‘The Last Kingdom’: How Did Uhtred’s Father Die?
In the popular series The Last Kingdom, the story centers around Uhtred, who is just a boy when we first meet him. Uhtred (Tom Taylor) is named Osbert at the time, and he is second in line to Bebbanburg, his father Lord Uhtred’s (Matthew Macfadyen) ancestral home. But things change rather quickly for Uhtred almost overnight with the death of his father. We have all the details about what you need to know about the situation.
From Osbert to Uhtred
In the ninth century, Danes land in Northumbria near Bebbanburg, where Lord Uhtred is in charge. He sends his son, Uhtred (Balázs Medveczky), who is older than Osbert, to watch the Vikings and report back how many there are. However, he fights them instead, and he’s killed. A man named Ragnar (Peter Gantzler), who is a leader of the Vikings, comes to Bebbanburg and brings Uhtred’s head with him.
Osbert is declared the heir, and he’s devastated at the loss of his brother. He’s quickly baptized as Uhtred, and his father rides off with soldiers to fight the Vikings along with the kings of Northumbria at Eoferwic, or York.
How did Uhtred’s father die?
When Uhtred learns about his father’s departure, he rides out on his horse with a sword and shield to help fight as well. The Viking Ragnar is joined by Ubba (Rune Temte), and Guthrum (Thomas W. Gabrielsson) as they fight against the Saxons, which include Lord Uhtred and his soldiers.
During the fighting when Lord Uhtred’s warriors have met the Vikings first in battle, the rest of the Northumbrian soldiers follow, and some of the Vikings, who have remained hidden on the side, attack, surrounding the Saxons on both sides. Lord Uhtred charges through the Viking shield wall, and he’s attacked and then killed when a Viking stabs him with his sword through the neck.
Uhtred is taken as a slave in the house of Ragnar, but he becomes his son
Uhtred sees his father’s death, and he runs out on the battlefield to attack the opposing side. He happens to choose Ragnar to fight, and he is quickly disarmed and thrown to the ground. But Uhtred continues fighting, and he’s knocked in the face and then becomes unconscious.
Uhtred is taken as a slave in Ragnar’s household, and Ragnar and his family grow very fond of him. When Uhtred fights another child named Sven (Andrew Lukacs) who rips Ragnar’s daughter Thyra’s (Madeleine Power) dress, exposing her from the waist up, Ragnar blinds the child in one eye, and things change between him and Uhtred. He eventually adopts him as his own, and Uhtred becomes a son to Ragnar, turning into a Viking and adopting their ways and customs.
Ragnar and his family are killed
But once Uhtred grows up, Sven (Ole Christoffer Ertvaag) and his father, Kjartan (Alexandre Willaume), who were driven from their lands, ally themselves with Uhtred’s uncle, Aelfric (Joseph Millson), who is now Lord of Bebbanburg. Aelfric wants Uhtred dead so he can feel secure as the one in charge, and he’s already tried to get ahold of him once, but Ragnar decided to keep Uhtred instead, paying Ubbe off for him.
Aelfric’s warriors and Sven and Kjartan burn Ragnar’s home at Leeds, killing almost everyone. Thyra (Julia Bache-Wiig) is kidnapped by Sven, while her mother, Sigrid (Andrea Vagn Jensen), is killed by Ragnar to prevent her from burning alive. Although Ragnar fights to the death, he is burned alive in the flames, and Uhtred watches it all happen. The only other member of their family still alive besides Uhtred and Thyra is Young Ragnar (Tobias Santelmann), Uhtred’s adoptive brother, who is away at the time.
This begins Uhtred’s story of revenge, and he’ll soon find himself pulled between two worlds: the Saxons and the Danes.
