Sigurd Eysteinsson, The Viking Killed By His Enemy’s Decapitated Head
TwitterSigurd The Mighty’s death is ironic beyond belief.
When fighting in battle, most warriors can assume they’re safe once their enemy is vanquished. But Viking chieftain Sigurd Eysteinsson was bizarrely killed by his foe in 892 C.E. — after he’d already cut off his head.
According to History Collection, Sigurd the Mighty was known for his military prowess. Working with other chiefs, Sigurd succeeded in conquering most of northern Scotland and, in 875, his brother gifted him the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands.
As the earl of the islands, Sigurd continued to conduct raids into mainland Scotland. He drew the ire of a Pictish chieftain named Maelbrigte Tusk, also called Máel Brigte the Bucktoothed, because of his protruding teeth. Maelbrigte proposed that their two armies battle it out with 40 men apiece.
Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty ImagesA depiction of a different Viking battle.
But when the two forces met, Maelbrigte realized that Sigurd had deceived him. Instead of 40 men, the Viking chieftain had brought 80. Though Maelbrigte and his men put up a brave fight, Sigurd and his troops easily overpowered them, and Sigurd himself cut off Maelbrigte’s head.
Sigurd then tied Maelbrigte’s severed head to his saddle, and the triumphant Vikings rode home. During the journey, however, Maelbrigte’s famous buck teeth scraped against Sigurd’s exposed leg. The wound became infected, and Sigurd the Mighty died soon afterward.
