<P> Composed primarily of Scandinavians for the first hundred years , the guard increasingly included Anglo - Saxons after the successful Norman Conquest of England . By the time of Emperor Alexios Komnenos in the late 11th century , the Varangian Guard was largely recruited from Anglo - Saxons and `` others who had suffered at the hands of the Vikings and their cousins the Normans '' . The Anglo - Saxons and other Germanic peoples shared with the Vikings a tradition of faithful , oath - bound service ( to death if necessary ) , and after the Norman Conquest of England there were many fighting men , who had lost their lands and former masters , looking for a living elsewhere . </P>
<P> Composed primarily of Scandinavians for the first hundred years , the guard increasingly included Anglo - Saxons after the successful Norman Conquest of England . By the time of Emperor Alexios Komnenos in the late 11th century , the Varangian Guard was largely recruited from Anglo - Saxons and `` others who had suffered at the hands of the Vikings and their cousins the Normans '' . The Anglo - Saxons and other Germanic peoples shared with the Vikings a tradition of faithful , oath - bound service ( to death if necessary ) , and after the Norman Conquest of England there were many fighting men , who had lost their lands and former masters , looking for a living elsewhere . </P>
the swedish vikings the varangians became known or assimilate with
the swedish vikings the varangians became known or assimilate with
Anglo - Saxons
Anglo - Saxons