Odin and Freya's marriage was a peace treaty proposed by Mimir between the Aesir and Vanir, in which Odin, the King of the Aesir, married Freya, the leader of the Vanir, which in turn ended the Aesir-Vanir War. However, the peace proved to be fragile and uneasy, as the Vanir see the marriage of their leader to the All-father as a betrayal, due to the latter's deception. As a result, they branded Freya as a traitor, despite her sacrifice to ensure peace between the realms.
Though peace and harmony followed soon after, it, unfortunately, wouldn't last, due to Odin's paranoia of the Jötnar as well as his obsession with their prophetic vision of Ragnarök. The final straw was when Freya refused to bestow upon him the same invulnerability spell that she bestowed on her son Baldur. This infuriated Odin, causing Freya to leave him, only for the All-father to retaliate by banishing his ex-wife from Asgard to Midgard.
For many centuries into the present, Freya would be continuously haunted by her marriage to Odin and of the consequences that came along with it. Eventually prior to the beginning of Ragnarök, seeking to be free of her bonds to Asgard and the Aesir, Freya, together with Kratos, journeyed to Vanaheim to do just that. They were successful in their mission, allowing Freya to finally regain the peace she had lost all those years ago.
History[]
Prelude[]
For a very long time, relationships between two tribes of Gods called the Aesir and the Vanir were tensed. Wanting to make peace between the two tribes, the Vanir God Freyr travelled to Asgard, where he attempted to teach the Aesir how to produce bountiful crops and improving crop yields with magic. However, as the Aesir were too impatient and undisciplined in the usage of magic, they only ended up getting everything wrong. Wrongly blaming Freyr for it, and he was burned alive in the eyes of the Aesir. Fortunately, however, Freyr survived and managed to escape back home. Outraged by the incident, the Vanir swore revenge against Asgard and tensions between them and the Aesir erupted into a prolonged war.
When neither the Aesir nor Vanir trumped over the other and ended up getting locked in a stalemate, Mimir, Odin's advisor and the arbiter between the Gods, settled on a peaceful solution: Odin will marry his deadliest enemy, Freya, the leader of the Vanir, who is not only renowned for her beauty but for her magic, which the All-Father had desired to master. Though Odin agreed to marry her, Freya, however, is still resentful of him, due to the suffering that had been inflicted on her people and on Freyr, her brother. Nevertheless, in the end, Freya agreed to marry Odin, as she believed that it will bring peace to the nine realms of Yggdrasil.
Marriage[]
In Vanaheim, at a shrine, Odin and Freya were married during a grand ceremony, where all of the Aesir and Vanir were present, including Odin's sons, Thor, Týr and Heimdall, as well as his grandsons, Magni and Modi. However, some Vanir had etched the word "Traitor" on one of the shrine's walls, as the Vanir were tricked by Odin into believing that through the marriage, Freya has betrayed and abandoned them. This led to her being hated and denounced by her own people, even her own worshippers, who, in their rage, proceeded to vandalize a temple they had built and dedicated in her honor. As an insult to injury, Freyr sees his sister's marriage as selfish and, in his anger, proceeded to say some "awful words" to her.
Symbol of Reconciliation[]
That night, during the wedding ceremony, Odin and Freya drank wine from a chalice called the Lover's Chalice until they became drunk, where they could no longer stand.
Symbol of Commitment[]
Odin made a beautiful circlet crown for his bride, which symbolized his commitment to her. Ever since the wedding, Odin would continue making more circlets for Freya, which each being more beautiful than the last. However, he stopped after Freya refused to teach him the Old Magic.
Symbol of Odin & Freya's Union[]
Finally, the couple thrusted a sword into a stone to symbolize their unity, which would serve as Freya's final tie to Asgard.
Feast[]
A great feast was held that night where they were all kinds of delicacies made by both the Aesir and the Vanir. Casks filled with mead were also included in the feast. Many Aesir and a few Vanir feasted and drank while the feast was filled with celebration.
Aftermath[]
Following the wedding, all the realms were at peace. While Freya was in Asgard, she received gifts from her people so that she won't miss her home. However, after Freya's son Baldur was born, the Vanir stopped giving her gifts all together. Despite this, she and Odin had a happy relationship, and Mimir would note much later that he saw the same happiness Odin had for Fjörgyn, one of his great loves and also the mother of Thor, the God of Thunder. In addition, Freya would teach her husband to master Vanir magic but refused to teach him the Old Magic. Furthermore, Odin granted so many wishes that Freya had desired, such as giving the Valkyries "some measure of freedom". Despite his love for Freya, the All-Father wed her just to learn her magic in secrecy, which he achieved.
Tensions between Odin & Freya[]
Eventually Odin became obsessed with the Jötnar's prophecy of Ragnarök, a cataclysmic event that was foretold to bring an end to everything. This caused the happiness between him and Freya to slowly fade away. After the Huldra Brothers, Brok & Sindri forged the mighty (but destructive) hammer, Mjölnir, all so they could make a name for themselves, Odin bestows it on his son Thor, who was ordered by his father to slay any giant he could find, all to punish the Jötnar for expelling Odin from Jötunheim, after they caught the All-father spying and stealing their secrets. At this point, Freya began to loathe the Aesir for their crimes.
Freya's Banishment[]
Odin, in his wrath, banishing Freya to Midgard.
At some point, Odin reveals his true nature to his wife, and he demanded that he bestow on him the same invulnerability spell that she had bestowed on their son Baldur. Knowing full-well of the consequences, as she had ended up making an enemy in Baldur, Freya refused his demand. In response, Odin became livid and began trashing her room, which caused Freya to leave him. The All-Father then unleashed his wrath by stripping her of her Valkyrie wings as well as her warrior spirit, rendering her unable to fight, even in self-defense. Using a creative but cruel and twisted spell that he had made. Odin proceeded to banish Freya from Asgard, leaving her trapped in Midgard.
To ensure that she wouldn't escape her exile, Odin proceeded to tie several branches of Yggdrasil into a knot, which would drag Freya back to Midgard if she travels to any of the nine realms (sans Asgard). The reason behind Odin's action is that he knew that the dragon Níðhögg, the caretaker of the world tree, would protect its roots. Thus, Níðhögg ended up becoming a pawn to the All-Father.
Impact on Alfheim and Vanaheim[]
Though the marriage brought peace and harmony, it had a negative impact on the realm of Alfheim, the realm of the Elves. In response to Odin and Freya's marriage, Freyr proceeded to abandon Alfheim and the Light Elves to their fate, allowing the realm to be overrun by the Dark Elves and their king, Svartáljǫfurr. In addition, because Mimir is responsible for proposing his sister's marriage with the All-Father, this caused Freyr to harbor a strong resentment for Odin's advisor, even wanting to kill him, under the false belief that Mimir had sold Freya off to Odin, whom Freyr refers to as a "prick".
The realm whose impact is far worse is Vanaheim, the realm of the Vanir, where the Einherjar established a military foothold, which forced many of the Vanir to scatter, causing Freyr to form a resistance composing of himself and his friends and allies.