Frisia, a Viking Graveyard

Hans Faber
Feb 21, 2021
9 min read

Updated: Nov 12

Hjoggum vér með hjörvi—'we swung our swords'—as all the stanzas of the twelfth-century epic poem Lay of Kraka begin, the tale of Ragnar Lothbrok’s death. When reading about the famous deeds of great Viking warriors, little attention is given to their moments of failure. Little is written about where and when those glorious men and women died. As it turns out, the coast of Frisia is one great Viking graveyard. It is here, in the (still) smelly blue mud, that legendary heroes died in masses and paid the ultimate price for a ticket to Valhalla.

First, we must mention the Battle of Norditi in 884. In German, it is remembered as the Normannenslacht (‘slaughter of the Norsemen’) or as the Battle of Hilgenriederbucht (‘Hilgenried Bay’). The clash took place on the coast of the Wadden Sea near the present-day town of Norden in the region of Ostfriesland (‘East Frisia’), in what is now northwest Germany. It is recorded both in the Annales Fuldenses of the late ninth century and in the Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum, written around 1075. In this legendary encounter, no fewer than 10,000 Vikings were said to have been cut down by the Frisians—though, according to the chroniclers, not without a little divine intervention inspired by Rimbert, Bishop of Bremen. Afterward, the Wadden Sea must have resembled the grim annual spectacle of the Grindadráp (‘pilot-whale hunt’) on the Faroe Islands.

See our blog post A Theel-Acht. What a Great Idea! to read more about this bloody clash at Norden—and about the unexpected benefits it brought the Frisians in its aftermath.

Only a year later, in 885, a Viking army of Godfrid the Sea-King—also spelled Godfred, Guðröðr, or Godfrey—was slaughtered by the joint forces of Saxons and Frisians at the present-day town of Spijk in the Netherlands. Godfrid was assassinated shortly before the battle began. This, too, according to the late ninth-century Annales Fuldenses. His assassination was the result of a conspiracy between the Frankish king and the Saxon and Frisian elite.

Then there was the failed raid in Frisia by the Viking warlord Egil in 956, when some 300 Vikings had to flee across the slippery, sheep-dung-covered fields, leaping over countless ditches and tidal creeks on the salt marsh in a desperate attempt to reach their longships and escape alive.

Besides Viking armies being slaughtered or driven out of Frisia, three renowned warlords also met their end in its salty mud. Among them were two of the five sons of the legendary, semi-mythical king Ragnar Lothbrok—also rendered as Lodbrok or Loðbrók—known from the old sagas (Simek et al 2020). This may come as a surprise to fans of Michael Hirst’s Vikings or Jeb Stuart’s Vikings Valhalla, and it casts quite a different light on Robert Eggers’ film The Northman as well.

Perhaps, then, the monument of the three standing swords Sverd i fjell—‘swords in rock’—near the town of Stavanger in Norway would be even more fitting if relocated to the tidal marshlands along the Wadden Sea of Frisia. There, it might bear the more appropriate name Sverd i gjørme—‘swords in mud.’ Fittingly enough, these were high-quality Frankish swords, most likely acquired by Vikings through the shrewd dealings of Frisian merchants (De Maesschalck 2019).

Let us turn to these three famous swords—these feeders of war-gulls, of ravens—and consider them one by one:

Sword 1 — The death of Rodulf Haraldsson († 873)

Other names of Rodulf are: Rudolf, Rodolph, Rodolb, Rothlaib, Hróðulfr, and Hrólfr.

Rodulf, son of Harald the Younger and cousin of the Frisian-based duke and warlord Roric (or Rorik) of Dorestad, was a formidable Viking leader. He plundered the British Isles, West Francia, and East Francia, and after carrying out devastating raids in Ireland, he turned up in the region of the Lower River Rhine in 863. At that time, his uncle Rorik held sway over western Frisia, including the great emporium of Dorestad—the bustling trade hub located at the present-day town of Wijk bij Duurstede in the centre of the Netherlands.

Rodulf met his end in 873 in the pagus ('territory') Ostrachia—also called Ostergau—the region still known today as Oostergo in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. This was the same territory where the Anglo-Saxon Archbishop Saint Boniface, together with his small retinue, had been cut down with an axe by pagan Frisians in 754. Clearly, Oostergo was not the most hospitable of places. Rodulf fell there along with 500 of his men. Admittedly, not quite the staggering numbers of the Battle of Norditi mentioned above, but still a respectable tally. All this is recorded in the Annales Xantenses, written already in the late ninth century.

