“You don’t understand. That is not the price you are required to pay today,” Ivar told king Aelle just before Bjorn conducted the Blood-Eagle execution on him. It was the most brutal death in the show if you consider Aelle’s screams as he gave in to the pain of Bjorn’s axe cutting into his spine. Bjorn had learned that from his father, who executed Jarl Borg in the same manner. Sadly, both Ragnar and Bjorn met similarly brutal deaths in the end. Here is a look at the 10 most brutal deaths in the hit show.

Ragnar

How does it feel like to die from multiple snake bites with no means to defend yourself? Ragnar Lothbrok was not a saint, but he was a great man that had done everything required of him to make a better life for his people. He created a legacy for his sons and led the Vikings into exploring new lands where they could have better lives than their harsh homeland. He made some mistakes along the way, but he didn’t deserve to die the way he did. It was hard to imagine that King Aelle would be capable of such brutality. When he killed Ragnar, the veteran Viking was not a threat to him.

Aethelred

Vikings decided to disagree with history by not giving Aethelred a chance to be king before his brother Alfred. Aethelred was a great fighter, though, and the best of brothers that the sickly Alfred could ever hope for. He was the popular choice to be king, but there was no evidence that he was willing to go against his brother. Judith, on the other hand, wouldn’t stand the idea of someone going against her beloved Alfred. She chose to poison her own son in the Purple-Wedding style of Game of Thrones. The poor warrior died helplessly choking on his dinner while his mother watched and sneered.

Bjorn

Bjorn Ironside had done everything right to defend his father’s legacy, including uniting all of Norway under one king. He also gave his brothers a chance, including Ivar, whom he didn’t kill earlier when he had a chance, even when he knew how damaged he was. Ivar didn’t understand the meaning of family, though.
Ivar drove the sword into his elder brother’s chest while the latter was still trying to get Ivar to see sense in ending the war. Bjorn didn’t die by his wounds, though. He chose to die on the battlefield rallying his people to fight and thus died from multiple arrows shot through his body. It was sad to watch Ragnar’s son giving up the ghost after fighting so hard to save everyone.

Jarl Borg

Jarl Borg was stupid to think he could attack Kattegat, but he was even more foolish to think that Ragnar would forgive him for it. Ragnar had treated him nicely when they first met, and the decision to leave him behind during the raid Ragnar made with king Horik was actually Horik’s idea. Despite the pleas from everyone, Ragnar decided to conduct the blood eagle on the Jarl after fooling him into bringing himself to Kattegat. Jarl Borg was a strong man. He didn’t flinch even once as Ragnar cut him mercilessly in front of everyone. It was the bloodiest murder by Ragnar throughout the entire show.

King Aelle

King Aelle’s death was not nearly enough to repay Ragnar Lothbrok’s death, but it sure was brutal. It was as bloody as Jarl Borg’s Blood-Eagle, except Aelle, wasn’t as strong as Borg. He was dragged by a horse to the very spot where he killed Ragnar before being subjected to more horror than he could imagine. The saddest part was that the execution was being conducted by Bjorn this time around, a person that Aelle didn’t feel he had wronged in any way. He died painfully screaming until his body gave up.

The Seer

Ivar’s madness hurt Kattegat more than all the wars the little town had fought since the days of Earl Haraldson. The people were angry, but he wouldn’t withstand any correction, so he burned them alive. When he finally declared himself a god, his madness peaked as he didn’t think he needed the seer anymore.
The poor man had lived in the dark, always lonely and having to go through everyone’s pain. The least he could get from the people of Kattegat was a thank you. Instead, Ivar chose to kill him with an axe to the head at a time when the seer was obviously sickly and in need of help. The seer didn’t even get the proper burial and respect he deserved.

Sigvard

Sigvard was Lagertha’s second husband, who was abusive and dangerous to her and Bjorn. He enjoyed beating and shaming Lagertha because he was obviously scared of the shadow of her first husband. It was obvious from the beginning that either Lagertha or Bjorn would kill Sigvard, but when it came, it was more brutal than everyone expected. Lagertha stabbed him in the eye with a knife in front of everyone. Then when his brother came, he chose to behead him rather than punish Lagertha for stabbing his brother. So, he died with a knife in the eye and no head.

The Bishop In York

The Seer of Kattegat was not Ivar’s first victim. He had killed his brother with an axe and many other people. However, the most brutal killing by Ivar was the bishop in York. When the Vikings attacked the town of York on Ascension Day, the Saxons were in no position to fight back, so it was just a massacre.
Ubbe realized that it was all wrong, but Ivar enjoyed it. He watched the bishop kiss a cross and decided that it would be more pleasurable to feed him the cross instead. He had molten gold poured into the poor bishop’s mouth before his lifeless body was dragged through the streets by horses.

Vigrid

Vigrid was the blacksmith of Kattegat that was stupid enough to rescue Ivar when Bjorn liberated the town. The two were then captured by the Rus, who weren’t exactly fond of the Norwegians. Prince Oleg decided to torture Vigrid in the worst way imaginable. The blacksmith was tied to a pole and swung around after being tortured. His body parts scattered all over, with some falling on Ivar. He died from the wound in a lot of pain.

Yidu

Yidu was a slave that got Ragnar hooked on drugs and paid the ultimate price. She was innocent and only started sleeping with Ragnar after Aslaug ordered it. When she gave Ragnar the hallucinogens, she probably didn’t know that he would get addicted. The supply was obviously limited, and that is when Ragnar decided that he had no more use for her. He drowned her and simply watched as life left her body. Sadly, no one seemed to miss her after she was gone.