The Pagan Lord was published in 2013 and is the seventh volume in the series. In it we continue to follow the saga of Uhtred, but now ten years after the death of King Alfred. As expected, the Danes are still causing troubles and Uhtred will have to fight to save Wessex and Mercia while he tries to reclaim Bebbanburg, the stronghold taken by his uncle.

Events

Britain is in the midst of ten years of peace between the Saxons and Danes, but that peace is about to be shattered. Uhtred elder son, also name Uhtred, has taken vows to become a Christian priest in disregard of his father paganism, Uthred is taken by a profund disgust and felling betrayed decides to disown his elder son renaming him Father Judas, and bestows his younger son Osbert, renaming him to Uhtred. However, that is not the only unfortunate events to happen with Uhtred, because when Abbot Wihtred attacks Uhtred, he unintentionally kills him in self-defense, causing nearly all of Uhtred’s Christian warriors to leave him, Aethelflaed, Lady of Mercia and a secret Uhtred’s lover, takes these men into her service.

Returning home, Uhtred finds his hall burned to the ground and all his outbuildings destroyed by two separate enemies. Cnut Longsword burned down his hall believing that Uhtred had taken his wife and children, a clear lie, but he was not alone, Bishop Wulfheard had burned all outbuildings. With his land devastated, few resources, and less men, Uhtred doesn’t have means to rebuild everything and sees only one option: get back what has been taken from his family, Bebbanburg in Northumbria.

Bebbanburg is still under control of his uncle Aelfric, and Uhtred knows how strong Bebbanburg defenses is, he comes up with a clever plan and manage to kill some men and pass through the first gate, but they are detected and get trapped. Uhtred then sees that his uncle not only took Bebbanburg from him, but also has named his son Uhtred. Uhtred confronts his cousin, while Finan takes captive the Aelfric, Uhtred’s cousin wife Ingulfrid and Uhtred’s cousin son, outnumbered Uhtred has no chance to beat his cousin and retake Bebbanburg, he decides then that he needs to leave and safe his men, but first he kills his uncle and then flees to Frisia taking the wife and cousin as hostage.

Uhtred discovers that Cnut is going to war, and Mercia will be soon attacked, and he discovers that Cnut’s wife and daughter had never been kidnapped, it was a Cnut’s plan to fool Aethelred, Aethelflaed’s husband, into believing that Cnut would be busy try to find them and encouraging Aethelred to attack East Anglia. Cnut attacks Mercia.

Uhtred returns from Frisia and sails to the east of Mercia, reaching Bearddan Igge where some Mercians have been searching for bones of St. Oswald, they believe that if all of St. Oswald’s bones are reunited the Saxons from Wessex and Mercia would defeat the Danes. Uhtred, of course, doesn’t believe in none of this, and uses prepares a plan using some random bones to make they believe that they found the rest of St. Oswald.

Uhtred takes his men to Ceaster suspecting that Cnut’s family could be there. He captures Cnut’s wife and children, and when the children see a Priest, they call him Uncle Wihtred, and then Uhtred realizes that the Abbot that the he killed what that cause he to lose his men was actually working for Cnut.

Uhtred goes to Glaewecestre where he finds Osferth and Aethelflae, he then start to burn Cnut’s boat, but leaves one to Osferth and tell him to reach King Edward. Uhtred needs to buy time, and he uses Cnut’s daughter, pretending to kill her, to attract Cnut’s attention.

In Teotanheale Uhtred waits for Cnut, and before any battle start, Uhtred releases Cnut’s daughter, but keep his son. A pierce battle begun, and Uhtred is almost defeated when Father Judas arrives with Father Pyrlig and a few hundred Welsh warriors. Then Uthred engage in a 1x1 fight with Cnut, Uhtred injures Cnut but didn’t kill him as Cnut’s men rescue him, but in a parallel fight Uhtred’s son (Uhtred) kills Cnut’s ally Sigurd Thorsen. In the meantime King Edward arrives with his men and Mercians, Cnut resume his 1x1 fight with Uhtred, and this time Uhtred kills Cnut but he gets terribly injuried, and almost dies.