Ubba's name as it appears on folio 48v of British Library Harley 2278 (Lives of Saints Edmund and Fremund): "Vbba"[1]
Ubba (Old Norse:Ubbi; died 878) was a 9th-centuryViking and one of the commanders of theGreat Heathen Army that invadedAnglo-Saxon England in the 860s.[note 1] The Great Army appears to have been a coalition of warbands drawn fromScandinavia,Ireland, theIrish Sea region andContinental Europe. There is reason to suspect that a proportion of the Viking forces specifically originated inFrisia, where some Viking commanders are known to have heldfiefdoms on behalf of theFranks. Some sources describe Ubba asdux of theFrisians, which could be evidence that he also associated with a Frisian benefice.
In 865, the Great Army, apparently led byIvar the Boneless, overwintered in theKingdom of East Anglia, before invading and destroying theKingdom of Northumbria. In 869, having been bought off by theMercians, the Vikings conquered theEast Angles, and in the process killed their king,Edmund, a man who was later regarded as asaint andmartyr. While near-contemporary sources do not specifically associate Ubba with the latter campaign, some later, less reliable sources associate him with the legend of Edmund's martyrdom. In time, Ivar and Ubba came to be regarded as archetypal Viking invaders and opponents ofChristianity. As such, Ubba features in several dubioushagiographical accounts ofAnglo-Saxon saints and ecclesiastical sites. Non-contemporary sources also associate Ivar and Ubba with the legend ofRagnar Lodbrok, a figure of dubious historicity. Whilst there is reason to suspect that Edmund's cult was partly promoted to integrate Scandinavian settlers in Anglo-Saxon England, the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok may have originated in attempts to explain why they came to settle. Ubba is largely non-existent in the Icelandic traditions of Ragnar Lodbrok.
After the fall of the East Anglian kingdom, leadership of the Great Army appears to have fallen toBagsecg andHalfdan, who campaigned against the Mercians andWest Saxons. In 873, the Great Army is recorded to have split. Whilst Halfdan settled his followers in Northumbria, the army underGuthrum, Oscytel and Anwend struck out southwards and campaigned against the West Saxons. In the winter of 877–878, Guthrum launched a lightning attack deep into Wessex. There is reason to suspect that this strike was coordinated with the campaigning of a separate Viking force inDevon. This latter army is reported to have been destroyed atArx Cynuit in 878. According to a near-contemporary source, this force was led by a brother of Ivar and Halfdan, and some later sources identify this man as Ubba himself.
In the mid-9th century, an invading Viking army coalesced in Anglo-Saxon England. The earliest version of the 9th- to 12th-centuryAnglo-Saxon Chronicle variously describes the invading host as "micel here",[10] anOld English term that can translate as "big army"[11] or "great army". Archaeological evidence and documentary sources suggest that this Great Army was not a single unified force, but more of a composite collection of warbands drawn from different regions.[12]
The exact origins of the Great Army are obscure.[13] TheAnglo-Saxon Chronicle sometimes identifies the Vikings as Danes.[14] The 10th-centuryVita Alfredi seems to allege that the invaders came fromDenmark.[15] AScandinavian origin may be evinced by the 10th-centuryChronicon Æthelweardi, which states that "the fleets of the tyrant Ivar" arrived in Anglo-Saxon England from "the north".[16] By the mid-9th century, this Ivar (died 870/873)[17] was one of the foremost Viking leaders in Britain and Ireland.[18]
The Great Army may have included Vikings already active in Anglo-Saxon England, as well as men directly from Scandinavia, Ireland, the Irish Sea region and the Continent.[19] There is reason to suspect that a proportion of the army specifically originated inFrisia.[20] For example, the 9th-centuryAnnales Bertiniani reveals that Danish Vikings devastated Frisia in 850,[21] and the 12th-centuryAnnales Lindisfarnenses et Dunelmenses states that a Viking force of Danes and Frisians made landfall on theIsle of Sheppey in 855.[22] The same source, and the 10th- or 11th-centuryHistoria de sancto Cuthberto, describe Ubba asdux of the Frisians.
Whilst the Old EnglishAnglo-Saxon Chronicle calls the Viking armymicel here, the LatinHistoria de sancto Cuthberto instead givesScaldingi,[23] a term of uncertain meaning that is employed three times in reference to the leadership of the Viking forces. One possibility is that the word means "people from theRiver Scheldt".[24] This could indicate that Ubba was fromWalcheren, an island in the mouth of the Scheldt.[25] Walcheren is known to have been occupied by Danish Vikings over two decades before. For example, theAnnales Bertiniani reports thatLothair I, King ofMiddle Francia (died 855) granted the island to a Viking named Herioldus in 841.[26] Another possibility is that this term simply refers to Scyldings, an ancient lineage from which Danish monarchs of the time claimed descent.
According to the same source and the 9th-centuryAnnales Fuldenses, another Viking named Roricus was granted a large part of Frisia as a benefice or fief from Lothair in 850.[27] As men who held military and judicial authority on behalf of the Franks, Herioldus and Roricus can also be regarded as Frisianduces. Although it is uncertain whether Ubba was a native Frisian or a Scandinavian expatriate, if he was indeed involved with a Frisian benefice his forces would have probably been partly composed of Frisians. If his troops were drawn from the Scandinavian settlement started by Herioldus over two decades before, many of Ubba's men might well have been born in Frisia.[28] In fact, the length of Scandinavian occupation suggests that some of the Vikings from Frisia would have been native Franks and Frisians. The considerable time that members of the Great Army appear to have spent in Ireland and on the Continent suggests that these men were well accustomed to Christian society, which in turn may partly explain their successes in Anglo-Saxon England.
