The True Story of Hvitserk | Vikings

Welcome to the video, don't forget to hit that bell icon for weekly videos on historical figures and stories. If you enjoy the content, be sure to subscribe. The story of Witzok is set at the height of the Viking Age in the 9th century. During this time, the Norsemen were raiding lands indiscriminately. England, Paris, the Mediterranean, the list goes on. No lands were safe from their wrath. Witzok was a key player during the time of the Great Heathen Army and their conquest of most of England. However, there is one issue with the tale of Witzok. Many sources mention a son of Ragnar named Halfdan who accompanied his brothers to England. Due to Halfdan and Witzok not being mentioned in any of the same sources, many historians believe that they are the same person and that Witzok was perhaps the nickname of Halfdan. Regardless, we will explore all sources regarding the life of Witzok and Halfdan, assuming they were indeed the same person. First, let's look at Witzok's life according to the Gesta Dnorum. According to this source, Witzok was the son of Ragnar Lothbrok, the legendary king and raider, and his mother was a woman named Svangloga. Ragnar being a man of action, prepared an expedition to the Hellespont and summoned an assembly of Danes. He would take many of his sons and Witzok would be one of them. The young warrior would go with his battle-hardened father and some of his brothers to the other side of the known world, where the sun shone brighter and where the sea was much clearer. According to the tale, Ragnar and his forces subdued the armies of the Hellespont, but their king had married off his daughter to the Russian king in hope of an alliance. Ragnar would soon face the Russians and their boundless army, but he and his sons would overcome their forces. Witzok and his father would also overcome the forces of the Scythians, who were an ancient nomadic people. Witzok had fought well and had distinguished himself in battle and his father Ragnar rewarded him with a province that they had taken, but a deal had to be made and he shared it with the king of the Russians. Once Ragnar's army had finished in Hellespont, he and his forces returned to Scandinavia, as did Witzok. After a time, Witzok would come to rule over Sweden, however much of the events of how this came to pass have been lost. Many warriors and Jarls wished to govern Sweden and they would plot against Witzok. One day, a Jarl named Daxo would prepare his army, but he would disguise it as a large trading community and would ride on the city in which Witzok resided. Daxo would ride into the city under the pretense of being a trader and Witzok would receive him with hospitality. As the disguised army arrived into the city, they would leap out of their wagons and carriages that weren't full of goods, but were full of warriors. Witzok, being a warrior through and through, slew many men and couldn't be killed. He would soon be surrounded by a heap of enemy corpses, but many of his own personal warriors were captured in the fight. Twelve of his warriors were captured and they were granted their freedom, but instead, they gave up their lives for their king and chose to share the dangers with their leader Witzok. Daxo was moved by the gesture from his warriors, now knowing that Witzok was a worthy king. So Daxo offered Witzok his daughter in marriage, but the dowry would be half of his kingdom. Of his own will, Witzok embraced the sentence of doom. Daxo then promised he could choose how he wanted to die. Witzok said he wanted to be bound and burned alive with his warrior companions, Daxo obliged him and by the way of kindness, granted him the end that he had chosen. Now let's look at Witzok according to the tale of Ragnar and his sons, which has a completely different story. Ragnar would marry Oslaug, the daughter of Sigurd the Dragonslayer. Together, Ragnar and Oslaug had four sons, Ivar the Boneless, Bjorn Ironside, Witzok and then Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye. When Ragnar's sons were fully grown, they went raiding far and wide. Ragnar's oldest sons were called Eirik and Agnar. The brothers would conquer Zealand, Gotland and many small islands in the sea. Ivar the Boneless and his younger brothers being Bjorn and Witzok, set their base in Zealand where they would prepare many other raids and conquests. This however, went against the will of their father Ragnar, but his sons would all crave war, wanting to become as famous as their father, but this would ultimately lead to some of their downfalls. Ragnar's sons had essentially turned against him and were taking some of his lands against his will. To combat this, he set up a man called Æstein Belli as king over Upper Sweden to hold the realm from his sons. Eirik and Agnar however, his oldest sons, would sail to Sweden on their dragon-headed longboats. Æstein would consult the Swedish chieftains and would raise an army to defend the land from Ragnar's bloodthirsty sons. Eirik and Agnar's army would clash against Æstein's and a great battle would ensue, but Ragnar's sons were overwhelmed by superior numbers. Their troops were completely slaughtered to a man. Agnar would be slain in battle and Eirik was captured. Eirik said he no longer wished to live after such a shameful defeat. He asked Æstein to catch him from below on spear points and lift him above all his slain warriors. His dying declaration was, send word to my slender sweet stepmother, tell her all my rings are hers, my brother's anger will grow when she brings the bountinous news of my demise. Áslaug would soon receive the news of both of her stepson's deaths and she would weep blood. She then said to her own sons, if you lot had fallen, they would not let you go forgotten. Vitsug would answer, let's plan before vowing how vengeance might be managed. Various vile torments await for Agnar's killer. King Æstein