External forcings are known to impact atmospheric circulation. However, the analysis of the role of external forcings based on observational data is hampered due to the short observational period, and the sensitivity of atmospheric circulation to external forcings as well as persistence the effects are debated. A positive phase of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) has been observed the following winter after tropical volcanic eruptions. However, past major tropical eruptions exceeding the magnitude of eruptions during the instrumental era could have more lasting effects. Decadal NAO variability has been suggested to follow the 11-year solar cycle, and linkages has been made between grand solar minima and negative NAO. However, the solar link to NAO found by modeling studies is not unequivocally supported by reconstructions, and is not consistently present in observations for the 20th century. Here we present a reconstruction of atmospheric winter circulation for the North Atlantic region covering the period 1241–1970 CE. Based on seasonally resolved Greenland ice core records and a 1200-year long simulation with an isotope enabled climate model, we reconstruct sea level pressure and temperature by matching the spatio-temporal variability of the modeled isotopic composition to that of the ice cores. This method allows us to capture the primary and secondary modes of atmospheric circulation in the North Atlantic region, while, contrary to previous reconstructions, preserving the amplitude of observed year-to-year atmospheric variability. Our results show 5 winters of positive NAO on average following major tropical volcanic eruptions, which is more persistent than previously suggested. In response to decadal minima of solar activity we find a high-pressure anomaly over Northern Europe, while a reinforced opposite response in pressure emerges with a 5-year time lag. On longer time scales we observe a similar response in circulation as for the 5-year time-lagged response. This is likely due to an increase in blocking frequency and an associated weakening of the subpolar gyre. The long-term response of temperature to solar minima shows cooling across Greenland, Iceland and Western Europe, resembling the cooling pattern during the Little Ice Age. While our results show a clear link between solar forcing and the secondary circulation patterns, we find no consistent relationship between solar forcing and NAO.