A 15th-century depiction ofIvar and Ubba ravaging the countryside as it appears on folio 48r of British Library Harley 2278.[29] TheLives of Saints Edmund and Fremund presents 9th-century events in achivalric context.[30][note 2]
In the autumn of 865, theAnglo Saxon Chronicle records that the Great Army invaded theKingdom of East Anglia, where they afterwards made peace with the East Anglians and overwintered.[33] The terminology employed by this source suggests the Vikings attacked by sea.[34] The invaders evidently gained valuable intelligence during the stay,[35] as the Great Army is next stated to have left on horses gained from the subordinated population, striking deep into theKingdom of Northumbria, a fractured realm in the midst of a bitter civil war between two competing kings:Ælla (died 867) andOsberht (died 867).[36]
Late in 866 the Vikings seizedYork[37]—one of only twoarchiepiscopalsees in Anglo-Saxon England, and one of the richest trading centres in Britain.[38] Although Ælla and Osberht responded to this attack by joining forces against the Vikings, the chronicle indicates that their assault on York was a disaster that resulted in both their deaths.[37][note 3] According toAnnales Lindisfarnenses et Dunelmenses,[46] andHistoria de sancto Cuthberto, the Northumbrians and their kings were crushed by Ubba himself.[47][note 4]
Also that year,Annales Bertiniani reports thatCharles II, King of West Francia (died 877) paid off a Viking fleet stationed on theSeine.[52] After proceeding down the Seine towards the sea, where they repaired and rebuilt their fleet,[53] a portion of the force is reported to have left for the district of IJssel[54] (eitherHollandse IJssel orGelderse IJssel).[55] Although the destination of the rest of the fleet is unrecorded, one possibility is that it participated in the sack of York. The fact that the Great Army remained in East Anglia for about a year before it attacked Northumbria could mean that it had been reinforced from the Continent during the layover.[56] The part of the fleet that went to Frisia is later stated to have been unable to secure an alliance with Lothair. This statement seems to suggest that these Vikings had intended to acquire a grant of lands in the region, which could mean that they thereafter took part in the Great Army's campaigning acrossthe Channel.[57] Furthermore,Annales Bertiniani notes that Roricus was forced from Frisia the following year. This ejection could also account for the evidence of a Frisian dimension to the Great Army, and for the attestations of Ubba himself.[58]
With the collapse of the Northumbrian kingdom, and the destruction of its regime, the 12th-centuryHistoria regum Anglorum,[59] andLibellus de exordio, reveal that a certainEcgberht (died 873) was installed by the Vikings asclient king over a northern region of Northumbria.[60] In the following year, theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle records that the Great Army attackedMercia, after which the Vikings seizedNottingham and overwintered there.[61] Although the Mercian and West Saxon kings,Burgred (died 874?) andÆthelred (died 871), responded by joining forces and besieging the occupied town, both the chronicle[62] andVita Alfredi report that this combined Anglo-Saxon force was unable to dislodge the army.[63] According to both sources, the Mercians made peace with the Vikings.[62][63] It was probably on account of this seemingly purchased peace that the Great Army relocated to York, as reported by the chronicle, where it evidently renewed its strength for future forays.[64]
A 13th- or 14th-century depiction ofEdmund, King of East Anglia, being brought bound before Ivar, as it appears on folio 28r of John Rylands Library French 142[65][note 5]
The earliest source to make specific note of Ubba isPassio sancti Eadmundi, which includes him in its account of the downfall ofEdmund, King of East Anglia (died 869).[67] Almost nothing is known of this king's career,[68] and all that remain of his reign are a few coins.[69] The first[70] contemporary documentary source to cast any light upon his reign is theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle.[71] According to this account, the Great Army invaded East Anglia in the autumn of 869, before setting up winter quarters atThetford. The chronicle relates that the kingdom was conquered and Edmund was amongst the slain.[72][note 6]
Although the specific wording employed by most versions of the chronicle suggests that Edmund was killed in battle,[75] andVita Alfredi certainly states as much[76] — with neither source making note of amartyrdom ordeal[77] — later hagiographical accounts portray the king in an idealised light, and depict his death in the context of a peace-loving Christian monarch, who willingly suffered martyrdom after refusing to shed blood in defence of himself.[78][note 7]
One such account isPassio sancti Eadmundi,[90] a source that makes no mention of a battle.[91] Whilst this source's claim that Edmund was martyred after being captured is not implausible,[92] the fact that he came to regarded as a martyr does not negate the possibility that he was slain in battle (as suggested by theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle).[93][note 9] The apparent contradictory accounts of Edmund's demise given by these sources may stem from thetelescoping of events surrounding an East Anglian military defeat and the subsequent capture and execution of the king.[96] In any case, survivingnumismatic evidence of coins bearing Edmund's name — the so-called St Edmund memorial coinage — reveals that he was certainly regarded as a saint by about twenty years after his death.[97][note 10]
The reliability ofPassio sancti Eadmundi is nevertheless uncertain.[103] Although this source was composed over a century after the event,[104] it may convey some credible material as the latest useful source.[105][note 11] Nevertheless, there is also reason to suspect that the account is little more than a collection of well-known hagiographical elements,[108] and that the compiler knew little or nothing of Edmund's demise and early cult.[109] The lurid depictions of Viking invaders presented byPassio sancti Eadmundi appear to owe much to the author's otherwise known association withFleury,[110] and specifically to the account of the Viking invasion of theLoire Valley detailed inMiracula sancti Benedicti, a 9th-century work composed by the Fleurian monk Adrevaldus (fl. 860s).[111]
Boys, and men old and young, whom he encountered in the streets of the city were killed; and he paid no respect to the chastity of wife or maid. Husband and wife lay dead or dying together on their thresholds; the babe snatched from its mother's breast was, in order to multiply the cries of grief, slaughtered before her eyes. An impious soldiery scoured the town in fury, athirst for every crime by which pleasure could be given to the tyrant who from sheer love of cruelty had given orders for the massacre of the innocent.
In specific regard to Ubba,Passio sancti Eadmundi states that Ivar left him in Northumbria before launching his assault upon the East Angles in 869.[115][note 13] If this source is to be believed, it could indicate that Ubba stayed behind to ensure the cooperation of the conquered Northumbrians.[118] AlthoughVita Alfredi and theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle fail to note any Viking garrisons in the conquered Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, this may merely be a consequence of their otherwise perceptible West Saxon bias.[119][note 14] In contrast toPassio sancti Eadmundi, the 12th-century "F" version of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle specifically identifies Ubba and Ivar as the chiefs of the men who killed the king.[123] Whilst this identification could be derived fromPassio sancti Eadmundi or the 10th-centuryLives of the Saints,[124] it could merely be a mistake on the chronicler's part. In any case, later and less reliable literature covering the martyrdom associates both men with the event, revealing that this version of events was current as early as the 12th century.[125][note 15]
A 16th-century depiction ofÆbbe and the nuns of Coldingham disfiguring themselves whilst pursued by Vikings[128]
Ubba is associated with the martyrdom ofÆbbe, an allegedabbess ofColdingham said to have been slain by Vikings in 870.[129] The historicity of this woman is nevertheless uncertain.[130] The earliest accounts of the alleged events at Coldingham date to the 13th century. They includeChronica majora,[131] and both theWendover[132] andParis versions ofFlores historiarum.[133] According to these sources, Æbbe compelled thenuns of Coldingham todisfigure themselves to preserve theirvirginity from an incoming horde of Vikings. Leading by example, Æbbe is said to have cut off her nose and upper lip with a razor. When the Viking arrived the following morning, the sight of the mutilated and bloody women repelled the raiders. Nevertheless, Ivar and Ubba are stated to have ordered the razing of the monastery, burning to death Æbbe and her faithful nuns.[134]
