Vikings: Valhalla introduced Emma of Normandy, queen of England, who’s related to none other than Vikings’ Rollo – and here’s her story. One of the most popular historical dramas in recent years is Vikings, created by Michael Hirst (The Tudors), and based on real events, people, and a couple of legends as well from the Viking Age. Vikings premiered on the History Channel in 2013 and came to an end in 2020 after six seasons, but that wasn’t enough to tell the most exciting stories from the Viking Age, and so a sequel series, titled Vikings: Valhalla, was announced in 2019.
Vikings only told part of the most notable events of the Viking Age and introduced some of its most famous characters, such as the legendary warrior Ragnar Lothbrok (Travis Fimmel), his brother Rollo (Clive Standen), and his sons Björn Ironside (Alexander Ludwig), Ubbe (Jordan Patrick Smith), Hvitserk (Marco Ilsø), and Ivar the Boneless (Alex Høgh Andersen). Vikings explored the first years of the Viking Age, beginning with the Lindisfarne raid, and with the arcs of its main characters now over, it’s time to move forward with a sequel series set in a different era from the Viking Age and with new characters, of which some are related to those from Vikings.
Vikings: Valhalla is set over a century after the events of Vikings, and it follows Leif Erikson (Sam Corlett), Freydís Eiríksdóttir (Frida Gustavsson), and Harald Sigurdsson (Leo Suter) who go on a journey that takes them across oceans and battlefields, from Kattegat to England and more, with the conflict between Vikings and English royals (Pagans vs Christians) as the backdrop. Among the characters they meet in England is Emma of Normandy (Laura Berlin), queen of England, step-mother of Prince Edmund (Louis Davison), and who turns out to be a brilliant strategist. Emma has a connection to Vikings through Rollo, and here’s her real story and how she’s related to Ragnar’s brother.
Who Was The Real Life Emma Of Normandy?
Emma of Normandy was the daughter of the Norman ruler Richard the Fearless and Gunnor, duchess of Normandy. Through her marriages, she became the English, Danish, and Norwegian queen, and was the mother of Gunhilda of Denmark, Harthacnut, Alfred Ætheling, Goda of England, and Edward the Confessor. Emma married King Æthelred of England in 1002 in an attempt to pacify Normandy, and her brother, Richard II, hoped to improve relations with England after a recent conflict and a failed kidnapping attempt against him by Æthelred. In the late 10th century, Viking raids on England were often based in Normandy, so through this marriage, Æthelred intended to unite against the Viking threat. Emma was given the Anglo-Saxon name of Ælfgifu, and had two sons with Æthelred (Edward and Alfred) and one daughter (Goda, also known as Godgifu).
What Valhalla Gets Right About Emma Of Normandy
In Vikings: Valhalla, Emma of Normandy is introduced as the queen of England through her marriage to King Æthelred (Bosco Hogan), who is agonizing. Following Æthelred’s death, his son from his first marriage, Edmund, takes over the throne, with Emma keeping her role as queen. As mentioned above, in real life Emma was the queen of England thanks to her marriage to Æthelred, and Edmund was crowned King following Æthelred’s death, and just like in Valhalla, Emma kept her position as queen of England through her marriage to Canute (Bradley Freegard), who invaded England.
What Valhalla Changes From Emma Of Normandy's True Story
Although Vikings: Valhalla is based on historical events and real-life people, the events of the first season 1 aren’t entirely historically accurate and many of these were condensed into a short amount of time. King Sweyn Forkbeard, Canute’s father, invaded and conquered England in 1013, so Emma and her children were sent to Normandy and were joined by Æthelred some time later, but they returned to England after Forkbeard’s death in 1014. In Valhalla, Æthelred was already dead when Forkbeard arrived to take over Canute’s role as king while his son joined a Danish battle. When Canute took over England, he made an agreement with Edmund to divide the kingdom, with Edmund taking Wessex and Canute the rest, and he would take the throne after Edmund’s death, which conveniently happened shortly after. In the series, there wasn’t an agreement like that, and Edmund was killed by Earl Godwin (David Oakes).
Only two of Emma’s children with Æthelred appear in Vikings: Valhalla, where Olaf Haraldsson (Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson) kidnapped them to manipulate and torture Emma. In real life, historians believe that Emma’s marriage saved her son’s lives, as it was Canute the one who tried to get rid of rival claimants but spared their lives after marrying Emma.
How Emma Of Normandy Is Connected To Vikings' Rollo
Emma of Normandy is one of the characters in Vikings: Valhalla who is directly connected to one of the main characters in Vikings: Rollo. In Vikings, Rollo was Ragnar’s brother, but in real life, not only is it still debated that Ragnar existed but there’s no link between him and Rollo, and the latter was a real person. Rollo was a Viking who went on to become the first ruler of Normandy, and through his marriage to Poppa of Bayeux, he had a son, William I Longsword. In the Viking fashion, William married Sprota and had a son, Richard I, who later married Gunnor and had two children: Richard II and Emma. There’s still more to be learned about Vikings: Valhalla’s version of Emma, but through her, the series can show the legacy of Rollo, more so as he didn’t return in the final season of Vikings.
What Happens To Emma Of Normandy After Valhalla Season 1
Following her marriage to Canute, Emma’s sons were sent to Normandy to live under the tutelage of her brother, and through her marriage, she also became queen of Denmark and Norway – however, this has to be solved in Vikings: Valhalla as Canute is still married to
Ælfgifu (Pollyanna McIntosh), a relationship that to some, like Forkbeard, shouldn’t be an obstacle to Canute’s marriage to Emma as the other was a “pagan marriage”. Years later, Alfred and Edward returned from Normandy to visit their mother and were supposed to be protected by Harthacnut, Emma's son with Canute. However, Alfred was kidnapped and blinded by holding a hot iron to his eyes, and died of his wounds shortly after. Edward escaped and returned to Normandy, only to return to England once his place on the throne had been secured.
Following Canute’s death in 1035, Harthacnut took the throne of Denmark, and five years later, he and Edward shared the throne of England until Harthacnut’s death two years later. Emma coordinated reign by being the link between the two kings, and some suggest she had an equal role in this co-leadership. Emma of Normandy died in 1052, but the circumstances around her death are unknown. Vikings: Valhalla is giving Emma a bigger role in the leadership of England and is presenting her as a brilliant strategist, so it will be interesting to see how the writers continue to build her story, even if it isn’t historically accurate.