Honestly, if you ask a die-hard fan when the show actually peaked, they aren’t going to point at the later seasons with the massive CGI armies. They’ll point to Vikings season 3. This was the year Michael Hirst basically decided to set the world on fire. We saw the transition from a show about small-town boat builders to a sprawling epic that took on the walls of Paris. But looking back, there is so much more going on beneath the surface of those ten episodes than just "Vikings hit things with axes."
Most people remember the "coffin trick." It’s iconic. Ragnar Lothbrok, played with that weird, magnetic twitchiness by Travis Fimmel, faking his own death to get inside the gates of Paris. It’s a legendary moment. But you’ve gotta realize that by the time we reached that finale, the show had fundamentally changed. It wasn't just about raiding anymore; it was about the slow, painful rot of a man’s soul.
The Wessex Betrayal: More Than Just Farming
The season kicks off with a promise. King Ecbert (Linus Roache) tells Ragnar he can have his land in Wessex. All he has to do is fight a war for Princess Kwenthrith. Typical medieval politics, right? Ragnar agrees because, at his core, he wants to be a farmer. He says it to Bjorn constantly: "I never wanted to be king."
But the alliance is basically built on sand. While Ragnar and Lagertha are out there doing the dirty work, Ecbert is playing the long game. The chemistry between Ecbert and Lagertha (Katheryn Winnick) is one of the weirdest, most interesting parts of the season. They’re two of a kind—ambitious, ruthless, and totally isolated by their own power.
The real gut-punch, though, is the fate of the settlement. As soon as the Vikings leave, Aethelwulf—Ecbert's son—slaughters every single Norse settler. Men, women, children. Gone. The "dream" of the Viking farmer dies right there in the mud of England. What’s wild is that Ragnar finds out, and he hides it. He kills the messenger to keep the secret. That is the moment Ragnar stops being a hero and starts becoming a ghost.
Why Athelstan’s Death Ruined Everything
Let’s talk about Athelstan. George Blagden’s monk was the heart of the show. His friendship with Ragnar was the only "pure" thing in a world of mud and blood. When Floki (Gustaf Skarsgård) kills him in episode six, "Born Again," it basically breaks the series.
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Floki is such a fascinating, terrifying character this season. He’s a religious fundamentalist. He sees Athelstan as a parasite sucking the "Viking-ness" out of Ragnar. When he strikes the blow, he thinks he’s saving his friend. Instead, he creates a rift that never heals.
Ragnar’s reaction is haunting. He carries Athelstan’s body up a mountain, buries him alone, and takes his cross. He shaves his head. He starts talking to a man who isn't there. Honestly, Ragnar’s spiral into grief and addiction (to those "medicine" herbs later on) starts right here. The Paris raid wasn't just a conquest; it was a distraction from a broken heart.
The Siege of Paris: Fact vs. Fiction
The show’s version of the Siege of Paris is a masterclass in tension, but it plays fast and loose with the history books. In reality, the Vikings raided Paris several times. The show blends the 845 AD raid (led by a guy named Reginherus, often thought to be the "real" Ragnar) with the much bigger 885 AD siege.
In the show, the walls look like something out of a fantasy novel. Massive, stone, impenetrable.
The real 9th-century Paris was mostly concentrated on the Île de la Cité. The walls were actually quite old and crumbly—leftovers from Roman times.
- The Ships: The show gets the scale right. 120 ships sailed up the Seine in 845.
- The Ransom: Historically, Charles the Bald paid the Vikings 7,000 pounds of silver to leave. In the show, they take the money and then Ragnar does the coffin stunt anyway.
- The Coffin Trick: Historical nerd fact—this actually comes from a story about Bjorn Ironside and Hastein, who supposedly used it to get into the Italian city of Luna because they thought it was Rome.
Watching the Vikings try to scale those walls in "To the Gates!" is still some of the best television ever filmed. It felt heavy. It felt like people were actually dying. When Bjorn gets hit with those arrows and Ragnar just watches, paralyzed, you see the cost of his ambition.
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The Rise of Rollo
If Ragnar’s arc this season is a descent, Rollo’s is an ascent. Clive Standen plays Rollo with so much suppressed rage. He’s always been "the brother." The guy who loses the girl and the glory.
But by the end of season 3, the Seer’s prophecy finally starts to make sense. "If you knew what the gods had in store for you, you would dance naked on the beach."
When the Vikings leave Paris, they leave Rollo behind with a small force. The Frankish Emperor Charles offers him land, a title (Duke of Normandy), and his daughter Gisla in marriage. Rollo says yes. It’s the ultimate betrayal, but you can’t even blame him. Ragnar treated him like a dog for years. The final shot of the season—Rollo looking at the gates of Paris as a protector rather than a conqueror—is the beginning of a whole new era.
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While the men were off dying in France, things got weird back home. The "Wanderer" Harbard (Kevin Durand) shows up and starts seducing Aslaug.
Is he a god? Is he Odin? The show leaves it vague, which is smart. But his presence leads to the death of Siggy.
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Siggy’s death is one of the most underrated moments of the season. She dies saving Ragnar’s sons from a frozen lake. It’s a selfless act for a character who started the show as a manipulative social climber. It’s poetic, honestly. She goes out a hero while the "great men" are busy losing their souls in foreign lands.
Actionable Insights for Your Rewatch
If you’re planning to dive back into Vikings tv season 3, keep an eye on these specific details. They change how you see the ending:
- Watch Ragnar’s Eyes: Travis Fimmel stops looking at people and starts looking through them after Athelstan dies. The "insanity" isn't an act; it's a character choice.
- The Cross vs. The Hammer: Notice how many times characters swap religious symbols. Ragnar wears Athelstan's cross, while Rollo accepts baptism but stays pagan at heart (at first).
- Lagertha’s Independence: This is the season where Lagertha realizes she doesn't need Ragnar. Her arc in Hedeby, dealing with the usurper Kalf, proves she’s the most competent leader in the show.
- Pay Attention to the Sound: The music by Trevor Morris and Einar Selvik (Wardruna) is at its peak here. The chanting during the Paris siege is actually based on old Norse poetic meters.
The season ends with Ragnar on a boat, whisper-confessing to a captured Floki: "I know you killed Athelstan." It’s a chilling "mic drop" moment. Everything that happens in the later seasons—the Great Heathen Army, the civil wars between the sons—is all rooted in the tragedies of this year. It wasn't just a season of TV; it was the beginning of the end for the Golden Age of Vikings.
To fully appreciate where the story goes next, you should track the specific political shifts in Wessex. The relationship between Ecbert and his grandson Alfred (Athelstan's secret son) becomes the central pillar of the series' finale. Understanding the betrayal in the Wessex settlement in season 3 is vital to understanding why the Vikings eventually return with such unprecedented fury.