A 12th-century depiction of Vikings attacking a town, killing men, women and children, as depicted on folio 10r of Pierpont Morgan Library M.736[135][note 16]
Despite many lurid 12th-century tales of ecclesiastical devastation wrought by Vikings, the principal contemporary source for this period, the 9th- or 10th-century "A" version of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle, fails to note the destruction of a single Anglo-Saxon church by Scandinavians during the 8th and 9th centuries.[137] AlthoughPassio sancti Eadmundi presents the invasion of East Anglia by Ubba and Ivar as a campaign of wanton rape and murder, the account does not depict the destruction of the kingdom's monasteries.[138] In fact, there is reason to suspect that most Anglo-Saxon monastic sites probably survived the Viking invasions of the era,[139] and that the East Anglian Church withstood the Viking invasions and occupation.[140][note 17]
Whilst Viking depredations of monasteries tend not to feature in sources intended for royal audiences, religious desecrations appear in sources composed for ecclesiastical audiences.[143] There are several reasons why 12th-century sources associate the Vikings with seemingly unhistorical atrocities against particular monasteries. For example, such depredations could explain changes in monastic observance, or the switch from monastic- to clerical observance.[144] Stories of Viking attacks could be used as evidence of the former possession of property claimed by religious houses centuries after the fact.[145] The 9th-century Viking onslaught may have also been a way in which 12th-century commentators sought to explain what was regarded as monastic decay in 10th-century Anglo-Saxon England.[146] This imagined or exaggerated religious extirpation could well have been a convenient way of accounting for the scarcity of documentary evidence concerning early religious institutions.[147] Twelfth-century ecclesiastical historians availed themselves of sources such as theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle[148] andPassio sancti Eadmundi.[149] The fact that the latter was particularly influential to mediaeval historians is evidenced by the frequent occurrences of Ivar and Ubba in reports of religious atrocities.[150] To medieval hagiographers and historians, these two figures were archetypal Viking invaders[151] and emblematic opponents of Christianity.[152][note 18]
A 13th- or 14th-century depiction of Osyth as it appears on folio 134v of British Library Additional 70513[159]
The accounts of Æbbe could be an example of such a constructed tale. The story appears be ultimately derived from the account of Coldingham preserved by the eighth-centuryHistoria ecclesiastica.[160] According to this source,Æthelthryth (died 679), wife ofEcgfrith, King of Northumbria (died 685), entered the monastery under the tutelage of an abbess namedÆbbe (died 683?). At some point after Æthelthryth left Coldingham to found amonastery at Ely,Historia ecclesiastica reports that the monastery of Coldingham burned to the ground.[161] This account of Coldingham's burning was later incorporated intoLiber Eliensis, a 12th-century chronicle covering the history of Æthelthryth's establishment at Ely.[162] The account of the burning given byHistoria ecclesiastica may well be the inspiration behind the tale of facial mutilation and fiery martyrdom first associated with Coldingham by the Wendover version ofFlores historiarum.[148][note 19] To 12th-century ecclesiasts, invented tales of 9th-century violence—particularly violence inflicted by Ivar and Ubba—may have been intended to validate the refoundation of certain religious communities.[164][note 20]
The earliest Anglo-Saxon virgin-martyr isOsyth.[174] A now-lost 12th-centuryvita of this woman associated Ivar and Ubba with her seventh-century martyrdom. According to this source, Ivar and Ubba commanded the pirates who beheaded her after she refused to worship their paganidols.[175] This work may have been the inspiration behind theAnglo-Norman hagiographyVie seinte Osith,[176] a composition that also attributes Osyth's killing to Ivar and Ubba and their followers.[177][note 21]
Theobverse and reverse of an Edmund memorial coin.[198] Although some of themoneyers' names that appear on these coins are Anglo-Saxon, many more are foreign.[199] The names suggest that there was a significant influx of Continental emigration intoAnglo-Scandinavian-controlled regions.[200][note 22]
The history of East Anglia immediately after Edmund's demise is extremely obscure.[209] The account of events presented byPassio sancti Eadmundi seems to show that Edmund was killed in the context of the Great Army attempting to impose authority over him and his realm.[210] Such an accommodation appears to have been gained by the Vikings in Northumbria[211] and Mercia.[212] In any case, numismatic evidence appears to indicate that two client kings—a certainÆthelred andOswald—thereafter ruled over the East Angles on behalf of the Viking conquerors.[213]
It is at about this point that Ivar disappears from English history.[214] According toChronicon Æthelweardi, he died in the same year as Edmund.[215] However, this record may partly stem from the fact that he did not take part in the subsequent war against theKingdom of Wessex,[216] beginning in the autumn or winter of 870.[2][note 23] In any case, the leadership of the Great Army appears to have fallen to kingsBagsecg (died 871) andHalfdan (died 877),[221] the first principal Viking leaders attested by all versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle after the army's recorded arrival.[222][note 24]
For about a year, the Great Army campaigned against the West Saxons, before overwintering in London.[231] Late in 872, after spending nearly a year in London, the Vikings were drawn back to Northumbria, and afterwards to Mercia.[232] By the end of 874, the kingdoms of East Anglia, Mercia and Northumbria were finally broken.[233] At this point, the Great Army split. Whilst Halfdan settled his followers in Northumbria, the army underGuthrum (died 890), Oscytel (fl. 875) and Anwend (fl. 875), struck out southwards, and based itself atCambridge.[234] In 875, the Vikings invaded Wessex and seizedWareham. AlthoughAlfred, King of Wessex (died 899) sued for peace in 876, the Vikings broke the truce the following year, seizedExeter, and were finally forced to withdraw back to Mercia.[235]
Although much of Guthrum's army started to settle in Mercia,[236][note 26] theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle[239] andVita Alfredi reveal that Guthrum launched a surprise attack against the West Saxons in the winter of 877/878. Setting off from their base inGloucester, the latter source specifies that the Vikings drove deep into Wessex, and sacked theroyal vill ofChippenham.[240][note 27] It is possible that this operation was coordinated with another Viking attack inDevon that culminated in the Battle ofArx Cynuit in 878.[243]
Wind Hill, nearCountisbury, Devon, possibly the site of the Viking defeat at the hands of local men in 878.[244] Some mediaeval sources claim that Ubba led the vanquished army, and that he was among those slain.
Most versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle locate the battle to Devon.[245][note 28]Vita Alfredi specifies that it was fought at a fortress calledArx Cynuit,[247] a name which appears to equate to what is todayCountisbury, inNorth Devon.[248][note 29] This source also states that the Vikings made landfall in Devon from a base inDyfed, where they had previously overwintered.[257] As such, the Viking army could have arrived in Dyfed from Ireland, and overwintered in Wales before striking forth into Devon.[258][note 30]
TheAnglo-Saxon Chronicle does not identify the army's commander by name. It merely describes him as a brother of Ivar and Halfdan, and observes that he was slain in the encounter.[260][note 31] Although Ubba is identified as the slain commander by the 12th-centuryEstoire des Engleis,[262] it is unknown whether this identification is merely an inference by its author, or if it is derived from an earlier source.[263][note 32] For example, this identification could have been influenced by the earlier association of Ubba and Ivar in the legends surrounding Edmund's martyrdom.[263] In any case,Estoire des Engleis further specifies that Ubba was slain at "bois de Pene"[266]—which may refer toPenselwood, near theSomerset–Wiltshire border[267]—and buried in Devon within a mound called "Ubbelawe".[268][note 33]
The clash atArx Cynuit culminated in a West Saxon victory.[281] WhilstVita Alfredi attributes the outcome to unnamedthegns of Alfred,[282]Chronicon Æthelweardi identifies the victorious commander asOdda, Ealdorman of Devon (fl. 878).[283] Most versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle number the Viking fleet at twenty-three ships,[284] and most versions number the Viking casualties at eight hundred and forty dead.[285][note 34] These numbers roughly give about thirty-six-and-a-half men per ship, which is comparable to the 32-oaredGokstad ship, a 9th-centuryViking ship unearthed in Norway.[292]
