Genral history of the Varangian Guard. The Varangian Guard was an elite force of Viking warriors who served the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire.

The name Varangian comes from an Old Norse word relating to sharers in an oath - it is thought it originally referred to Swedish traders on the Russian rivers, bound together by an oath to co-operate and share profits. It was later extended to mean any Viking from the Norse settlements in Russia.

Vikings had served in the Byzantine army and navy from at least the middle of the ninth century, but in 988 AD Byzantine Emperor Basil II Bulgaroktonos (Slayer of Bulgarians) was sent 6000 Swedish warriors by Varangian Tsar Vladimir of Russia, and it is thought he made them his Imperial bodyguard. They were known as the Axe-bearing Guard, from the enormous two-handed axes they carried. They took part in many of the great battles of the Byzantine Empire, and may also have garrisoned the Empire’s cities.

The Varangian Guards were among the best-paid of the Empire’s troops - so well paid that membership had to be purchased. Norsemen from all over Scandinavia and Russia came to Byzantium (Constantinople), spent time in the Varangian Guard and returned home wealthy. One such was Harald Hardrada, who later became king of Norway. He was to die in battle in 1066 during an unsuccessful attempt to invade England, shortly before it was conquered by William of Normandy. After the Norman Conquest, many Anglo-Saxons are thought to have left England and joined the Varangian Guard.

The Varangians were renowned for their loyalty to the Emperors, an unusual thing in a society as riddled with intrigue as Byzantium. They stayed in Imperial service for over two centuries, seeing the greatness and decline of the Byzantine Empire. The New Varangian Guard models itself on the activities and lifestyle of these times.

Originally the New Varangian Guard only re-enacted Vikings, but nowadays we re-create many of the cultures in contact with the Byzantine Empire from the late 10th to the early 13th century AD. Though the most popular group is still Viking mercenaries, people also re-enact Byzantines and their Moslem opponents (particularly the Seljuk Turks), and lately Crusaders have been becoming popular. But there are many other possibilities including Bulgars, Pechenegs, Cumans, Khazars, Persians and Armenians.