Ac non post multum temporis Ruodoldus nepos predicti tiranni, qui transmarinas regiones plurimas regnumque Francorum undique atque Galliam horribiliter et pene totam Fresiam vastavit. In eadem regione, in pago Ostrachia ab eadem gente cum quingentis viris agiliter interfectus est et, quamvis baptizatus esset, caninam vitam digna morte finivit.

And not long after Rodulf, cousin of the aforementioned tyrant, who had ravaged many lands overseas of the empire of Francia, and in a horrible way had plundered Gaul and most of Frisia. In that same area in the district Oostergo, he and 500 of his men have been swiftly killed by the same people, and even though he was baptized, he ended his dog-like life with a death worthy of it.

Another one bites the mud.

And there was much rejoicing

There is, however, a competing account in which Rodulf is slain together with 800 men, not 500. This version also places the events in the territory of Oostergo, here called the countship of Albdagi. According to it, Rodulf demanded tribute from the Frisians, but when they stubbornly refused, he launched an attack and was immediately slain along with 800 of his warriors. This despite the Frisians being outnumbered. The surviving Vikings fled into a building, unable to reach their longships in time, only to find themselves besieged by the furious Frisians.

Interestingly, it was a Norseman who had long lived among the Frisians who advised them to let the Vikings depart and extract a vow never to return to Frisia, rather than risk another battle. Moreover, he recommended that the Vikings be required to pay compensation for their raid and their ill-mannered and shocking behaviour. To guarantee payment, the Frisians took several hostages. The Vikings left in deep shame and with significant losses, and, true to their word, later paid the silver to ransom the hostages once they returned home. This account comes from the Annales Fuldenses, written in the late ninth century.

By the way, the year 873 was a year when the rivers Rhine and Weser had flooded the land. This information comes from the Annales Xanteses and the Annales Corbeienses. Besides being a deadly affair, Frisia must have been a very wet affair too for Rodulf.

Sword 2 — The death of Björn Ironside (ca. † 880)

Other names for Björn Ironside are: Bjǫrn Járnsíða and Bier Costae ferreae. In the series Vikings, it was the Canadian actor Alexander Ludwig who played the character.

Björn, a son of the famous Ragnar Lothbrok, raided widely—including England, Francia, and, together with the warlord Hastein (also written Hásteinn), Spain and the Mediterranean. On a voyage from Francia to Denmark, Björn first suffered a shipwreck and was cast ashore on the coast of England, from where he eventually continued his sea travels. On this journey, he was blown off course and ended up in Frisia, where he was killed by the Frisians. This likely occurred sometime in the 880s, though no exact date is recorded. All of this is recounted in William of Jumièges’ Gesta Normannorum Ducum (‘deeds of the Norman dukes’), written in 1070 or 1071.

Nam Bier, totius excidii signifer, exercituumque, dum nativum solum repeteret, naufragium passus, vix apud Anglos portum obtinuit, quampluribus de suis navibus submersis. Indeque Fresiam petens, ibidem obiit mortem.

For Björn, standard-bearer of great destruction, and his army suffered shipwreck while he was returning to his homeland and barely reached a harbour on the English coast, with very many of his ships being sunk. Thence on his way to Frisia, he died there.

Another one bites the mud.

And there was much rejoicing

The popular Swedish local tale that Björn Ironside is buried in the hills of Munsö, near the town of Birka in Sweden, is far less certain than his unceremonious, casual death in the swampy lands of Frisia. The Munsö story comes from the thirteenth-century Hervarar saga, which, as its name suggests, is merely a saga—and notably much later than William of Jumièges’ account. For that reason, the Gesta Normannorum Ducum (GND) carries more weight as a reliable source.

In addition, the GND is one of the most important historical records for the medieval history of Normandy, and William of Jumièges is also the first written authority to mention the saga of Ragnar Lothbrok. Therefore, if one accepts the historical existence of Ragnar, one must also give credence to the GND and to his son’s untimely death in Frisia. Finally, although William of Jumièges provides no precise dates, his account captures the atmosphere of Björn’s voyage with remarkable authenticity (Kacani 2015).

