Borghild

A sorceress, who was particularly skilled with poison. Borghild was the first wife of the hero Sigmund, king of Hunland. She was the mother of two sons, Helgi and Hamund.

Although her stepson Sinfjotli, the son of Sigmund and Sigmund's sister Signy, had helped her own son to win the war against the Hundings, she was jealous because Sinfjotli was first born. She was determined to kill her stepson.

She tried to poison Sinfjotli. Borghild passed poisoned wine to her stepson, but Sinfjotli recognised it as poison. Sigmund would take the wine cup from his son, and drink the poison himself. Such was Sigmund's constitution that he was immune to all poison. The second cup she passed to her stepson was also filled with poison, and Sigmund drank this too.

By the second cup, Sigmund was quite drunk, and told his son to drink the third cup that Borghild gave to Sinfjotli, if he was not a coward. The moment the wine passed through Sinfjotli's lips, he died. Odin personally took Sinfjotli's body with him to Valhalla.

Sigmund drove her out of his kingdom for murdering his son. Borghild didn't live long, after she was banished.