‘The Last Kingdom’: The Real Reason Father Beocca Warned Uhtred About His Uncle
In the series The Last Kingdom, Uhtred is just a child when his older brother, who was named Uhtred (Balázs Medveczky), dies by Viking hands in the ninth century. Uhtred, who is named Osbert (Tom Taylor) at the time, is made the heir of Bebbanburg, and his name is changed.
But things take a turn almost instantly for him, and it’s all a lot for a child to deal with. And to top it all off, his own uncle named Aelfric (Joseph Millson) has his own agenda.
Father Beocca (Ian Hart), a man in the service of Lord Uhtred (Matthew Macfadyen), Uhtred’s father, warns Uhtred about his uncle in season 1, episode 1. We have the details you need to know about the situation.
Uhtred’s father is killed, and Uhtred is taken as Ragnar’s slave in ‘The Last Kingdom’
Lord Uhtred joins the kings of Northumbria against the Viking incursion at Eoferwic, or York. The Vikings, which include Ragnar (Peter Gantzler), Ubba (Rune Temte), and Guthrum (Thomas W. Gabrielsson) with their warriors, manage to attack the Saxon forces on both sides. Lord Uhtred decides to charge through the shield wall, and he’s attacked and then killed by a sword through his neck.
Uhtred, who is watching the whole thing go down as he planned to join the fighting, charges toward the Vikings, ending up against Ragnar, who knocks him out. Uhtred is taken as Ragnar’s slave, and Ragnar and his family grow fond of Uhtred.
Why did Father Beocca warn Uhtred about his uncle?
Negotiations take place between Uhtred’s uncle, Aelfric, and the Vikings. Aelfric wants Uhtred back so he can have him killed so he won’t be challenged as the Lord of Bebbanburg. However, Lord Ragnar decides to “buy” Uhtred, and Aelfric is unable to kill his young nephew. But before all that goes down, Father Beocca, who is with Aelfric’s party when they all meet for the talks over Uhtred, warns him about his uncle’s plans.
“Look I will speak plainly,” Beocca says as he pretends to look at a necklace Ragnar gave Uhtred. “Your uncle will kill you. Right? You cannot go back to Bebbanburg, you must escape. He wants to be the ealdorman.” He tells Uhtred that Aelfric wants to “be the king,” and that he should “go to Wessex.”
“King Aethelred, real King Aethelred and his brother the Prince Alfred, they are good men, good Christian men,” he says about the King of Wessex and his brother. He promises to meet Uhtred there in Wessex, and he does just what he promised, although they won’t meet again for many years.
Earl Ragnar and most of his family are killed
Ragnar soon adopts Uhtred as his own son, and Uhtred grows up as a Viking. But years later, Aelfric still hasn’t forgotten about his nephew, and he allies himself with Kjartan (Alexandre Willaume) and his son, Sven (Ole Christoffer Ertvaag), who were cast off Ragnar’s land when Sven (Andrew Lukacs) as a child tore Ragnar’s daughter’s dress, exposing her from the waist up. Ragnar blinded him in one eye, and years later, they help kill almost all of Ragnar’s family.
Ragnar fights to the end, burning in the flames and thrusting his sword about against his enemies. Uhtred watches his adoptive father die, and he doesn’t yet know at the time that his sister, Thyra (Julia Bache-Wiig), was abducted as well. The only other member of their family still alive is Young Ragnar (Tobias Santelmann), Uhtred’s adoptive brother, who is away at the time.
Uhtred’s need for revenge and his journey between the worlds of the Saxons and the Vikings is only just beginning. He’ll eventually meet up with Father Beocca in Wessex years after their last meeting.
