The Last Kingdom season 5: Fiction or History?

There was no attack on Jorvik

Brida is an entirely fictional character, with no evidence that such a person existed in history. Her journey throughout The Last Kingdom has been a rollercoaster of emotions; she was raised alongside Uhtred, a one-time possible love interest, only to grow into a fearsome warrior and Uhtred’s mortal enemy. It’s classic blood feud stuff.

Brida castrates Uhtred’s son and then leads a successful and brutal attack on Jorvik (Eoforwic/York) with help from the treacherous Rognvaldr. This event never took place, not by the command of Brida or anyone else.

Jorvik had been seized back in 866 by Ivar the Boneless, son of Ragnar Lodbrok. These are the same events seen back in season 1 when Ragnar defeats Uhtred’s father in battle at Eoforwic and takes Uhtred hostage. The following year, Northumbrian forces failed to retake the city, and the kingdom came under the complete control of the Danes.

At the time, Jorvik was a prosperous city and the capital of Viking England, with Danelaw having been established just a year prior. During that time, the only assaults on the city were from Saxon forces, with no Viking in-fighting reported. In fact, the city wouldn’t fall at all during the timeline of the first five seasons, with Athelstan — not Edward — retaking it in 927.