On one hand, it is possible that the Viking commander atArx Cynuit seized upon Guthrum's simultaneous campaigning against the West Saxons to launch a Viking foray of his from Dyfed.[297] On the other hand, the location and timing of the engagement atArx Cynuit may indicate that the slain commander was cooperating with Guthrum. As such, there is reason to suspect that the two Viking armies coordinated their efforts in an attempt to corner Alfred in apincer movement after his defeat at Chippenham and subsequent withdrawal into the wetlands of Somerset.[243] If the Vikings atArx Cynuit were indeed working in cooperation with those at Chippenham, the record of their presence in Dyfed could also have been related to Guthrum's campaign against Alfred. As such, they could have been campaigning againstHyfaidd ap Bleddri, King of Dyfed (died 892/893) before their attack atArx Cynuit.[298][note 35]
Old Burrow, nearCountisbury, the site of a ruined Roman fortress, is another possible site ofArx Cynuit.[249]
It is possible that the defeat atArx Cynuit left Guthrum overextended in Wessex, allowing Alfred's forces to assail Guthrum's exposed lines of communication.[301] Although Alfred's position may have been still perilous in the aftermath, with his contracted kingdom close to collapse,[237] the victory atArx Cynuit certainly foreshadowed a turn of events for the West Saxons. A few weeks later in May, theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle records that Alfred was able to assemble his troops, and launch a successful attack against Guthrum atEdington.[302] Following Guthrum's crushing defeat, the Vikings were forced to accept Alfred's terms for peace. Guthrum wasbaptised as a Christian, and led the remainder of his forces into East Anglia, where they dispersed and settled.[303] Guthrum thereafter kept peace with the West Saxons, and ruled as a Christian king for more than a decade, until his death in 890.[304][note 36]
A depiction ofRagnar Lodbrok (Lothbrok) and his sons,Ivar and Ubba, worshipping pagan idols, as it appears on folio 39r of British Library Harley 2278.[307] This illustration depicts the pagan Danes as elaborately dressed MuslimSaracens, wearing tallturban-like headdresses and forked beards. Other illustrations in the manuscript, depicting Ivar and Ubba, show Vikings armed with curved swords.[308][note 37]
Although Ubba and Ivar are associated with each other byPassio sancti Eadmundi, the men are not stated to be related in any way.[310] The earliest source claiming kinship between the two is theAnnals of St Neots,[311] an 11th- or 12th-century account stating that they were brothers of three daughters of Lodbrok (Lodebrochus).[312] This source further states that these three sisters wove a magical banner namedReafan that was captured at theArx Cynuit conflict.[313] Although certain versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle also note the capture of araven banner, namedHræfn ("Raven"), they do not mention any magical attributes, or refer to Lodbrok and his progeny.[314][note 38]
A 15th-century depiction of Lodbrok's murder by Björn as it appears on folio 34r of British Library Yates Thompson 47 (Lives of Saints Edmund and Fremund)[327]
Lodbrok appears to be an early reference toRagnar Lodbrok,[328] asaga character of dubious historicity, who could be an amalgam of several historical 9th-century figures.[329][note 39] According to Scandinavian sources, Ragnar Lodbrok was a Scandinavian of royal stock, whose death at the hands of Ælla in Northumbria was the catalyst of the invasion of Anglo-Saxon England—and Ælla's own destruction—by Ragnar Lodbrok's vengeful sons.[341] None of the saga-sources for the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok accord him a son that corresponds to Ubba.[342] The latter is only specifically attested by sources dealing with the East Scandinavian tradition.[343] One of these sources is the 13th-centuryGesta Danorum.[344] According to this text, Ubba was the son of Ragnar Lodbrok and an unnamed daughter of a certain Hesbernus.[345]Gesta Danorum does not associate Ubba with Anglo-Saxon England in any way.[346][note 40] According to the 13th- or 14th-centuryRagnarssona þáttr, a source that forms part of the West Scandinavian tradition, Ivar had twobastard brothers, Yngvar and Husto, who tortured Edmund on Ivar's instructions.[356] No other source mentions these sons.[357] It is possible that these figures represent Ivar and Ubba,[358] and that the composer ofRagnarssona þáttr failed to recognise the names of Ivar[359] and Ubba in English sources concerned with the legend of Edmund's martyrdom.[360][note 41]
A depiction of Ivar and Ubba setting forth to avenge their father, Lodbrok, as it appears on folio 47v of British Library Harley 2278[29][note 42]
Whilst Scandinavian sources—such as the 13th-centuryRagnars saga loðbrókar—tend to locate the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok in a Northumbrian context, English sources tend to place them in an East Anglian setting.[369] The earliest source to specifically associate the legend with East Anglia isLiber de infantia sancti Eadmundi,[370] a 12th-century account depicting the Viking invasion of East Anglia in the context of a dynastic dispute.[371] According to this source, Lodbrok (Lodebrok) was extremely envious of Edmund's fame. As such, it is Lodbrok's taunts that provoke his sons, Ivar, Ubba and Björn (Bern), to slay Edmund and destroy his kingdom.[372][note 43] Although this text is heavily dependent uponPassio sancti Eadmundi for its depiction of Edmund's death, it appears to be the first source to meld the martyrdom with the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok.[371][note 44]
An inscribed plaque at "Bloody Corner", betweenAppledore andNortham. In the early 19th century, it was imagined that this spot may have marked the site of Ubba's demise.[388][note 45]
By the 13th century an alternate rendition of the story appears in sources such asChronica majora,[399] and both the Wendover[400] and Paris versions ofFlores historiarum.[401] For example, the Wendover account states that Lodbrok (Lothbrocus) washed ashore in East Anglia, where he was honourably received by Edmund, but afterwards murdered by Björn (Berno), an envious huntsman. Although the latter is expelled from the realm, he convinces Lodbrok's sons, Ivar and Ubba, that the killer of their father was Edmund. As such, East Anglia is invaded by these two sons, and Edmund is killed in a case of misplaced vengeance.[402][note 46] A slightly different version of events is offered byEstoire des Engleis, which states that the Vikings invaded Northumbria on behalf of Björn (Buern Bucecarle), who sought vengeance for the rape of his wife by the Northumbrian king, Osberht.[406][note 47] On one hand, it is possible that the theme of vengeance directed at Edmund is derived from the tradition of Ælla's demise in Northumbria at the hands of Ragnar's progeny.[410][note 48] On the other hand, the revenge motifs and miraculous maritime journeys presented in the accounts of Edmund are well-known elements commonly found in contemporaneouschivalric romances.[412]
There is reason to suspect that the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok originated from attempts to explain why the Vikings came to settle in Anglo-Saxon England. The core of the tradition may have been constructed as a way to rationalise their arrival without assigning blame to either side (as illustrated by the sympathetic Wendover account).[413] As such, the legend could have been intended to justify Edmund's violent demise.[414] The tales may have evolved at an early stage of Viking settlement, and may have functioned as anorigin myth of the emergingAnglo-Scandinavian culture.[415][note 49] The shared kinship assigned to Ivar and Ubba within the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok may stem from their combined part in Edmund's downfall as opposed to any historical familial connection.[422]
Alfred in the Isle of Athelney, receiving news of a Victory over the Danes, an 18th-century depiction ofAlfred, King of Wessex learning of the Viking defeat atArx Cynuit[423][note 50]
Ubba appears as a character in modern historical fiction. For example, the unnamed Danish king that appears inAlfred: A Masque, a musical play with alibretto byJames Thomson (died 1748) andDavid Mallet (died 1765)—first presented in 1740[428]—may be a composite of Ubba, Guthrum, Ivar and Halfdan.[429] Ubba certainly appears inAlfred the Great, Deliverer of His Country,[430] an anonymous play that first appears on record in 1753;[431] andThe Magick Banner; or, Two Wives in a House,[432] a play byJohn O'Keeffe (died 1833), first presented in 1796.[433][note 51] He also appears in theSketch of Alfred the Great: Or, the Danish Invasion,[435] aballet by Mark Lonsdale, first performed in 1798;[436] andAlfred; An Epic Poem,[437] a long piece ofepic poetry byHenry James Pye (died 1813), published in 1801;[438] and the similarly namedAlfred, an Epic Poem, byJoseph Cottle (died 1853)[439]—a poem almost twice as long as Pye's[440]—first published in 1800.[441]
