The series Vikings, as it goes without saying, has taken quite a few creative liberties when it comes to historical accuracy. However, upon watching Season 2 Episode 1, the opening battle scene raises a lot of questions for me:
These are supposed to be fighting men under the command of two Jarls, plus the party of Jarl Ragnar Lothbruk. My first thought is- there are very few men involved in this engagement? A hundred or so men present on the battlefield? Is this supposed to be the entire fighting strength of two contemporary Jarls?
The battlefield looks more like an arena of sorts. We'll ignore the fact that it quite literally looks like someone has taken a brush and swept a square so it's nice and clean for some killing, but would two Jarls really fight like this? Wouldn't it be more a case of raiding and looting each other's lands until they get exhausted and reach an agreement?
We'll ignore all the other silly details like the fact that nobody is wearing armour, some people even being shirtless for dramatic effect for now.
Could you please link to a video showing the relevant scenes? It would greatly help any future answer.