When people talk about the heavy hitters in The Last Kingdom, they usually start with Uhtred’s sword-swinging antics or Alfred’s chronic indigestion and religious brooding. But if you really look at the emotional architecture of the show, specifically during the middle seasons, everything orbits around one person. The Last Kingdom Gisela wasn't just another love interest in a long line of Uhtred’s "destiny" flings. She was the anchor. Honestly, without her, Uhtred probably would have burned Northumbria to the ground or died in a ditch somewhere in Mercia years earlier than he did.
She arrived during a period of absolute chaos.
Remember Season 2? Uhtred was basically a slave on a rowing bench, broken and humiliated. Then comes Gisela. Played by Peri Baumeister, she didn't just play a "damsel." She brought this weird, calm power to the screen that balanced out the testosterone-fueled madness of the Viking Age. She was the sister of King Guthred of Northumbria, but she had more political sense in her pinky finger than her brother had in his whole royal court.
What Made Gisela Different From Uhtred’s Other Lovers?
Brida was fire and fury. Mildrith was a duty-bound mistake fueled by Alfred’s manipulation. Iseult was a mystical fever dream. But Gisela? She was home.
The relationship between Uhtred and The Last Kingdom Gisela worked because it was the only one based on genuine, mutual respect rather than political leverage or shared trauma. She accepted his dual identity. While everyone else was trying to force Uhtred to be "more Saxon" or "more Dane," Gisela just let him be Uhtred. It sounds simple, but in the 9th century, that kind of emotional intelligence was a goddamn superpower.
She saw the man behind the reputation.
💡 You might also like: Ashley My 600 Pound Life Now: What Really Happened to the Show’s Most Memorable Ashleys
Most viewers forget that their marriage lasted years. In "TV time," we see the highlights, but narratively, they built a life together at Coccham. They had children. They had peace. For a guy who screams "Destiny is all!" every five minutes, Gisela was the only person who actually gave him a reason to want a future that didn't involve holding a bloody Seax.
The Problem With Her Departure
Look, we have to talk about how she left. It was brutal.
Gisela dies in childbirth while Uhtred is away fighting for Alfred (again). It’s a trope, sure—the "fridging" of a female character to give the male lead man-pain—but in the context of The Last Kingdom, it felt more like a structural collapse. When she died, the show got darker. Uhtred’s tether to any kind of domestic stability snapped.
The scene where he returns to find her buried? Heartbreaking.
He digs her up. People think that's gross or weird, but it was purely Uhtred. He couldn't stand the thought of her being buried with a Christian cross when she lived her life with the old gods. He gave her a pagan cremation. He defied the church, he defied Alfred, and he risked everything just to make sure her soul went to Valhalla. That’s not just "plot"—that’s a deep dive into how much she defined his spiritual world.
📖 Related: Album Hopes and Fears: Why We Obsess Over Music That Doesn't Exist Yet
The Last Kingdom Gisela and the "Curse" of Uhtred
There is this lingering sentiment among fans that Uhtred is cursed. Everyone he loves dies. While that’s mostly just the reality of living in a time before antibiotics and during a literal century of war, Gisela’s death felt different because it wasn't a sword to the chest. It was the biological reality of the era.
Peri Baumeister’s performance is actually what sold the stakes here. She didn't have many massive "battle speeches," but her quiet conversations with Uhtred provided the only moments where the audience could catch their breath. She was the "Lady of Coccham," and she ran that estate with an iron fist in a velvet glove.
Think about the dynamics:
- She managed the tensions between the Saxon workers and Uhtred’s pagan warriors.
- She stood up to the priests who constantly tried to undermine their household.
- She provided a foil to Alfred’s stiffness, showing that a different kind of leadership was possible.
Comparing the Books to the Screen
If you’ve read Bernard Cornwell’s The Saxon Stories, you know that the show actually does Gisela a bit of justice, which isn't always the case for book-to-screen adaptations. In the novels, specifically The Lords of the North and Sword Song, her influence is even more pervasive.
The show condenses time. In reality, they were together for about a decade. The screen version of The Last Kingdom Gisela captures that "earth mother" energy that Cornwell wrote about, but adds a layer of defiance. She wasn't just waiting around for Uhtred to come home from the wars. She was the one ensuring there was a home to come back to.
👉 See also: The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads: Why This Live Album Still Beats the Studio Records
Why Her Legacy Matters for the Series Finale
Even in Seven Kings Must Die, the final movie, you can feel the vacuum left by characters like Gisela. Uhtred becomes a more cynical man as the series progresses. He becomes the "Kingmaker," the "Wolf of Wessex," but the softness we saw in the mid-seasons? That died with her.
Her children—Uhtred the Younger and Stiorra—become central pillars of the late-game plot. Stiorra, in particular, is the spitting image of her mother’s spirit. When Stiorra refuses to bow to the Saxons, she’s channeling Gisela. It’s a nice bit of continuity that keeps the character alive even after she’s been off the screen for three seasons.
Honestly, the show never quite found another female lead who could match that specific chemistry. Aethelflaed was great, but that was a romance born of duty and political tragedy. Gisela was just... love. It was the only time the show felt like it wasn't just about "England" or "Denmark," but about two people trying to survive a mess they didn't create.
Key Takeaways for Fans of the Character
If you’re revisiting the series or just getting into it, pay attention to the silence. Gisela’s best moments aren't when she's talking; they’re when she’s watching. She understands the political chess board better than Uhtred ever did.
- Watch the eyes: Baumeister plays Gisela as someone who is constantly calculating the cost of Uhtred's loyalty to Alfred.
- The Coccham years: These are arguably the "golden age" of the series. The show’s lighting even changes—it’s warmer, more golden, less "grey and muddy" than the later seasons.
- The pagan vs. Christian conflict: Gisela is the bridge. She is Danish royalty living in a Saxon world, and she navigates it without losing her identity. That’s a massive lesson in character writing.
Actionable Steps for Deepening Your Knowledge
If you want to truly appreciate the role of The Last Kingdom Gisela and the history she represents, stop just watching the show and start looking at the actual history of the Danelaw. While Gisela is a fictionalized version of historical archetypes, the "peace-weaver" role she played was a real thing.
- Read "The Saxon Stories": Start with The Lords of the North. The inner monologue of Uhtred regarding Gisela is far more descriptive than what a TV budget allows.
- Compare the Love Interests: Set aside an evening to watch the transitions between Iseult, Gisela, and Aethelflaed. You’ll see the clear shift in Uhtred’s maturity.
- Research Danish Queens in England: Look up the history of women like Emma of Normandy or the daughters of Viking Jarls. You'll find that Gisela's "quiet power" was actually the standard for the era's elite women.
- Analyze the "Pagan Burial" Scene: It’s one of the most historically significant scenes in terms of depicting the clash of cultures. Research why burial rites mattered so much in the 800s—it wasn't just about religion; it was about property and soul-ownership.
Gisela wasn't a side character. She was the heart of the show's best years. When she died, Uhtred became a legend, but he stopped being a man who had everything. He just became a man with a sword and a very long list of people to kill. That shift is the most important narrative arc in the entire series, and it all comes back to her.