Warning! Spoilers ahead for The Last Kingdom season 5!
Fans of The Last Kingdom have watched as Uhtred has spent five seasons in pursuit of reclaiming Bebbanburg. Netflix’s The Last Kingdom is an adaptation of The Saxon Stories by Bernard Cornwell, with the most recent and final season adapting books 9 and 10, The Warriors of the Storm and The Flame Bearer. Although season 5 saw Uhtred finally reclaim Bebbanburg, there is more story to tell, with the last three books in Cornwell’s saga being adapted into a movie, Seven Kings Must Die, which will bring the historical series to a close.
In The Last Kingdom, Uhtred (Alexander Dreymon) becomes the heir to Bebbanburg after his brother is killed, but he is taken captive by the Danes shortly thereafter. Uhtred grows up favored by the Danes and adopts their ways and beliefs, but his oath to reclaim Bebbanburg leads him to serve the Saxon King Alfred. Throughout the show’s five seasons, Uhtred’s loyalties between the Danes and Saxons make his quest to become Lord of Bebbanburg increasingly complicated; however, in The Last Kingdom season 5, Uhtred succeeds after rescuing the Saxon army with the help of the Danes, thus poetically concluding the show’s serialized content with Uhtred continuing to preserve both sides of his heritage.
With Uhtred finally having reclaimed Bebbanburg, Seven Kings Must Die will likely explore more of Uhtred’s historical homeland. Like so much of Cornwell’s masterfully written series, Bebbanburg is based on a real historical place. As the series depicts, the real Bebbanburg castle is situated on the northeast coast of England, in the modern-day country of Northumberland. However, while The Last Kingdom refers to the shoreline fortress by its Saxon name, Bebbanburg, the stronghold is now known as Bamburgh Castle.
Overlooking the North Sea, Bamburgh Castle was only known by its Anglo-Saxon name, Bebbanburg, for a short time during the 7th century before being renamed. Likewise, Uhtred’s land in The Last Kingdom is also a reference to the times in which the series is based, with the kingdom of Northumbria being the Saxon name for a large area of Northern England that includes the modern-day Northumberland. It is also true that the Danes settled there during the early 10th century when The Last Kingdom season 5 is set. In the years to come, chronicled in Cornwell’s remaining three books, War of the Wolf, Sword of Kings, and War Lord, the real Bebbanburg—Bamburgh Castle—and the kingdom of Northumbria will be drawn further into the quest for a united England, as will be seen in the forthcoming The Last Kingdom movie, Seven Kings Must Die.
While the establishing shots of Bebbanburg in The Last Kingdom were filmed using the real Bebbanburg, Bamburgh Castle, none of the interiors of the historic fortress were used in the series. The castle’s courtyard and all interior shots were filmed on sets built in Budapest along with the dramatic scenes from The Last Kingdom season 4, which show Uhtred and his men breaking into the castle’s sea gate. Likewise, The Last Kingdom’s upcoming movie, Seven Kings Must Die is currently being filmed in Hungary as well.
All episodes of The Last Kingdom are available on Netflix.