The Last Kingdom Season 3 Episode 4 Recap – Episode 4

Bloodhair and Uhtred start to fight in front of the other warriors. Though both of them are skilled in battle, Uhtred was the one who almost killed the other. Just before he can plunge the sword into Bloodhair’s body Ragnar stops the fight. Ragnar says he is not going to lose one man until the real battle begins. The fight was supposed to be to the death but Ragnar has made up his mind to end the fight. He tells Uhtred to take Skade and leave Dunholm. Then he says that if he sees Uhtred on the battlefield, he will kill him.

Uhtred and his men leave Dunholm to save the lady Aethelflaed. On his way there, Thyra tells him that he will always be her brother. Inside the walls of the fortress, however, Aethelwold tells Ragnar he shouldn’t have let Uhtred leave. He says that Uhtred shouldn’t be allowed to return to Wessex to Alfred. Then, he suggests they kill him.

Ragnar asks Aethelwold what his purpose in their battle is aside from whispering to the ears of the ealdormen of Wessex. Ragnar beats up Aethelwold and says it’s Aethelwold’s fault that Uhtred has left. Cnut stops Ragnar from beating up Aethelwold and tells him that they have a battle to prepare for. When Ragnar leaves, Cnut tells Aethelwold that he agrees with him and that Uhtred should not have been allowed to leave. But, Uhtred and his men aren’t the only ones who left Dunholm. 

Haesten walks into the palace in Winchester to tell the king about the army that is being formed. He says Ragnar, Uhtred, Bloodhair, and Aethelwold were all in Dunholm. Then he tells the king that since the army is planning to attack, the king should also march to meet his enemies. As soon as Haesten leaves, Alfred asks Father Pyrlig to write a letter to Aethelred saying they should march soon to face the enemies. When Aethelred receives the message, he tells Aldhelm they should join Alfred and fight.

Uhtred arrives at the nunnery in the middle of the night. Aethelflaed expresses her gratitude towards Uhtred and kisses him. She tells him that she will soon have to return to her estate to face her husband and the Danes. Skade is watching them quietly. Once Aethelflaed has left, she tells Uhtred to go back to the Danes after his mission is done. She reminds him that he is to lead.  Skade tells Uhtred that if he turns away from her, he and all those he loves will be tormented till death and beyond. And then, she kisses Uhtred. 

Cnut tells Brida that Ragnar doesn’t value her. Brida doesn’t believe this and says Ragnar only sleeps with other women to ensure he will have more sons. Cnut then leaves Brida and goes to Bloodhair. He tells him that it was an insult that Ragnar let the fight happen. Cnut says Skade belongs to Bloodhair and he didn’t have to fight Uhtred for her. Bloodhair is surprised because Cnut is Ragnar’s cousin yet Cnut speaks against him. Cnut says their spies should also act as messengers that will carry their intentions. He adds that men will join them. When they start to march, Cnut tells Aethelwold that Ragnar blames him for losing Uhtred. He adds that Ragnar will kill him soon.

The father of Edward’s bride, Lord Aethelhelm, arrives at Winchester. King Alfred says he doesn’t want the guests to see him looking so weak. He calls Edward to deal with the matters immediately. Edward says he is already married and to stay married is honorable. King Alfred says the solution to this is for Edward to unmarry. The Bishop says the girl who married Edward chose to enter a nunnery. So, the marriage, if it did exist at all can be dismissed. Edward tries to argue and reason out but his mother tells him to stop. King Alfred says Edward’s children will be cared for. He adds that the crown is important and there is a battle to be fought. He then makes Edward swear on the holy relics. 

Haesten and his men arrive at the nunnery looking for Aethelflaed. Uhtred and his men remain hidden and Haesten doesn’t know they are inside. Haesten and his men have killed Aethelflaed’s guards but they have kept some alive as hostages. The Abbess comes out to talk to them and tells them the lady they are looking for is not in the nunnery. Haesten loses patience and one of his men throws a spear at the Abbess, killing her. They realize that Aethelflaed is really inside the nunnery.

When they get inside, they didn’t expect to see Uhtred. After some of their men got killed, Haesten decides they will just wait outside. They block all the doors except for the main entrance. It’s already dark when Uhtred came up with a plan. He tells Skade that if she truly belongs to him she will do as he says. And in return, he will not abandon her and he will come for her. Skade is surprised that Uhtred is choosing Aethelflaed over her. But, Uhtred says she is trying to save all of them. So, Skade says that until Uhtred has kept his promise he will remain cursed. Uhtred tells Haesten that Skade saw Alfred’s death in her visions. And that Skade’s man will benefit greatly from that death. Upon hearing this, Haesten agrees to take Skade instead of Aethelflaed. But he says it doesn’t mean Aethelflaed is forgiven. 

Aethelwold worries about his safety after what Cnut told him. He says he should kill Ragnar soon in his sleep. Cnut tells him to kill Ragnar that night because the next day they will quicken their pace. He says that on the next day, they should think about the battle. Cnut tells Aethelwold that once he killed Ragnar, he will protect him. Ragnar sleeps with another woman again in hopes of having another son. Aethelwold, on the other hand, pretends to be drunk and asleep while the others are still drinking.

Later, in the middle of the night, while everyone is sleeping, Aethelwold enters Ragnar’s tent while holding a dagger. The woman beside Ragnar wakes up so Aethelwold stabs her first. Ragnar awakens by the noise but Aethelwold stabs him repeatedly, not even giving him the chance to fight back. Ragnar reaches for his sword, but Aethelwold takes it away. So, Ragnar dies without his sword in his hand. Aethelwold drags the woman from the bed and to the ground. He plunges Ragnar’s sword into the woman’s body. Then, he puts the dagger he used on the hand of the woman. 

Our Thoughts: 

How unfortunate that the great warrior, Ragnar, was killed on his bed. And he wasn’t even able to fight back. The most unbelievable thing here is that Aethelwold was the one who killed him. Ragnar’s cousin, Cnut, looks suspicious from the very beginning. It seemed like he wanted what his cousin had, the reputation, army, and even Brida. He has an army of his own but we think he was jealous of Ragnar’s reputation and he wanted to lead the battle himself. 

Bloodhair wants Skade, and now, Haesten also wants Skade. But, Skade wants Uhtred. The thing about this sorceress is she is brave and doesn’t hesitate to kill when she wants to. She also likes torturing people. We doubt she would be happy to live with Uhtred’s children should he decide to make her his woman. She wants blood and battle. She is also ambitious and wants to be queen. She is the exact opposite of Uhtred’s wife. But it’s not just Skade who wants Uhtred but also the lady Aethelflaed. We know that she has always liked Uhtred, but we never thought that feeling could grow into something more. We assume that Uhtred didn’t expect it as well.