Freydís Eiríksdóttir was a Norse woman said to be the daughter of Erik the Red, who is associated with the Norse exploration of North America and the discovery of Vinland with his son Leif Erikson. The only medieval and primary sources that mention Freydís are the two Vinland sagas: the Greenland saga and the Saga of Erik the Red. The two sagas offer differing accounts, though Freydís is portrayed in both as a masculine, strong-willed woman who would defy the odds of her society.
''Saga of the Greenlanders''
The Saga of the Greenlanders is a crude version of the accounts that happened in Vinland. Freydís is mentioned only once in this saga, and is described as Leif Erikson's full sister. This is the most famous account we have of Freydís. After expeditions to Vinland led by Leif Erikson, Þorvaldr Eiríksson and Þorfinnr Karlsefni met with some success, Freydís wanted the prestige and wealth associated with a Vinland journey. She made a deal with two Icelandic men, Helgi and Finnbogi, that they should go together to Vinland and share all profits half-and-half. Freydís asked her brother Leif Erikson for permission to use the homes and stables that he had built in Vinland. He agreed that they all could use the houses. Helgi and Finnbogi agreed that they would bring the same number of men and supplies as Freydis, but Freydís smuggled more men into her ship. Helgi and Finnbogi, arriving early, took refuge in the houses; when Freydís arrived, she ordered the brothers to move, as the houses were her brother's and meant for her. This was the first of many disagreements between Freydís and the brothers. In Vinland, there was tension between the two groups. Helgi and Finnbogi set up a settlement separate from Freydis and her crew. Freydis eventually went to the brothers' hut and asked how they were faring. "Well," responded the brothers; "but we do not like this ill-feeling that has sprung up between us." The two sides made peace. When she returned to her husband, Freydís claimed that Helgi and Finnbogi had beaten her, and, calling him a coward, demanded that he exact revenge on her behalf, or else she would divorce him. He gathered his men and killed Helgi and Finnbogi as well as the men in their camp when they were sleeping. When he refused to kill the five women in the camp, Freydís herself picked up an axe and massacred them. Freydís, to conceal her treachery, threatened death to anyone who told of the killings. She went back to Greenland after a year's stay and told her brother Leif Eiriksson that Helgi and Finnbogi had decided to stay in Vinland. However, word of the killings eventually reached Leif. He had three men from Freydís's expedition tortured until they confessed the whole occurrence. Thinking ill of the deeds, Leif still did not want "to do that to Freydís, my sister, which she has deserved." However, he remarked that he foresaw Freydís' descendants having little prosperity. The saga concludes that everyone thought ill of her descendants afterwards.
''Saga of Erik the Red''
The Saga of Erik the Red was written after the Greenland saga. This saga portrays Freydís as a fearless and protective viking warrior, the half-sister to Leif Erikson. She joined an expedition to Vinland led by Þorfinnr Karlsefni, but is only mentioned once in the saga when the expedition was attacked by natives. The natives, equipped with "war-slings, or catapults," stealthily attacked the expedition's camp at night and shot at the warriors. Many of the Nordic invaders panicked, having never seen such weaponry. As men fled during the confusion, Freydís, who was eight months pregnant, admonished them, saying: "Why run you away from such worthless creatures, stout men that ye are, when, as seems to me likely, you might slaughter them like so many cattle? Let me but have a weapon, I know I could fight better than any of you." Ignored, Freydís picked up the sword of the fallen Thorbrand Snorrisson and engaged the attacking natives. She undid her garment to expose one breast, and, beating the sword's hilt on her chest, gave a furious battle cry. At this the natives retreated to their boats and fled. Karlsefni and the other survivors praised her zeal.
Icelandic artist Stebba Ósk Ómarsdóttir and Spanish writer Salva Rubio published an illustrated book telling the story of Freydís Eiríksdottir in 2015.
Joan Clark's 2002 fiction novel Eriksdottir: A Tale of Dreams and Luck features Freydís as the main character.
Katia Winter portrayed Freydís in the DC's Legends of Tomorrow episodes "Beebo the God of War" and "The Good, the Bad, and the Cuddly".
Freydis is a main character in Johanna Valkama's historic novelThe Red Queen, which tells of her journey to Vinland.
A character named Freydis appears in the History Channel series Vikings. She is a former slave who is freed by Ivar the Bonelessin Season 5 and later becomes his wife.
In the novelDaughter of a Thousand Years by Amalia Carosella, Freydís is the center of one of two timelines and is romantically involved with Thor, who takes the form of a man named Sonnung.
