indeed marry a princess, he is never crowned a King or a prince… He held the title of Duke or Count of Normandy. That would preclude him from being the one crowned. Ragnar is already a King and already has wife so that leaves him out as far as this prophecy goes. The only one remaining would be our Bjorn, so who might he marry? Well, we have already discussed the improbability of Porunn unless as I’ve mentioned, she has a secret past that even she is not aware of. We can not rule that out completely because stranger things have happened! But, if we are talking about secrets, strange twists and the guessing game of possibilities here… my thought is of another one young woman whom we know very little about other than the fact that she has just recently shown back up. That young woman would be the poor victimized Torvi!
I refer to her as victimized because I think she is just another pawn in the ways of men who rule her life. If you recall, Torvi is the widow of Jarl Borg. When we last saw her, she was enduring life with Jarl Borg and his first wife…
After Jarl borg’s demise, she disappeared and we knew not what had happened to her and her unborn child. Just recently, she has arrived in Hedeby married to King Horik’s son Erlanduer… Yes, that would be the same young son who is now missing his rightful sword and crown! Erlandeur has come to visit Kalf in some as yet unknown scheme to overthrow all of the Lothbroks. I have no idea what will happen there as Kalf later decides to throw his lot in with Ragnar on the trip to Paris… and brings Erlandeur along?
you may recall the fate of Ragnar’s enemy Yarl Borg
we are natural allies against the Lothbroks and all their kith and kin
Torvi does not look any happier in this new marriage than she did in her first. Now, though she also has a son and heir to be concerned for. Her son is the heir of Jarl Borg and now at the mercy of any treachery that Erlandeur might be capable of. Obviously, Erlandeur married Torvi to gain acess and claim Jarl Borg’s land and title, and once he has it, I fear this child and even Torvi could fall victim to some “accidental” death?
meet my wife Torvi
Jarl Borg’s heir apparent
Erlandeur did not appear too excited or happy about Kalf’s comments concerning the baby being the very image of his esteemed father, Jarl Borg…
Ahhh look he is the image of the great jarl borg
I know that I am far stretching the boundaries of guesses and predictions here but, we know very little of Torvi’s past, or who she is related to. She would most likely have some good ties or connections for Jarl Borg to have married her in the first place, and for Erlandeur to then marry her as well. Now, my predictions and guesses are just that… I have no in with the Seer and I’m all out of spit to pay him?
My thoughts and guesses are just where my mind wanders to in the middle of the night as I wonder about the future! Torvi has some reason or meaning in showing up now with the sleazy little slime Erlandeur… She does not look happy to once again be involved in these power schemes but has little choice in the matter right now.
As I mentioned, Kalf has supposedly set aside his scheming with Erlandeur to accept Ragnar’s invitation to join the raid on Paris. This whole situation has not set well with Lagertha but that is a whole different story! The Seer and ummm yes, previews have shown that Kalf and Erlandeur head to Paris with Ragnar. Now, Ragnar is no fool, he most likely knows of these behind his back plots and has his own plans to counteract them.
So, now here is where I go out on my limb with far fetched guessing and predictions. The powers that be- as in Michael Hirst, the creator, have already stated that Kalf is a long term character. That being stated, he obviously will not meet his demise in Paris… but sleazy weasel, Erlandeur- who Ragnar should have done away with immediately… My humble prediction is that Kalf is working with Ragnar and Erlandeur may meet his timely demise there in Paris. That would leave the widow Torvi a widow once again, and realistically since Erlandeur was once a Prince, wouldn’t that in a way make her a princess? She would have a much better future with Bjorn that with any of her other prospects, and besides if Bjorn marries her in the end, that pretty much puts an end to the land and title squabbles other than the one over Hedeby… Kalf has been told that he will have to work that squabble out with Lagertha as it seems to be a personal matter between them…” And, good luck with that” was Ragnar’s parting comment to Kalf on that subject!
you betrayed me and you planned a long time to do it
that is between you and my ex-wife and I wish you good luck on that one!
you desired me what am I suppose to do with that
As to the events in England, and the fate of Athelstan, I am so distressed over them that I will deal with them when the fallout hits us this week! I am praying for poor Judith… it does not bode well for her or her child, and in that vein I pray for Athelstan as well. I think he may not survive the continued religious warring that is coming full force.
I do need to add that the most recent events were so terrifying and troublesome, they left me heavy hearted but in all of that darkness, there was one ray of light… Ragnar rallied his villagers to the cause of Paris, worked magic on the crowd for the most part and you could feel hope for the future in the star struck and awe filled face of one little girl as she listened to his speech. If she survives and heads on to the future, I can imagine her filled with this inspiration and passing it down to her own descendants. Who knows what greatness she might instill in them, maybe from this one lasting moment her descendants will be the likes of those such as Leif Erickson!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leif_Erikson
And, out of tragedy come resilience in the form of two women who will be forever tied together by one great fallen Warrior, Torstein. I believe that they will set aside any petty personal squabbles and raise their two children together, honoring their brave Father’s memory!
Tribute to Torstein
My last lighter thoughts before we head to Paris… Some new hair for our men! I have to say, Rollo- I am lovin that battle hair you’ve got and I can’t wait to meet you in Paris! And, Kalf… Kalf, I hardly recognized you in your new battle mode-I hope it’s a good omen and you don’t turn out to be such a bad guy after all! cause even though I agree with you partially on the whole Earldom situation with Lagertha, you went about it in all the wrong ways. She did not deserve that and if you’re gonna turn decent now, you got a lot sucking up to do to make up for that!
Time Slips 