The guard was first formed under Emperor Basil II in 988, following the Christianization of Kievan Rus' by Vladimir I of Kiev. They are known for being primarily composed of Germanic peoples, specifically, Scandinavians (the Guard was formed 60 years before the end of the Viking age) and Anglo-Saxons from England (particularly after the Norman Invasion). The Varangian Guard (Greek: Τάγμα των Βαράγγων, Tágma tōn Varángōn) was an elite unit of the Byzantine Army, from the 10th to the 14th centuries, whose members served as personal bodyguards of the Byzantine Emperors. Varangian Guardsmen, an illumination from the Skylitzis Chronicle
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