Tonight at 10 p.m., The History Channel will be showing an all-new episode featuring our favorite sea-faring marauders. When last we left off, Jarl Borg had annexed Ragnar Lothbrook's town as his own, despite the best efforts of Ragnar's brother Rollo and the townsfolk. But who was the real Jarl Borg? Did he really exist?

Jarl Borg is played by acclaimed Norwegian stage actor Thorbjorn Harr. (Incidentally, "Thorbjorn" is the modern version of the Old Norse name Torben... and it means "thunder bear." See... the Vikings all had the coolest names!)

Jarl Borg is a powerful and important leader in Götaland (modern day Sweden). He believes himself the legal owner of some lands King Horik also claims as his. Wanting to resolve the land dispute, the king sent Ragnar Lothbrok. When Ragnar arrived, Borg continued to refuse to cede his land to King Horik, whom he considers to be a foreign king with no legitimate claim to anything. He remained unwilling to make deals or compromise, and insisted that he will not accept the king's payment for him to renounce his claim. Ragnar then sent the king's emissaries on their way, and it was then clear that the only path they were taking was heading towards war. While Ragnar allied himself with King Horik, Jarl Borg manipulated Rollo, using his insecurities to his advantage, and convinced him to fight with him.

Alongside Rollo, Jarl Borg fought against the united forces of Ragnar and King Horik. The battle ended, however, when Rollo gave up, unable to fight Ragnar himself. During the assembly that followed, Borg and Horik continued the battle with an argument, only to be stopped by Ragnar and his speech about raiding the West. Persuaded, Borg and Horik finally agree on terms, in addition to raiding together some day.

Four years after, Borg travels to Kattegat, eager for the raids. King Horik, however, still finds himself unable to trust him, so he had Ragnar take him out of their plans. Jarl Borg was furious to find out that they decided to break their agreement. He had even tried to coax Rollo into betraying Ragnar again, though he failed and was instead punched in the face.

At the feast of his wedding to Torvi, Jarl Borg announced that they will be attacking Kattegat in retaliation of Ragnar and Rollo's betrayal. Although he blamed King Horik more, he wanted to take advantage of the vulnerability of Kattegat. The attack was a success, killing most of the town's defenseless citizens. Borg went after Rollo, still remembering his own treachery, blaming him for putting them in their situations in the first place. Though Rollo escaped, Jarl Borg still reveled in his victory.