Gerda

> In this crystal are the memories of my sister which I stole from the people of Arendelle. Please return them, my sisters deserve to be known.
>       —Gerda's letter to Anna and Elsa

Queen **Gerda**, also known as the **Queen** of **Arendelle** and **Regal Woman**, is a character on ABC's *Once Upon a Time*. She débuts in the first episode of the fourth season. She is portrayed by guest star Pascale Hutton and co-star Ava Marie Telek.

Gerda is based on the character of the same name from the fairytale, "The Snow Queen" and the Queen of Arendelle from the Disney film *Frozen*.

## History

### Before First Curse

Gerda is the third child born to Queen Sonja and King Harald of Arendelle, and she has two elder sisters, Ingrid and Helga. As children, the three develop a close bond. One afternoon, they spot a punctured kite, and Gerda and Helga take a fancy to the kite's ribbons. The kite's owner arrives, but the man proves to be a scoundrel as he grabs Gerda; intending to sell her for money. With Helga also restrained in his grip, he then kicks Ingrid away. As she falls backwards, a stream of ice comes out of her hands, which breaks a large tree branch and knocks him unconscious. Ingrid fears hurting her sisters with her new-found powers, but Gerda and Helga are thankful for what she did earlier. Her sisters promise to help conceal the powers, and each take a kite ribbon to solidify their sisterhood. Years later, on the night of their father's birthday celebration, Gerda and Helga attempt to convince Ingrid into coming with them, but she doesn't want to ruin things with her presence. At the party, Gerda watches Helga introduce her admirer, the Duke of Weselton, to their father. After the festivity, the sisters arrive home to find Ingrid packing up as she believes with herself gone, they can have normal lives. Ingrid fears not being able to control her powers, so Gerda mentions a Misthaven resident, Rumplestiltskin, who can help. In exchange for their ribbons, Rumplestiltskin gives Ingrid a pair of gloves to cancel out her powers as well as a urn to entrap her if she becomes too dangerous. Later, in the royal garden, Gerda comes across Ingrid crying over the frozen and crumbled body of Helga. Realizing Ingrid, whether intentionally or not, killed Helga, she refuses to side with her only remaining sister out of fear and shock. Gerda, deeming Ingrid a monster, entraps her in the urn. Grief-stricken, Gerda seeks out Grand Pabbie and tells him she lost her sisters. When he prompts for details, she refuses to say as it is too painful to speak of. Due to the tragic circumstances, she asks him to erase her sisters' existences from everyone's memories, even though he implies a magical price will be extracted at her expense. Despite wiping out everyone else's memories of her sisters, Gerda chooses to retain hers. *("Family Business", "The Snow Queen")*
After marrying her husband, they rule as Queen and King of Arendelle and have two daughters, Elsa and Anna. When Elsa exhibits powerful and dangerous ice powers, the couple track down a pirate, Black Beard, in the nearby land of Mist Haven and bargain with him to obtain a wishing star. Though they had hopes of removing Elsa's powers with it, the item can grant a wish only if used by a pure-hearted person. Since neither are able to harness it, the pair consult with a wizard to get rid of Elsa's magic. During the sea voyage home, the ship is caught in a terrible storm. Realizing neither of them will make it out alive, Gerda hastily jots down a long note, which explains her past with both of her sisters. Within it, she is remorseful about hiding Ingrid from the world out of fear people might learn about her sister's powers. Gerda also writes that she regrets trapping Ingrid in the urn and asks her daughters to free her. Lastly, she requests Anna and Elsa to tell Ingrid how much she truly loved her. At the very bottom of the note, she places a crystal, which contains memories of Ingrid and Helga. She then rolls up the note into a scroll, places it into a bottle and throws it overboard so Elsa and Anna will find it. Soon after, the ship capsizes and sinks. *("A Tale of Two Sisters", "Fall", "Shattered Sight")*

## Trivia

* The name "Gerda" is a Latinized from of the name "Gerd"  derived from the Old Norse word *garðr*, which means "enclosure". In Norse mythology, Gerd was a fertility goddess who was the wife of the god Freyr.

## Appearances

*Note: "Archive" denotes archive footage.*

* Gerda appears in a portrait in "Rocky Road", "Smash the Mirror" and "Heroes and Villains".
* Gerda appears in a family tree picture in "Family Business".

## References

1. ↑ http://www.behindthename.com/name/gerda-2
2. ↑ http://www.behindthename.com/name/gerd-2