Ivar the Boneless (Old Norse:Ívarr hinn Beinlausi[ˈiːˌwɑrːˈhinːˈbɛinˌlɔuse]; diedc. 873), also known asIvar Ragnarsson, was aViking leader who led invasions into England and Ireland. According to theTale of Ragnarr Loðbrók, he was the son ofAslaug and her husbandRagnar Loðbrok, and was the brother ofBjörn Ironside,Halvdan (orHvitserk),Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye, andRagnvald. However, it is not known whether this is historically accurate. Ivar is sometimes regarded as the same person asÍmar, a Viking king of Dublin between 870 and 873.[2]
It is unclear why Ivar acquired the nickname "boneless". Some sagas claim that he was born with a skeletal condition which left him unable to walk, while others suggest that he was merelyimpotent.[3]
According to theTale of Ragnar Lothbrok, Ivar's bonelessness was the result of a curse. His mother, Aslaug, Ragnar's third wife was described as avölva, a seer or clairvoyant. Aslaug suggested that she and her husband wait for three nights before consummating their marriage after a long separation while he was in England raiding. However, Ragnar was passionate after such a long separation and did not heed her words. As a result, Ivar was born with weak bones.[4]
Another hypothesis is that he was actually known as "the Hated", which in Latin would beexosus. A medieval scribe with only a basic knowledge of Latin could easily have interpreted it asex (without)os (bone), thus "the Boneless",[5] although it is hard to align this theory with the direct translation of his name given in Norse sources.[4]
While the sagas describe Ivar's physical disability, they also emphasise his wisdom, cunning, and mastery of strategy and tactics in battle.[6]
He is often considered identical toÍmar, the founder of theUí Ímair dynasty, which at various times, from the mid-ninth to the tenth century, ruledNorthumbria from the city ofYork, and dominated the Irish Sea region as theKingdom of Dublin.[7] This would also make him the ancestor of theCrovan dynasty.
In 865, theGreat Heathen Army, led by Ivar, invaded theAnglo-SaxonHeptarchy.[8] These were the seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms ofEast Anglia,Essex,Kent,Mercia,Northumbria,Sussex andWessex. The invasion was organised by the sons of Ragnar Lothbrok, to wreak revenge againstÆlla of Northumbria who had supposedly executed Ragnar in 865 by throwing him in a snake pit, but the historicity of this explanation is unknown.[9][10] According to the saga, Ivar did not overcome Ælla and sought reconciliation. He asked for only as much land as he could cover with an ox's hide and swore never to wage war against Ælla. Then Ivar cut the ox's hide into such fine strands that he could envelop a large fortress (in an older saga it wasYork and according to a younger saga it was London), which he could take as his own (compare the similar legendary ploy ofDido).
Late the next year, the army turned north and invaded Northumbria, eventually capturing Ælla atYork in 867.[11] According to legend, Ælla was executed by Ivar and his brothers using theblood eagle, a ritual method of execution of debated historicity whereby the ribcage is opened from behind and the lungs are pulled out, forming a wing-like shape.[7] Later in the year, the army moved south and invaded the kingdom of Mercia, capturing the town ofNottingham, where they spent the winter. KingBurgred of Mercia responded by allying with theWest Saxon kingÆthelred of Wessex, and with a combined force they laid siege to the town. The Anglo-Saxons were unable to recapture the city, but a truce was agreed whereby the Danes would withdraw to York.[11] The Great Heathen Army remained in York for over a year, gathering its strength for further assaults.[11]
Ivar and Ubba are identified as the commanders of the Danes when they returned to East Anglia in 869, and as the executioners of the East Anglian king,Edmund the Martyr, for refusing their demand that he renounce Christ.[12] The precise account of Edmund's death is unknown, but it has been suggested that his capture and execution at the hands of the sons of Ragnar is likely to have occurred.[13]
The Anglo-Saxon chroniclerÆthelweard records his death as 870.[14] TheAnnals of Ulster describe the death of Ímar in 873. The death of Ímar is also recorded in theFragmentary Annals of Ireland under the year 873.[15]
The identification of the king ofLaithlind asGothfraid (i.e., Ímar's father) was added by a copyist in the 17th century. In the original 11th-century manuscript, the subject of the entry was simply calledrigh Lochlann ("the king of Lochlainn"), which more than likely referred to Ímar, whose death is not otherwise noted in theFragmentary Annals. The cause of death—a sudden and horrible disease—is not mentioned in any other source, but it raises the possibility that the true origin of Ivar's Old Norse nickname lay in the crippling effects of an unidentified disease that struck him down at the end of his life.
In 1686, a farm labourer named Thomas Walker discovered a Scandinavian burial mound atRepton inDerbyshire, close to a battle site where the Great Heathen Army overthrew theMercian kingBurgred. The number of partial skeletons surrounding the body—over 250—signified that the man buried there was of very high status. It has been suggested that such a burial mound is possibly the last resting place of Ivar.[16]
According to the saga, Ivar ordered that he be buried in a place that was exposed to attack, and prophesied that, if that was done, foes coming to the land would be met with ill-success. This prophecy held true, says the saga, until "when Vilhjalm bastard (William I of England) came ashore[,] he went [to the burial site] and broke Ivar's mound and saw that [Ivar's] body had not decayed. Then Vilhjalm had a large pyre made upon which Ivar's body was] burned... Thereupon, [Vilhjalm proceeded with the landing invasion and achieved] the victory."[17][18]
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