Ubba later appears inAlfred the Great; Or, The Enchanted Standard, a musical drama byIsaac Pocock (died 1835),[442] based upon O'Keeffe's play,[443] and first performed in 1827;[444] andAlfred the Great, a play by James Magnus, dating to 1838.[445] He further appears inAlfred of Wessex, an epic poem by Richard Kelsey, published in 1852;[446] and in the 1899 novelKing Alfred's Viking, byCharles Whistler (died 1913);[447] and the 2004 novelThe Last Kingdom byBernard Cornwell.[448] Ubba is also a character inVikings, a television series first aired on theHistory network in 2013. His name was changed to Ubbe, and he was portrayed byJordan Patrick Smith from season 4B through the end.[449]
In 2015,BBC Two releasedThe Last Kingdom,[450] a fictional television series (based upon Cornwell'sThe Saxon Chronicles series of novels).[451] It was later aired on Netflix. Although the series and many of its characters were based on real events and people, the series also contains fictional events.[452] The character was portrayed a little differently than the real-life Ubba.[453] Ubba is played by actorRune Temte.[454]
Ubba, Halfdan and Ivar the Boneless appear in the Ubisoft video gameAssassin's Creed Valhalla as brothers, sharing significant roles in the story of Viking conquests of England during the 9th century.[455]
^Since the 1990s, academics have accorded Ubba various personal names in English secondary sources:Huba,[2]Hubba,[3]Ubba,[4]Ubbe Ragnarsson,[5]Ubbe,[6]Ubbi,[7]Ubbo,[8] andUbe.[9]
^TheLives of Saints Edmund and Fremund may be the high point of the late-medieval cult devoted to Edmund. The work draws fromPassio sancti Eadmundi.[31] TheLives of Saints Edmund and Fremund represents the first significant augmentation of Edmund's legend afterLiber de infantia sancti Eadmundi.[32]
^The Great Army's seizure of York is dated to 1 November (All Saints' Day) by the 12th-centuryLibellus de exordio,[39] and the 13th-centuryWendover version ofFlores historiarum.[40] Preying upon a populated site on afeast day was a noted tactic of the Vikings. Such celebrations offered attackers easy access to potential captives who could be ransomed or sold intoslavery.[41] According toLibellus de exordio,[42] and the 12th-centuryHistoria regum Anglorum, the Anglo-Saxons' attempt to recapture York took place on 21 March.[43] The Wendover version ofFlores historiarum,[40] andHistoria de sancto Cuthberto, date this attack to 23 March (Palm Sunday).[44]Annales Lindisfarnenses et Dunelmenses states that Ubba crushed the Northumbrians "not long after Palm Sunday".[45]
^At one point after its account of Ubba's stated victory over the Northumbrians,Historia de sancto Cuthberto expands upon the Vikings' successful campaigning across Anglo-Saxon England, and specifically identifies the Viking commanders as Ubba,dux of the Frisians, and Halfdan,rex of the Danes.[48]Historia regum Anglorum identifies the commanders of the Vikings in 866 as Ivar, Ubba, and Halfdan.[49]Libellus de exordio states that the Vikings who ravaged Northumbria were composed of Danes and Frisians.[50]
^This manuscript preserves a copy of the 12th-centuryLa vie seint Edmund le rei.[66]
^During this period, the compilers of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle began the year during the autumn, in September.[73] As such, whilst most versions of the chronicle assign Edmund's demise to the year 870, it is evident that he actually died in the autumn of 869.[74]
^In contrast to earlier versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle, the 12th-century "E"[79] and "F" versions make note of the king's sanctity.[80] However, there is reason to suspect that these entries are influenced by hagiographical accounts of Edmund,[81] and may stem from late textual additions to the chronicle.[82] As such, these entries may not be evidence of the king's cult in the years immediately after his death.[83]
^The account of Edmund's martyrdom preserved byPassio sancti Eadmundi likens him toJesus Christ[85] andSt Sebastian.[86] Specifically, Edmund is mocked and scourged like Christ,[85] and later tied to a tree and shot like St Sebastian.[86] Ubba and Ivar feature in the account of Edmund preserved by the 13th-centurySouth English Legendary,[87] a source steeped in anti-Danish sentiment.[88] This source appears to depict the tortures inflicted upon Edmund as a way to define theEnglish national identity in contrast to the barbarianOther.[89]
^The fact thatPassio sancti Eadmundi was commissioned, and later spawned the account of Edmund presented by the 10th-centuryLives of the Saints, reveals that the king's cult was recognised into the late 10th and 11th centuries.[98] The composer ofPassio sancti Eadmundi claimed that his version of events was mainly derived from a story he had heard told by the elderlyDunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury (died 988). The source relates that Dunstan heard this tale as a young man, from a very old man who claimed to have been Edmund's armour-bearer on the day of his death.[99]Passio sancti Eadmundi[100] and theLives of the Saints specify that Edmund was killed on 20 November.[101] This date was certainly commemorated by the 11th century.[102]
^Passio sancti Eadmundi is the earliest hagiographical account of Edmund,[106] andVita Alfredi is the earliest biography of an Anglo-Saxon king.[107]
^This source portrays Ivar and Ubba as agents of theDevil,[113] as does the derivativeLives of the Saints.[114]
^This is the last timePassio sancti Eadmundi mentions Ubba.[116] Whilst this source depicts the Vikings arriving in East Anglia by sea from Northumbria, theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle depicts them marching across Mercia into East Anglia.[117]
^There does not appear to be any hagiographical reason why the composer ofPassio sancti Eadmundi would have constructed a narrative in which Ubba was left behind in Northumbria.[120] Certainly, the 12th-centuryEstoire des Engleis, the earliest survivingAnglo-Norman history,[121] notes that the Vikings left a garrison at York when they struck out for Nottingham in 867.[122]
^One such source isEstoire des Engleis, which implies that Ubba and Ivar, described as kings, led the invasion of East Anglia, and further states that the captured Edmund was kept prisoner until their arrival.[126] The fourteenth- to 15th-centuryLiber monasterii de Hyda also assigns the killing of Edmund to Ivar and Ubba.[127]
^This miniature depicts several scenes. Whereas the first scene shows the Vikings battling against armed defenders of a burning town, the second shows mainly slaughtered unarmed inhabitants. Some of the latter are naked, which reflects the language employed byPassio sancti Eadmundi.[136]
^Supposed ecclesiastic devastation wrought by the Vikings has not been established by archaeology.[141] The only ecclesiastical site proven to have suffered a detrimental effect from the Vikings isSt Wystan's Church atRepton, where the Vikings are otherwise known to have overwintered in 873/874.[142]
^In comparison to hagiographies likePassio sancti Eadmundi andLives of Saints, theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle gives a much less dramatic and detailed depiction of the 9th century. As a result, the authors of later mediaeval histories relied upon these hagiographies for their narratives. Even today,Lives of Saints is one of the most-read Old English texts, and historians' views of the past are still shaped by it.[153] The reputation of Ivar and Ubba may lay behind the similarly named Yvor and Yni, noted by the 12th-centuryHistoria regum Britanniæ. According to this source, Yvor and Yni were closely relatedBritons who failed to eject the Anglo-Saxons from Britain after launching a series of maritime invasions of the island. As a result of their failure,Historia regum Britanniæ declares that the British people thereafter became known as theWelsh.[154] WhilstYvor seems to correspond to the Old NorseÍvarr, the formYni may be a garbled attempt at Ubba's name.[155] The 12th-century "E" version ofAnglo-Saxon Chronicle claims that Ivar and Ubba destroyed all monasteries they encountered, and specifies that they burned the monastery ofMedeshamstede (Peterborough), and killed its abbot and monks.[156] The 12th-century chronicle ofHugh Candidus (died c.1160) also relates that Ivar and Ubba were responsible for the annihilation of churches throughout Anglo-Saxon England, and specifies that they destroyed the monastery and monks of Medeshamstede.[157] According to this source, which is heavily influenced byPassio sancti Eadmundi, some of the monasteries ravaged by Ivar and Ubba remained deserted and in ruins until his own time.[158]
^The story of nuns self-mutilating to avoid rape at the hands of roving Vikings is not confined to Coldingham, it is also attributed to the 9th-century nuns ofFécamp across theChannel inNormandy.[163]
