Watch ‘Vikings’ Season 4 Finale Stream Online Free: History Channel Epic Wraps Up 20-Episode Season In Bloody Fashion

The epic History Channel drama series Vikings wraps up its marathon Season 4 this week, and fans who want to watch an online stream of what is sure to be a spectacular conclusion to the 20-episode season can find information on how to watch the episode, fittingly entitled “The Reckoning” below on this page.

As befits a season finale of Vikings, the episode promises a blood-soaked, action-packed finale. While some possible and very specific SPOILERS can be found by clicking on this link, for viewers who would rather not spoil the episode in advance suffice to say that “The Reckoning” is reported to contain more than one shocking death that will leave Vikings fans stunned and reeling as they digest the Season 4 finale and anxiously await Season 5, likely to air in 2018.

For an in-depth analysis of the History Channel promotional spots for the Vikings Season 4 finale, check out the video below.

Fans who have not yet viewed Episode 19 of Season 4 should be aware that minor SPOILERS for that episode follow. To avoid spoiling last week’s episode, skip down to the bottom of the page for info on how to watch the finale stream online.

Vikings Season 4 Episode 19, entitled “On The Eve,” concluded with the Great Heathen Army — the largest viking invasion force ever assembled — setting a trap for the army of King Ecbert of Wessex, an army led by Ecbert’s son Aethelwulf. In the season finale, the two great armies finally square off, with not only lives but the future of Ecbert’s kingdom at stake.

While it wouldn’t be appropriate to give away spoilers for the episode, a look at the actual history of the battle between the Great Heathen Army and the real army of King Ecbert — which was often spelled “Egbert” or even “Ecgberht” in actual history — might shed some light on what could happen in the episode.

The real Ecbert lived from 769 CE to 839, finally passing away at the age of 70, at which time his son Aethelwulf became king. But Ecbert holds a special place in British history, to say the least, as the first king in recorded history to rule over all of Britain, first taking the throne in the year 802.

In fact, it was Ecbert who named the island over which he ruled “Angleland” — or as it came to be spelled, “England” — as a gesture of respect to the Angle tribe, though Ecbert himself belonged to the Saxons. Egbert was the first king to accomplish the seemingly impossible task of uniting Britain’s warring tribes of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes.

While Ecbert did battle with the vikings, the “Great Army” led by Ivar the Boneless — as seen on Vikings — did not invade until 865, 26 years after the historical Ecbert’s death. At that time, the king of England was Aethelred, son of Aethelwulf. Five years later, Aethelred was succeeded by his younger brother Alfred, who became known as Alfred the Great and finally defeated the Great Heathen, or Viking, Army in 878. As a result, the vikings converted to Christianity and were absorbed into English society.

How closely will the Vikings Season 4 finale reflect the real history? Given the difference in timelines, probably not very closely, which means there will still be plenty of surprises in the climactic episode.

To watch the Vikings Season 4 finale stream online at the same time that it airs on The History Channel, Wednesday, February 1, at 9 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time — 8 p.m. Central and 7 p.m. Mountain — the best option is to sign up for the seven-day free trial of Sling TV, which can be accessed at this link. While a credit card will be required, the subscription can be canceled before the seven-day period expires, which will avoid any charges.

Once fans have signed up for the Sling TV package free trial, the next step is to download the Sling software (instructions on the Sling TV site at the link above) for desktop computers, as well as for a variety of mobile devices.

Sling TV is available for the Apple iOS, the Android OS, and Amazon Fire OS. The online TV service also offers a channel on several set-top boxes, including Roku, 4th Generation Apple TV, Google Chromecast, and others. For a complete list of Sling-compatible devices and operating systems, click this link.

Fan who would rather not go through the process of signing up for the Sling free trial then cancelling it — and who don’t mind waiting until Thursday to stream the Vikings Season 4 finale — can stream the episode for free starting on February 2, on the History Channel website, available at this link, or through the History Channel app on mobile and set-top streaming devices.

[Featured Image by The History Channel]