Exactly where in Frisia Björn met his end is not recorded. It could have been near England, across the Southern Bight, on the coastal plains known as Sincfala in what is now West Flanders, or far to the north at the mouth of the River Weser in today’s region of Ostfriesland in northwest Germany—or anywhere in between. All of these regions were considered part of Frisia at the time.

Sword 3 — The death of Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye († 887)

Other names of Sigurd are: Sigurðr ormr í auga, Sigurdr, Siegfried, Sigfrey, and Sigfred. In the series Vikings, it was the Swedish actor David Lindström who played the character.

Sigurd, according to legend and early sources, was also a son of the famed Viking Ragnar Lothbrok. He became one of the commanders of the stor hær, the Great Heathen Army, which ravaged much of England between 865 and 878. Sigurd also took part in the Siege of Paris in 885–886. After all this bloody adventure, he turned his snake-eye toward Frisia in 887—only to be defeated by Frisians armed with axes and clubs. Bye-bye, Snake-eye. This account comes from the Annales Vedastini, written in the early tenth century.

Sigefridus vero cum suis verno finiente in Sequanam rediit agens solita et circa autumni tempora Frexiam petiit, ibique interfectus est.

At the end of spring, Sigurd and his men returned to the River Seine for the regular extortion, and he attacked Frisia around autumn, where he was killed.

Another one bites the mud.

And there was much rejoicing

Indeed, a slightly different version than the dramatic one whereby Sigurd receives a deadly blow of an axe on his skull by his short-tempered brother Ivar the Boneless.

The year 886 was, once again, a soaking wet one across western Europe. Rivers overflowed, particularly the mighty River Rhine. Even during the Siege of Paris, rain fell relentlessly for three months straight that summer. In March of the same year, the Frisian merchant quarter of Mainz was consumed by fire. The River Rhine continued to flood well into autumn, followed by an exceptionally long and bitterly cold winter that stretched into 887. It was, in short, a miserable, wet, and cold end for Sigurd. All of this is recorded in the Annales Fuldenses.

Note 1 — If interested in more Frisia during the Viking Age, check out our blog posts earlier: A Theel-Acht. What a Great Idea!, or Foreign Fighters Returning From Viking Warbands, or Wilfrid, You’ll Never Walk Alone, or Walcheren Island. Once the Sodom and Gomorrah of the North Sea. Learn also in the latter blog post about Ubba Ragnarsson, also known as Ubbi friski and Ubbo Fresicus ‘Ubbe the Frisian’ from the territory of Walcheren in south-western Frisia, and who was also one of the leaders of the Great Heathen Army.

Note 2 — Besides finishing off Vikings on their own turf, Frisians helped out King Alfred of Wessex to get rid of Vikings as well. This was in the year 897. Check the Frisian maritime contribution to the survival of the Kingdom of Wessex in our post ♪ They Want You as a New Recruit ♪

Note 3 — Although we have no proof, the Gesta Normannorum Ducum (GND) of William of Jumièges might have inspired American writer Leslie Stevens to create his play The Lovers (1957), including raiding Frisians along the coast of Normandy in France. A play which was made into the Hollywood movie The War Lord. See our blog post Movie Star Ben-Hur Made Peace With Frisian Raiders for more.

Suggested hiking

Hike, or cycle, the Wikinger Friesen Weg ('Vikings Frisians Way'). A trail of 175 kilometers that runs from west to east, between the village of Sankt Peter Ording on the peninsula of Eiderstedt in the region of Nordfriesland in the west, and the village of Maasholm in the region of Schleswig-Flensburg in the east. So, from the Wadden Sea to the Baltic Sea. For more information check the site of Schleswig-Holstein.

Suggested music

Elvis Presley, Trouble (1958)

Sinatra, N., Bang Bang (My Baby Shot me Down) (1966)

Queen, Another One Bites the Dust (1980)

Frisia Coast Trail.com

The 1,000 mile coastal hike for people with fear of heights
and interest in 2,500 years of living on the sharp edge of land and sea

Frisia, a Viking Graveyard

Sword 1 — The death of Rodulf Haraldsson († 873)

Sword 2 — The death of Björn Ironside (ca. † 880)

Sword 3 — The death of Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye († 887)

Suggested hiking

Suggested music

Further reading

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