would hear word of the coming vengeance and would raise an army with every man of fighting age who was in the realm. Ivar, Bjorn and Vitsug would raise their own army and when the two sides met, a climactic battle ensued. Rage and retribution would make them fight with a trance like fury. The sons of Agnar were in the thick of the fighting and slew many men that day. Æstein's forces were dwindling and were eventually beaten and a mass slaughter followed. King Æstein would fall, making the sons of Ragnar even more famous. Ragnar would eventually go back to England and would wage war on King Ella. The great king and warrior that was Ragnar would get captured however, he was then executed by being thrown into a pit of snakes. Once again the sons of Ragnar would need to avenge another family member but this time, it was one of the most celebrated Vikings of all time, their father. Ivar, Bjorn, Sigurd and Vitsug would make their way to England having amassed a huge army, which would later be known to history as the Great Heathen Army. They killed King Ella and killed him with the ritualistic execution that was the Blood Eagle to humiliate Ella, just as he humiliated Ragnar in the snake pit. They wanted him to suffer by sacrificing him to the gods with a vengeful slow death to appease Ragnar's spirit. After this, Vitsug and his brothers went raiding in many lands, England, Normandy and France. The furthest they got was the town of Luni in northern Italy. They even thought of going to Rome but decided against it due to the great tales they had heard on their travels of the ancient city of old, where strange gods had once ruled and had allowed the warriors of the city to conquer the world. So Vitsug had raided far and wide, he had been to the Hellespont, had fought the Russians, Scythians, Italians, French and the English and he and his brothers were the most famous men in all lands where Norse was spoken. Once the sons of Ragnar returned to Scandinavia, they divided up the lands and Vitsug would rule Wendland. Now, according to the Anglo-Saxon sources following the conquest of East Anglia and Northumbria, Ivar the Boneless would take many of his warriors north and would disband from the great heathen army. In the Anglo-Saxon chronicle, Vitsug would be referred to as Halfdan but for the sake of the video, we will continue calling him Vitsug. After Ivar went north, Vitsug would take command of the great heathen army according to the Anglo-Saxon chronicle. His army would battle the West Saxons nine times, including the famous battle of Ashdown. On the 8th of January 871, Vitsug divided his forces into two contingents, one under him the king and another under his earls. They were facing Prince Alfred who would later be known to history as Alfred the Great and his older brother King Æthelred of Wessex. Prince Alfred led his forces into battle and both sides would form a shield wall. King Æthelred did as a king should and led the charge uphill towards the Vikings. The battle was fierce with many warriors dying but eventually the Saxons would have the victory. Vitsug however was still at large having escaped the battle. Just two months later, there was another battle known as the Battle of Merton. According to the Anglo-Saxon chronicle, there was a great slaughter on both sides but the Vikings had possession of the battlefield. The warrior-priest Bishop Hermund would fall and just one month later, King Æthelred would die due to the wounds that were inflicted on him in the battle. Vitsug was now one step closer to conquering the entirety of England. He and his forces had nine consecutive battles against the West Saxons but they just wouldn't submit, so he would accept a truce with their newly crowned king, Alfred. Vitsug and the Great Heathen Army then captured London and would winter there. During this period, coins were made bearing the name Halfdan, identifying him as the army's leader and king. The Vikings would bide their time there till 874, where they conquered Mercia and deposed its king, King Buchred, and then replaced him with the Danish puppet regent, Seawolf. Following this victory, the Great Heathen Army would again split, with Guthrum heading south to continue the fight against Wessex and Vitsug going north. Vitsug would then conquer Dublin and kill Æstein Olafsson, its king. Ivar the Boneless had ruled the city prior to his death in 873 and Vitsug wanted to regain his brother's lost kingdom. However, Vitsug didn't remain in Ireland for long and in 876, he returned to Northumbria, being crowned the King of Jorvik, which can be translated into Scandinavian York. Vitsug's reign in Dublin wasn't secure though and he was deposed while ruling in York. Upon hearing of this, he was furious. He returned to Dublin to try to recapture the city in 877. Vitsug wouldn't be fighting the Irish however. Dublin was a Viking city at the time, with them all vying for power there, and what better way to cement your rule than to kill a legendary son of Ragnar. In this venture, Vitsug finally met his end, dying in Ireland. So in the Gesta Danorum, Vitsug died in Sweden. In the tale of Ragnar's sons, it says he ruled Wendland after all his adventures, and if Halfdan is indeed the same person as Vitsug, then according to Anglo-Saxon accounts, he was slain in Dublin. Could Vitsug have been the same man in all three sources? Or do you think him to be more than one man? His achievements were legendary, sailing to the Hellespont, fighting the Russians, Scythians, Irish, English, French and Italians. He was hailed as the King of Jorvik. He shared lands with the King of the Russians near the Hellespont. He was the King of Dublin for a time, and the ruler of Wendland. Were all of these achievements possible for one man? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section down below. I hope you all enjoyed the video, and I'll see you all soon for another history profile.