‘The Last Kingdom’: How Did Uhtred Meet Hild?
In the hit series The Last Kingdom, the main character, Uhtred (Alexander Dreymon), meets a good friend of his named Hild (Eva Birthistle) in season 1 under terrible circumstances. They become quite close over the years and form a bond of lasting friendship despite their differences.
Who is Hild in ‘The Last Kingdom’?
Hild is a nun that becomes a close friend and confidant of Uhtred’s. She’s religious and good-natured, but she also isn’t afraid to fight when needed. After they meet, Hild stays by Uhtred’s side for a while. She leaves the church for a life of fighting, but it doesn’t last, and she eventually returns to it.
Although they are nothing more than friends in the series, in The Saxon Stories written by Bernard Cornwell in which the series is based, they are romantically involved at one point. She’s a fierce warrior, and fans get to watch her metamorphosis over the course of the series.
How did Uhtred meet Hild?
In season 1, episode 7, when Winchester is raided and taken by the Danes, Uhtred, his friend Leofric (Adrian Bower), and Uhtred’s companion, Iseult (Charlie Murphy), hide in a home’s loft space, planning to escape at night.
During their time hiding, they notice a nun, Hild, being sexually assaulted by Danes in the room below. Hild can see Iseult, who climbs down after pulling out a dagger and stabs the man in the eye. Then Uhtred and Leofric also jump down, killing the other men. Hild grabs Iseult’s dagger and stabs a man who assaulted her.
Iseult tries to comfort Hild, who asks, “You will not be leaving me?” after Uhtred says they need to leave.
“No, we will not,” Iseult promises.
They almost don’t get away
To leave Winchester undetected, Iseult and Hild have their hands tied up with rope, and Leofric holds it, pretending to have taken them as “prisoners.” At first, the disguise works, with Uhtred in his normal attire and Leofric wearing a helmet, but they stumble upon Brida (Emily Cox), someone who was a Saxon child who grew up as a Dane alongside Uhtred. She’s come with Uhtred’s adopted brother, Young Ragnar (Tobias Santelmann), who joined with Guthrum (Thomas W. Gabrielsson) to attack Wessex.
Although Uhtred seems happy to see her, Brida raises her ax, revealing she’s unsure what she’ll do when he asks if she means to hurt him. Brida could betray Uhtred and get them all caught, but she doesn’t thankfully.
She tells Uhtred that his brother is “almost ready to travel north,” meaning to get his revenge for the death of his family, who were mostly killed in a fire.
She asks what he cares about it, and when he walks closer to her, she steps back, saying, “The guards at the gates will be drunk. Your way is clear.” She leaves and Uhtred’s party gets away, but not before Uhtred tells Brida to let Ragnar know that he’s still his brother. But she only plans to mention that Uhtred was there and left.
Hild and Uhtred become good friends
Uhtred, Hild, Iseult, and Leofric eventually find King Alfred (David Dawson). Uhtred helps get Wessex back from the Danes, and Hild becomes a good friend to Uhtred. She asks him to teach her how to fight, which he presumably does. She fights alongside him countless times, and earns her place as a loyal friend and ally.
Hild even alerts the king when Uhtred is taken as a slave. She and Uhtred’s brother, along with a loyal warrior to Wessex and Alfred named Steapa (Adrian Bouchet), find Uhtred, rescuing him and getting him back. Hild can be seen in seasons 1 through 4, and will hopefully be a part of season 5 when it finally drops.
