Vikings: Valhalla season 3 finally set up Leif Erikson’s (Sam Corlett) most important storyline – however, it left it inconclusive, raising the question of whether he made it to America or not. Although he was one of Vikings: Valhalla’s main characters, the show took too long to give Leif Erikson a purpose and set up his biggest storyline: his trip to the other side of the world. After traveling to Constantinople with Harald (Leo Suter) in season 2, Vikings: Valhalla’s final season caught up with them seven years later, as they served Emperor Romanos in different ways.

After his discoveries were used to attack the people of Syracuse without his knowledge, Leif decided to leave to learn more about a land he had seen many years ago while traveling with his father. Leif referred to it as “Golden Land”, and even though his father, Erik the Red (Goran Višnjić), didn’t believe him, he was convinced there was more beyond the routes they already knew. Vikings: Valhalla ended with Leif, Freydis (Frida Gustavsson), and their crew sailing away to find the “Golden Land”, and there’s some truth to this important journey.

Leif Erikson & Freydis Are Going To North America In Vikings Valhalla’s Finale

Leif & Freydis Set Out To Find The Golden Land

After traveling to Greece to meet a cartographer in Vikings: Valhalla season 3, Leif prepared for his journey to find the “Golden Land”, but he needed a ship and a crew first. Leif traveled to Kattegat in hopes of getting a ship, which was provided for him by King Canute, along with a crew, as he was visiting Kattegat at the moment. Meanwhile, Freydis was traveling from Greenland to Kattegat, as her father, Erik the Red, had taken her son to an undisclosed location and destroyed her ships so she and the Jomsvikings couldn’t leave.

Freydis needed a ship to sail to the Golden Land Leif had told her about as she believed it could be the perfect home for her and the Jomsvikings following the destruction of Jomsborg. Leif and Freydis reunited in Kattegat and sailed away together in Leif’s new ship. The real Leif Erikson and Freydis Eiríksdóttir did travel to the “Golden Land” but not together – Freydis arrived there after Leif, who is credited with the discovery of North America.

Leif Erikson Discovered The New World Around 1000 AD

Leif Erikson Got To America Way Before Christopher Columbus

The real Leif Erikson was a Norse explorer born in Iceland and the son of Erik the Red, another Norse explorer. Leif Erikson was the first European to set foot on continental America, around half a millennium before Christopher Columbus arrived – however, how exactly he got there depends on the source. Before his trip to the other side of the world, Leif served among the retainers at the court of Norwegian King Olaf I Tryggvason (not to be confused with Olaf Haraldsson, Harald Hardrada’s half-brother), who was a Christian. Leif converted to Christianity in Norway and was commissioned to introduce Christianity to the Greenlanders.

The Saga of Erik the Red tells that, when Leif and his crew were on their way back to Greenland to introduce Christianity to their people, they encountered a storm that blew them off course. Leif and company arrived at an unknown shore, and they disembarked and explored the area. What they found were forests with building timber, maple trees, and wild grapes, which led Leif to call this land “Vinland”, meaning “Land of Wine” (via Britannica). Leif and his crew took samples of these goods and returned to Greenland.

In the Saga of the Greenlanders, the first European who discovered Vinland was Bjarni Herjólfsson, though he and his crew didn’t disembark and simply continued to sail. Around 15 years later, Leif purchased Bjarni’s ship, gathered a crew, and prepared an expedition to the land Bjarni described. For that, Leif followed his route in reverse, and after arriving in other unknown lands, he and his crew finally made it to Vinland. Leif and company wintered in Vinland and returned to Greenland with a cargo of grapes and timber. In both versions, Leif never returned to Vinland after that.

As for Freydis, there are also two versions of her travels to Vinland. In the Saga of the Greenlanders, she traveled there with brothers Helgi and Finnbogi, but after many disagreements after their arrival, she betrayed them and their people and killed them. In the Saga of Erik the Red, Freydis joined the expedition to Vinland led by Þorfinnr Karlsefni and fought the natives that attacked them, all this while being eight months pregnant.

Leif Erikson & The Vikings Lived In Newfoundland For 10 Years

Leif Erikson Founded The First Settlement In Vinland

In both versions, Leif Erikson founded the first Norse settlement at Vinland, which is now believed to be that of the archaeological site L’Anse aux Meadows, in Canada, though this is still debated. Despite some friction with the natives, to whom the Vikings referred by a derogatory term, there’s archaeological evidence that there was direct contact between them, though the Vikings also killed many natives. According to World History, Leif’s settlement was abruptly abandoned less than a decade after it was built, and the Vikings seem to have taken all of their tools and weapons back home, suggesting the abandonment was premeditated.

What Happened To The Vikings In North America?

Unfortunately, The Vikings Didn’t Last Long In North America

Leif Erikson never returned to Vinland, but other Greenlanders and Icelanders did, including his siblings (Freydis, Thorvald, and Thorstein) and explorer Thorfinn Karlsefni, who attempted to establish a permanent settlement. Despite many more expeditions to Vinland, the Norse didn’t last long there. According to Smithsonian Mag, there are different reasons why the Vikings didn’t stay in North America, such as there being few of them to sustain a settlement, or they were forced out by natives.

A widely accepted reason, however, is climate change, as the Vikings couldn’t adapt to the cold, and it’s noted that Leif and Thorfinn’s trips took place during the “Medieval Warming”, so they didn’t struggle with the cold. It’s believed by historians that, had the weather been different and better, Norse populations in North America might have had a different, more optimistic future.

Sources: Britannica, World History, Smithsonian Mag.