Sons of Ragnar: Reflection of the Great Ragnar Lothbrok

Ragnar Lothbrok was among the most famous Viking legendary heroes. His reputation rocks to the stardom thanks to the successful movies series. In the tales of Ragnar Lothbrok, he fathered many sons. Every son of Ragnar had their own stories. But the sons of Ragnar shared one thing in common which was the desire to revenge for their father's death. This resulted in the Great Heathen Army. 

This piece of writing would discuss four sons of Ragnar and Aslaug. Each son of Ragnar seemed to reflect an image of Ragnar. They were Ivar the Boneless, Bjorn Ironside, Hvitserk, and Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye. 

Though the modern adaptation depicts Ivar and Bjorn as the step-brothers. In the tale of Ragnar's sons, they were the sons of Ragnar and Aslaug. 

Ivar the Boneless: From the Crippled Viking to the Military Genius

According to the myth, Ivar was cursed by his mother. Aslaug wife of Ragnar and mother of Ivar once warned Ragnar about the curse. He arrived home after days of voyaging and raiding. Aslaug warned Ragnar to wait three days before he could touch her. But Ragnar could not resist the temptation. He ignored the warning leading to their first son being crippled. 

Ivar the Boneless in a battle depicted on TV Series "Vikings"

He was Ivar the Boneless. It was difficult to tell why Ivar survived the test of his father when he was born. Because in the Viking tradition, the father would examine his newly-born child to find out any physical disability on the child. If the baby had one disability, chances were that the family would abandon them into the jungle and left them there to die. 

Maybe the fate spared him his life for his destiny was to become a great war-band leader. 

Later, Ivar became a true military genius just like his father once was. For the physical disabilities, Ivar trained his hands so hard. Legends had it that Ivar could shoot the arrow as long as a tree toward the enemies. He softly drew the bow back and shoot the arrow. 

Bjorn Ironside: Embodiment of Thor in the Viking sagas?

If Ivar the Boneless presented the wisdom and intelligence in the war tactics, Bjorn Ironside was representative of the physical strength. His nickname "Ironside" was believed to present the strength of his arms. 

In his attempt to take over Luni, the Italian town that the Vikings mistook for Rome. The fort of Luni town was so sturdy that no one could ever wish to penetrate it without the permission. Bjorn knew this very well. So in order not to unnecessarily waste any life of his men, he came up with an idea. 

Bjorn Ironside was the son of Ragnar Lothbrok and Aslaug

The surviving materials said that Bjorn played a trick on the bishop inside Luni town. He asked his servants to send the bishop inside the fort a message saying that he (Bjorn) was about to die and his last wish was to get baptized to convert himself into Christian. Believing this was true, the bishop ordered to welcome Bjorn inside the fort.

Once inside the fort, Bjorn Ironside jumped out of his bed showing no sign of sickness. He fought alongside his men to take over Luni. 

Hvitserk: Leader of Great Heathen Army

Hvitserk was the most controversial figure in the sons of Ragnar. Because accounts about Hvitserk vary from each other. Some people say that Hvitserk was the compilation of many figures from the Viking sagas. 

But in the tales of Ragnar's sons, Hvitserk was the son of Ragnar and Aslaug. He was the brother of Ivar the Boneless and Bjorn Ironside. He was among the leaders of the Great Heathen Army who sought revenge for Ragnar's death.

Though Hvitserk was not vividly depicted as his two mentioned brothers, he was known for his bravery and quality of family-orientation. 

Despite not being depicted vividly, Hvitserk was a true Viking warrior with his great bravery

When he learnt that his brother, Ivar, was overthrown by Eystein son of King Olaf of Dublin, he attempted to seek revenge for his brother. He won the wrestling battle with Eyestein to prove his physical strength. However, he lost to the hand of Eyestein later and fled back to Ireland where he met his final battle and rested forever. 

Sigurd Ragnarson: The cursed child with the snake mark

According to the Tales of Ragnar's sons, Sigurd was a sensitive man and he was the most closed son to Ragnar Lothbrok. Lord Ragnar brought Sigurd into many important battles with him which was a priority that other sons didn't have. 

Sigurd was born with the mark in the eye. It presented a snake or a dragon sign in his eye. It was believed to be the image of the Ouroboros symbol depicting the snake biting his tail in his mouth. 

The mark in the eye of Sigurd is allegedly the symbol of Ouroboros

On hearing the death of his father Ragnar Lothbrok, Sigurd cut himself to the bone by gripping the knife so hard. His brother, Bjorn Ironside was allegedly to grip the spear so harsh that he left his fingers on the spear.