‘Vikings’: Lagertha Makes a Choice That Changes Her Life Forever
Lagertha (Katheryn Winnick) is the most famous shield-maiden to ever live, and she earns her place in history more than a few times over in Vikings. Her destiny really gets going when her husband does the unthinkable and Lagertha must respond the only way she knows how. She carves out her own destiny and makes her mark on the world. Read on to learn how.
Lagertha holds her head up
Lagertha, who was always the loyal wife to Ragnar Lothbrok (Travis Fimmel), soon learns from her own son that her husband cheated on her. Still, she forgives him when he says it will never happen again. Then, many months later, the woman Ragnar cheated on her with comes calling and she’s heavily pregnant. Ragnar refuses to turn her away and instead welcomes her into his home.
Lagertha, full of pride and respect for herself, decides to leave Ragnar rather than face further humiliation. It’s clearly the hardest thing she’s ever had to do and she mourns the loss of her old life. But, her destiny lays out before her when she finds herself in Hedeby married to an abusive husband, Earl Sigvard (Morten Suurballe).
Lagertha becomes the Earl of Hedeby
Lagertha takes a lot of abuse from her new husband, but not for long. She eventually stabs him in the eye for his treatment of her over the years. Einar (Steve Wall), who is the Earl’s nephew, ends up killing him for Lagertha. She then takes over as the Earl of Hedeby and proves herself as a capable leader.
If Lagertha had never left Ragnar and made that ultimate choice to start her life over again, she would never have found her voice as a leader and respected ruler. Once she had the power, she wasn’t about to let it go when Kalf (Ben Robson) took over her earldom when she was away raiding with Ragnar. She does everything she can to get back Hedeby for herself, even playing dumb with Kalf for a while.
Lagertha gets revenge
Lagertha is known to get revenge on her enemies. She cuts off Einar’s parts when he tries to have her killed. Her ruthlessness knows no bounds and on the day of their wedding, Lagertha kills Kalf and takes back her earldom again. This time, Lagertha doesn’t lose her land. It only emboldens her to take back her original home of Kattegat back from Queen Aslaug (Alyssa Sutherland). She becomes the Queen of Kattegat and kills Aslaug in the process.
The most famous shield-maiden to ever live
Lagertha left Ragnar and started her life over again. She found her own voice and was no longer overshadowed by her first husband. Lagertha becomes the most famous shield-maiden to ever live and her destiny is sealed in history because of her actions. She fought for what she thought was right, no matter the cost to others. She made a name for herself that no one else can top except maybe her first husband, Ragnar.
Lagertha’s life changed forever when she left Ragnar Lothbrok. She navigated the waters of life alone and she came out on top even when dealing with betrayal constantly. Lagertha will always be remembered as starting her life on her own when she left Ragnar and went her own way.