^For example, the 13th-century Whitbycartulary preserves a 12th-century account of how theknight Reinfrid came to "Streoneshalc", a place that had been "laid to waste, in a ferocious devastation", by Ivar and Ubba, "the most cruel pirates". As a result of this carnage, the accounts relates that the religious services of monks and nuns had ceased for over two centuries, and that Reinfrid was struck with compunction having observed the desolation for himself.[165] Another example is given by the 12th-centuryChronicon ex chronicis which states that the invasions of Ivar and Ubba were responsible for the flight of theCuthbertine community ofLindisfarne.[166] Ivar and Ubba are also woven into the account of the monastery of Ely preserved byLiber Eliensis. If this source is to be believed, the Vikings' destruction of this religious house—in a blazing fire that consumed all of its nuns—were the reason why this formerly flourishing ecclesiastical site became a secular community by the end of the 10th century.[167] According to this account, the monastery's annihilation occurred in the context of Ivar and Ubba's campaigning at the time of Edmund's downfall.[168] Whilst this tale of fiery destruction appears to be derived from the 12th-centuryLibellus Æthelwoldi,[169] the portrayal of marauding Vikings is borrowed from sources such asChronicon ex chronicis[170] andPassio sancti Eadmundi.[171] The latter account also seems to be the source for the appearance of Ivar and Ubba in the account of the hermit Suneman, and the destruction ofSt Benet's Abbey, given by the 14th-centuryChronicon Joannis Bromton.[172] According to the 13th-centuryChronica Johannis de Oxenedes, Suneman was martyred by invading Vikings.[173]
^This source also associates Ivar and Ubba with Edmund's martyrdom.[178] The lostvita can be reconstructed from notes dating to the sixteenth century.[179] Ivar and Ubba play a role in an hagiographical account ofHild, a seventh-century Anglo-Saxon saint. According to an hagiographical poem preserved by the 15th-century manuscript Cambridge Trinity College 0.9.38 (T), the campaigning of Ivar and Ubba forced a certain Titus to remove Hild's relics toGlastonbury Abbey, where he becameabbot.[180] This account appears to conflate two incompatible accounts presented by the author of the 12th-century textsGesta pontificum Anglorum andDe antiquitate Glastonie ecclesie.[181] Whilst the former composition states that the relics were donated to Glastonbury by Edmund himself,[182] the latter relates that the relics were brought to Glastonbury in the eighth century by Tica, a man who becameAbbot of Glastonbury.[183] Tica appears to be identical to Tyccea, an historical eighth-century ecclesiast attested in the western Anglo-Saxon England.[184] The rampaging of Ivar and Ubba is also noted byDe sancto Oswino, an account ofOswine, King of Deira (died 651) that forms part of the 14th-centurySanctilogium Angliae, Walliae, Scotiae, et Hiberniae.[185] This hagiography of Oswine appears to derive its account fromVita tertia sancti Oswini. Although the latter text fails to include Ivar and Ubba in its version of events,[186] the manuscript of this source—British Library Cotton Julius A.x.—contains alacuna betweenfolios 9 and 10 where at least one leaf has been lost.[187] There is reason to suspect that the missing content has been preserved byChronica majora and the Wendover and Paris versions ofFlores historiarum—sources which state that Ivar and Ubba destroyed the monastery ofTynemouth, and thereby massacred the nuns of Hild's convent who cared for Oswine's shrine.[188] An hagiographical account of Oswine could be the source behind the account of the monastery's burning given by the sixteenth-centuryCollectanea ofJohn Leland (died 1552).[189] Although this source attributes the monastic destruction to Ivar and Ubba, the fate of the nuns is not mentioned.[190] Ivar and Ubba also feature in the legend of the martyrdom ofFremund,[191] a 9th-century saint whose historicity is also uncertain.[192] Accounts of Fremund are not found in any Anglo-Saxon historical sources, and are preserved in later hagiographical compositions.[193] The earliest source of the legend is a 13th-century manuscript Dublin Trinity College 172 (B 2 7),[194] The best-known version of the legend is given by the 15th-centuryLives of Saints Edmund and Fremund.[195] All versions of Fremund'svitae tell a similar tale.[196] According to these sources, Ivar and Ubba invaded Anglo-Saxon England and slew Edmund, after which Fremund orchestrated a miraculous avenging victory over the Vikings, and was treacherously slain afterwards.[191] Ivar and Ubba also play a part in the legend ofSexburga (died 674?). Specifically, according to the 12th-centuryVita beate Sexburge regine, this seventh-century East Anglian saint had a premonition of future calamities that were proved true through the invasion of Ivar and Ubba.[197]
^The moneyer of this particular coin was a man named Hlodovicus–whose name is inscribed on the reverse–which could be evidence that he was a Frank.[201] The coins that bear Edmund's name, the so-called St Edmund memorial coinage, are the earliest evidence of a religiouscult devoted to the king.[202] There is reason to suspect that the cult was advanced by later Anglo-Scandinavians as a way to retain authority in East Anglia,[203] as a way to repent for his death at the hands of their Viking predecessors.[204] It is also possible that the cult was originally promoted as a way the surviving East Anglian aristocracy attempted to oppose Anglo-Scandinavian overlordship,[205] and that the Anglo-Scandinavian regime thereafter adopted the cult and capitalised upon it.[206] Conversely, it is possible that the cult was originally more focused upon Edmund's royal standing than his death, and only acquired anti-Anglo-Scandinavian connotations in a later period.[202] In any case, the memorial coinage seems to have been minted under the auspices of the Anglo-Scandinavian leadership,[207] and his cult certainly spread into the Scandinavia later in the Middle Ages.[208]
^Whilst there is reason to suspect that Ivar is identical toÍmar (died 873), a Viking king later active in Ireland and northern Britain,[217] such an identification is uncertain.[218] Nevertheless, if Ivar is indeed identical to Ímar—and therefore commanded Vikings settled in the Irish Sea region before the coalescence of the Great Army in Anglo-Saxon England—it is possible that he and Halfdan led the troops identified as Danes and that Ubba led those identified as Frisians.[219] It is also possible that Ubba is identical toRodulfus (died 878), a Viking attested on the Continent in the 860s and 870s. Rodulfus is recorded to have been slain in an attack onOostergo in 873.[220]
^Many of the earliest Vikings attested by theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle are those that lost recorded battles or died in them.[223] Such is certainly the case in Irish sources. The fifteenth- to sixteenth-centuryAnnals of Ulster, for example, reports the deaths of Saxólfr (died 837),[224]Þórgísl (died 845),[225] Hákon (died 847),[226] andÞórir (died 848) in the 830s and 840s,[227] before naming the first living Viking, Steinn (fl. 852), in the 850s.[228]
^Specifically,John Aubrey (died 1697) called it "Hubbaslow" and "Hubba's Low", and stated that it was the site "where they say that one Hubba lies buried".[230]
^A vill was an administration unit, roughly equating to a modernparish.[241] Chippenham appears to have been a significant settlement during the period, and might well have been a seat of theWest Saxon monarchy.[242]
^The "B" and "C" versions of this source do not locate the conflict to any specific place.[246]
^Other locations have been suggested. One such place is Old Burrow (grid referenceSS 7874 4928), the site of a nearbyRoman fortlet.[249] Another possible location isCastle Hill, nearBeaford andGreat Torrington.[250] Another is Kenwith Castle,[251] and another isCongresbury.[252] The seventeenth-century DevoniantopographerThomas Westcote (fl. 1624–1636) remarked that "as many places in this county claim the honour of this victory, as cities inGreece for the birth ofHomer". Westcote himself located the battle to place nearAppledore, where he claimed that acairn called "Whibbestow" sat on the site before it was lost to the encroaching sea.[253] A close contemporary of Westcote,Tristram Risdon (died 1640), also located the site near Appledore, stating that the Danes buried Ubba on the shore in a mound called "Hubba stone". According to Risdon, although the mound of stones had washed away by the time of his writing, a form of the site's name existed near Appledore as "Wibblestone" in the parish ofNortham.[254] By the eighteenth century, it was claimed that Ubba's burial was located nearBideford, and was called "Hubblestone" and "Hubble's Stone" because of a large stone that marked the grave.[255] The site came to be called "Whibblestone" by the nineteenth century.[256]
^Nevertheless, the attack on Dyfed, and the actual siege ofArx Cynuit, is not noted by theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle.[259]
