Brunhilde was a queen, a ruler in her own right, but the men around her saw her power as a threat. She spent decades fighting for survival, outmaneuvering kings and nobles who sought to control or destroy her. She ruled through her sons and grandsons, enduring betrayal after betrayal, refusing to be silenced or pushed aside.

But a woman with power was dangerous. When she was finally captured, her enemies made an example of her. She was tortured for three days before being tied to a horse and torn limb from limb—a brutal punishment not just for her, but for any woman who dared to lead.

Yet Brunhilde’s story did not die with her body. Her name endured, woven into legend and myth. She became a figure of defiance, immortalized in the Nibelungenlied and Wagner’s operas as a warrior queen, a Valkyrie, a woman too strong to be broken. Though history tried to erase her, her legend refused to fade.

Brunhilde’s fate was meant to serve as a warning, but her legacy tells a different story. She proved that women could rule, could strategize, could fight. Her life is a reminder that the struggle for power has always been rigged against women—and that those who refuse to surrender will be feared by the oppressors.