“ | My spear drips righteous and red from the blood of that cad, King Helgi. My father, in his wisdom denied him the hand of my sister, Princess Sigrún, knowing his true and dark nature. Enraged by his slight, King Helgi gathered his forces and invaded our land, determined to claim his bride. | ” |
–Dagr's letter |
Dagr was a Prince of Östergötland, brother of Sigrún and son of Högni. He appears in minimal sources of Norse mythology. He is known as the one with the help of the war God Odin slain the mad King Helgi.
Norse Mythology[]
Not much is said of Prince Dagr in Norse mythology, he is however mentioned in the story of Sigrún and Helgi. Dagr, Sigrún's brother is the only member of her family left alive after Helgi's attack on their kingdom. Helgi kept him alive on the condition that he swears fealty to King Helgi. Dagr proceeded to do so but this was only temporary as he swore to avenge his Kingdom, family and fallen brothers. From that specific moment he starts to make a plan to kill Helgi so he can reclaim his family's honor and make sure the mad king can no longer be with his sister Princess Sigrún.
Dagr obliged by honor to avenge his brothers and chose to summon the war god Odin, the god gives him a spear so he can avenge his honor and family. In a place called Fjöturlund, Dagr finds and kills Helgi. He then goes back to his sister Sigrún to tell her of his deed. Sigrún enraged by his actions towards the man she fell in love with puts her brother Dagr under a powerful curse after which he is obliged to live on carrion in the woods.
God of War Ragnarök[]
Prince Dagr in God of War was the prince of the Midgardian kingdom of Fjöturlund where he lived with his sister Princess Sigrún and his parents. At some point in his sister's youth, a king named Helgi offered his hand to her in marriage. However, his father King Högni, who knew of Helgi's true nature, refused to let him marry his daughter. Taking this as a slight, Helgi angrily responded by invading Fjöturlund in an attempt to claim Sigrún by force. On the mad king's orders, his soldiers sacked the kingdom and killed anyone who would dare oppose Helgi's supposed union. During the sacking, most of Sigrún's family, including her parents, were killed leaving only her brother Prince Dagr. Dagr, fueled by rage and honor, swore to avenge his family and keep the mad King away from his sister Sigrún. When he avenged the death of his family by impaling Helgi with his spear, Sigrún, who loved the mad king, and not knowing that he had massacred her family, proceeded to put a curse on Dagr. However, when she finally realized of that her lover had killed her family, it was already too late.
While playing God of War Ragnarök you can find a letter written by Prince Dagr, the letter explains his journey to killing the mad King Helgi. It reads as follows: "Ash to ash, bones to bones. Where love cannot live, death takes hold. Here are the words of Prince Dagr: 'My spear drips righteous and red from the blood of that cad, King Helgi. My father, in his wisdom denied him the hand of my sister, Princess Sigrún, knowing his true and dark nature. Enraged by his slight, King Helgi gathered his forces and invaded our land, determined to claim his bride. His murderous soldiers dipped their swords into the hearts of all who opposed their unclean union. Mother, Father, all of my brothers, hunted down and slaughtered, all because he was denied my fair sister. The only male of my line left standing, I impaled the villain Helgi on my spear, did my duty and avenged my family."
Trivia[]
- Prince Dagr was the only survivor (Other than Sigrún) When King Helgi destroyed their Kingdom.
- When Dagr killed Helgi, Sigrún placed a permanent curse on him, not knowing that her love Helgi killed her family and destroyed her home.
- In Norse mythology it was Odin who gave Dagr the spear used to kill Helgi.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|