^Vita Alfredi similarly identifies the slain commander as a brother of Ivar and Halfdan.[261]
^Estoire des Engleis is otherwise known to have been partly derived from a now-non-existent early version of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle.[264] The source nevertheless attributes the victory to Alfred himself.[265]
^Estoire des Engleis is the only source to assign the burial site to Ubba.[269] The 13th-centuryRagnars saga loðbrókar states that Ivar was also buried in a mound. According to this source,Harald Hardrada (died 1066) was defeated by the English near the mound, and whenWilliam II, Duke of Normandy (died 1087) arrived on the scene he had the mound destroyed and thereby conquered the English.[270] A somewhat similar tale concerning Ivar's mound is given by the 13th-centuryHemings þáttr.[271] The tale of Ivar's burial is paralleled by one given byHistoria regum Britanniæ—which in turn seems to be derived from a tale presented byHistoria Brittonum—that recounts how the BritonVortimer, son ofVortigern, asked to be buried in a mound along the British coast to deter theSaxon invasions.[272] According to theDistich on the Sons of Lothebrok, a series of notes preserved by the twelfth- to 13th-century Cambridge Pembroke College 82, Ubba was slain atUbbelaw inYorkshire. This source further relates thatBjörn (Beorn), a brother of Ubba, destroyed a church at Sheppey, violated the nuns, and was miraculously killed in an act ofdivine retribution, as he was swallowed alive by the ground atFrindsbury, nearRochester.[273] A similar story is given by the 13th-century British Library Arundel 69.[274] According toLiber monasterii de Hyda, Ubba met his end the same way.[275] One possibility is that this version of events is connected to the tale of the burial mound given byEstoire des Engleis.[276] Whilst Ubba is specifically associated with Frisia and Frisans by sources such asAnnales Lindisfarnenses et Dunelmenses andHistoria de sancto Cuthberto, Björn is specifically associated with Frisia by the 11th-centuryGesta Normannorum ducum, which remarks that he (Bier Costae ferreae) went there and died.[277] The laterChronicon Joannis Bromton gives a confused account of Ubba, Ivar, and Björn (Bruern Bocard). This source seems to associate the demise of these men with the Anglo-Saxon victory at the Battle of Chippenham, but states that the surviving Danes came across Ubba's body amongst the slain, and buried him in a mound called "Hubbelow" in Devon.[278] A similar account associating Ubba with the same battle, and a burial mound named after him, is given by the 14th-centuryEulogium historiarum sive temporis.[279] Another unreliable depiction of Ubba's demise is given byLiber Eliensis, which states that he was one of the slain Viking leaders at theBattle of Ashdown.[280]
^The "D" and "E" versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle do not number the ships.[286] The "B" and "C" versions state that the Vikings suffered eight hundred and sixty dead.[287] The discrepancy can be accounted for by the similarity to the tallies when presented inroman numerals: ".dccc. + .xl." (840) compared to ".dccc. + .lx." (860).[288] All versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle number the Viking casualties in a complex manner, stating that eight hundred "men with him" and a further forty (or sixty) "men of his army" were killed.[289] The Old Englishheres, generally taken to mean "army" in this passage, may be an error forhīredes, a term for a personal retinue.[290] As such numbers forty and sixty in these sources may well refer to Ubba's personal retinue.[291] TheAnglo-Saxon Chronicle does not employ the termmicel ("great") in its depiction of the army.[292]Vita Alfredi numbers the Viking dead at one thousand two hundred.[293]Chronicon Æthelweardi numbers the dead at eight hundred, and the fleet at thirty ships. This source specifically identifies the slain Viking commander as Halfdan, describing him as the brother of Ivar, and unlike other accounts, states that the Vikings were victorious in the affair.[294] The 12th-centuryHistoria Anglorum, partly derived from theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle, does not name the Viking commander, but describes him as a brother of Halfdan.[295]Historia regum Anglorum makes no mention of any brother, and merely states that it was Ivar and Halfdan who fought and died in Devon.[296]
^Although Hyfaidd's political alignment in 877 is unknown, he was certainly an ally of Alfred by 885.[299] The version of events given byHistoria de sancto Cuthberto has it that, after the destruction of the Northumbrian kingdom, and the devastation of northern and southern England, the forces of Ubba and Halfdan split in three. Whilst one part settled and rebuilt in the region ofYork, another part positioned itself in Mercia. Another part is stated to have commenced a campaigned against theSouth Saxons, and forced Alfred to seek refuge in aGlastonbury marsh "in great want".[300]
^The father ofOda, Archbishop of Canterbury (died 958) was a Viking who settled in Anglo-Saxon England with the army of Ubba and Ivar,[305] as evidenced byVita Oswaldi.[306]
^This depiction of the Danes in this illustration contrasts the depictions of Edmund elsewhere in the manuscript, where he is presented engaging in royal activities.[309]
^It is possible that the association of Ubba with Ivar given by theAnnals of St Neots is derived fromPassio sancti Eadmundi.[315] The capture of the raven banner is noted by the "B", "C", "D", and "E" versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle.[316] It is not noted by the "A"[317] and "F" versions,[318] or either byVita Alfredi[319] andChronicon Æthelweardi.[320] As such, it is uncertain whether the reports of a raven banner represent an historical event.[321] The source from which the author of theAnnals of St Neots drew these details is unknown.[322] Whilst it is possible that its story is derived from the "B", "C", "D", and "E" versions of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle, it is unknown why the earliest version of the chronicle fails to include this material.[323] The notice of the banner preserved by the 10th-century "B" version of theAnglo-Saxon Chronicle is the earliest attestation of agúþfana ("war banner") in Anglo-Saxon England. Nevertheless, this version of the chronicle dates at least a century after the event, which could mean that the banner's classification as agúþfana is anachronistic.[324] This entry is also the earliest record of a raven banner.[325] It is possible that the motif of the raven banner, associated with figures such asCnute the Great (died 1035),Siward, Earl of Northumbria (died 1055), andSigurd the Stout (died 1014), is derived from traditions concerning the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok and his asserted his family.[326]
^Forms of the namesRagnarr andLoðbrók are only used together for this character by Scandinavian sources,[330] and are first used by the 12th-centuryÍslendingabók.[331] As such, there is no evidence of a figure namedRagnarr loðbrók before the twelfth century.[332] One possible historical prototype for this literary character isReginheri, a Viking commander recorded to have raided Paris in 845.[333] The earliest record of a form of the nameLoðbrók in English sources[334]—and the first source to assign Ubba and Ivar as sons of this figure—is the account of the raven banner given byAnnals of St Neots.[335] Forms of the nameLoðbrók are first attested by the 11th-century textsGesta Normannorum ducum[336] andGesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum.[337] Whilst the former makes note of a king named Lodbrok (Lotbrocus), the father of a Viking named Björn (Bier Costae ferreae),[338] the latter source makes note of a man named Lodbrok (Lodparchus), the father of a Viking king named Ivar.[339] There is also reason to suspect that the character Ragnar Lodbrok is partly derived from a woman namedLoðbróka.[340]
^According to this account, at one point Ubba revolted againstRagnar Lodbrok at the behest of Hesbernus, and afterwards Ragnar Lodbrok slew Hesbernus, overcame the rebellion, and reconciled himself with Ubba.[347] Halfdan is not identified as a son of Ragnar Lodbrok in any Scandinavian source.[348] The first Scandinavian source to claim kinship between Ubba, Ivar, and Lodbrok, is the 12th-centuryChronicon Roskildense.[349] This source is also the earliest Danish source to make note of Lodbrok and his sons.[350] According toSǫgubrot af nokkrum fornkonungum, Ubbi fríski slew Rǫgnvaldr hái at Brávellir, a man also known as Raðbarðr hnefi.[351] This slain figure equates to Rǫgnvaldr (Regnaldus), a figure attested byGesta Danorum who is described as a nephew or grandson of Raðbarðr (Rathbartus).[352] The Old Norsehnefi can either mean "fist" or refer to a piece in aboard game.[353] On one hand, it is possible that the compiler ofGesta Danorum transformed this epithet into the Latinnepos, meaning "nephew" or "grandson".[354] On the other hand, the epithet given bySǫgubrot af nokkrum fornkonungum may merely be a corruption ofnepos.[335] In any case,Gesta Danorum also accords Ragnar Lodbrok sons with the names Rǫgnvaldr (Regnaldus) and Raðbarðr (Rathbartus).[355]
^In some cases, the Old Norse personal namesIngvarr[335] andYngvarr representÍvarr.[361] It is possible thatHústó is a corrupt form ofHubbo, and therefore stems from a Latin source.[335]Chronicon Roskildense seems to suffer a problem similar to that ofRagnarssona þáttr, since it accords Lodbrok with sons bearing forms of the same two names.[362] This suggests thatRagnarssona þáttr may be partly derived fromChronicon Roskildense,[363] or that both texts were influenced from English sources pertaining to the legend of Edmund.[364] The 13th-centuryAnnales Lundenses likewise accords Lodbrok with sons bearing forms of these names.[365] The bastardy accorded to Yngvarr and Hústó byRagnarssona þáttr may be a device to help explain the cruelty that they inflicted upon the saintly Edmund.[361]
^TheLives of Saints Edmund and Fremund consists of over three thousand lines of poetry, and is the most elaborate version of the legend of Edmund.[366] It portrays the invasion of Ivar and Ubba as an act motivated by envy of Edmund, and by the misplaced need to avenge their father's murder upon him.[367] WhilstLiber de infantia sancti Eadmundi portrays their mocking father (Lodbrok) as afoil to Edmund, theLives of Saints Edmund and Fremund portrays Lodbrok as a virtuous pagan, who disdained the rapine of his sons and admired the generosity and nobility of Edmund.[368]
^A similar account is given by the 12th-centuryLa vie seint Edmund le rei, which gives the same tale of Lodbrok's (Lothebrok) taunts, and of his jealous sons, Ivar, Ubba, and Björn (Bern).[373]La vie seint Edmund le rei is probably derived fromPassio sancti Eadmundi,Liber de infantia sancti Eadmundi,Estoire des Engleis,[374] and the 12th-centuryRoman de Brut.[375]La vie seint Edmund le rei is the first extended account of Edmund's legend inFrench.[376] Another French text making note of Ívarr and Ubba, and their part in the legend of Edmund, is the 13th-centuryPassiun de Seint Edmund,[377] a source mainly derived fromPassio sancti Eadmundi.[378]Passiun de Seint Edmund also states that Ivar and Ubba were responsible for the martyrdom of (the seventh-century Northumbrian king) Oswald.[379]
^WhilstLiber de infantia sancti Eadmundi may owe its information on Lodbrok and Björn toGesta Normannorum ducum, the latter account cannot be the source for the identification of Ivar and Ubba as other sons of Lodbrok.[380] According toLiber de infantia sancti Eadmundi, Ubba possessed diabolical powers that enabled him to gain victory in battle if he was lifted above his enemies.[381] Magical powers are also attributed to Ubba byLa vie seint Edmund le rei.[382] A similar motif is given byRagnars saga loðbrókar, although this source instead attributes sorcerous abilities to Ivar.[383]Historia Anglorum accords remarkable cunning to Ivar and extraordinary courage to Ubba.[384] At one point,Passio sancti Eadmundi declares that, before the fateful invasion of Anglo-Saxon England, rumours of Edmund's vigour and military prowess reached Ivar. One possibility is that this passage is the origin of the later stories of Lodbrok scorning his sons on account of Edmund's accomplishments.[385] In any case, the earliest source to specifically associate Ragnar Lodbrok's family with the legend of Edmund's martyrdom isÍslendingabók, which attributes Edmund's demise to Ivar, son of Ragnar Lodbrok.[386] The source of this claim is unknown. The earliest account to identify Ivar as a son of someone who seems to equate to Ragnar Lodbrok isGesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum.[387]
^Over the years this conjecture evolved into local tradition, and the plaque was raised before the end of the nineteenth century. The inscription reads in part: "Stop stranger stop/Near this spot lies buried/King Hubba the Dane/Who was slayed in a bloody retreat/By King Alfred the Great".[389] In 2009, a stone monument was raised in Appledore to commemorate this tradition of Ubba.[390] It is sometimes romanticised that the village ofHubberston inPembrokeshire is named after Ubba, and that he overwintered in nearbyMilford Haven. There is no evidence for this assertion.[391] Rather than being Scandianvian in origin, the name is derived from theOld Germanic personal nameHubert.[392] The name of the town is first recorded in the thirteenth century asHobertiston[393] andVilla Huberti,[394] meaning "Hubert's Farm",[393] "Hubert'smanor",[395] and "Hubert'stūn".[396] The village has only been known asHubberston since the early seventeenth century.[397] One possibility is that the town's eponym is identical to Hubertus, a man ofPembrokeshire, attested by the 12th-centuryPipe Rolls ofHenry I, King of England (died 1135).[398]
^These 13th-century compositions are the earliest accounts to associate the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok's death with that of Edmund.[403] A similar, but much later story, presented byHistoria monasterii sancti Augustini Cantuariensis, relates that Edmund was the killer of abear that was the father of Ivar and Ubba.[404] A version of the Wendover account is given byVita et passio cum miraculis sancti Edmundi, preserved by the 14th-century Oxford Bodleian Library Bodley 240.Vita et passio cum miraculis sancti Edmundi is the earliest hagiographic source of Edmund's legend to present the king taking up arms against the Vikings.[405]
^According to this version of events, Ælla is a lowly knight who became king after Osberht had been driven from the throne by Björn's relatives.[406] A somewhat similar version of events is presented byChronicon Joannis Bromton andEulogium historiarum sive temporis, sources that present Ivar and Ubba as commanding the Danes that came overseas on behalf of Björn to topple Osberht.[407] The mediaevalProseBrut is another source giving a similar account.[408] In the version of events outlined by the anonymousNarratio de uxore Aernulfi ab Ella rege Deirorum violata, Osberht is not mentioned, and it is Ælla who has committed rape during the invasion of Ivar and Ubba.[409]
^According toRagnars saga loðbrókar, for example, Ragnar was killed by Ælla, who was in turn slain by Ragnar's sons, Ivar,Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye, Björn Ironside, andHvitserk.[411] Whilst the figures Ivar and Björn are alluded to in the legend of Edmund's martyrdom (under various guises as in the case of Björn), no source associates Sigurd and Hvitserk with the legend.[346]
^Similarly, the Northumbrian-focused accounts of the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok, as given by Scandinavian sources, could have originated as a way towhite-wash history by relocating the tale of regicide from East Anglia to Northumbria, replacing the saintly Edmund with the obscure Ælla.[416] Ubba appears to be the prototype of a like-named character (Ubbe) who appears in the thirteenth- or 14th-centuryMiddle EnglishHavelok the Dane.[417] Within the tale, Ubba is closely associated with a character (Bernard Brun) who appears to correlate to Björn. Both Ubba and Björn are depicted as loyal and distinguished Danes,[418] and there is reason to suspect that they and other characters were used to add a veneer of historicity to a story exploring the Anglo-Scandinavian contribution to the English identity.[419] Since Ubba was otherwise widely asserted as one of the perpetrators of Edmund's martyrdom, one possibility is that he was inserted into the romance as a way to cast doubt upon any lingering anti-Danish sentiment.[420] Much like the legend of Ragnar Lodbrok the motif of personal revenge plays a prominent role in the tale of Havelok, with revenge used to justify Danish invasions of England.[421]
^The illustration depicts Alfred receiving the raven banner captured atArx Cynuit. The scene is probably derived from theHistory of England, byPaul de Rapin (died 1725), which portrays the battle—and the death of Ubba—as the decisive turning-point of Alfred's struggle against the Vikings.[424] The raven banner may be borrowed from an engraved portrait of Alfred byGeorge Vertue (died 1756).[425] It was after the publication of Vertue's portrait that the banner came to associated with Alfredian art.[426] For example, it also appears in an engraved portrait of the king by B. Cole, for theNew Universal Magazine of 1752; and another image bySamuel Wale (died 1786) in the 1760s. This latter depiction was published in theNew History of England of 1764–1769, byJohn Hamilton Mortimer (died 1779); and in theNew and Universal History of England of 1771–1772, by William Henry Mountague; and reused inA New and Complete History of England of 1773, by Temple Sydney; and inA New and Authentic History of England of 1777–1779, by William Augustus Russel.[427]
^The play was first presented asThe Magick Banner; or, Two Wives in a House, and published later in 1798 asAlfred; or The Magic Banner.[434]
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