to bury his brother, Atilla moved a river, buried Blada in the middle, and then put the river back over the grave so it couldn't be plundered.
Posted on 12/16/2005 9:51:34 AM PST by indcons
No one represents the unbridled fury and savagery of barbarism as much as Attila the Hun. Even in the twentieth century one of the worst names that could be found for the Germans was to call them Huns. Attila, as the greatest Hun leader, is the stereotypical sacker of cities and killer of babies. In his own day he and his Huns were known as the "Scourge of God," and the devastation they caused in Gaul before the great Battle of Chalons in 451 AD became a part of medieval folklore and tradition.
The clash at Chalons was one of those rare monumental conflicts, pitting against one another two of the towering figures of Late Antiquity, the fierce and passionate Attila and the noble Aetius, sometimes called "the last of the Romans." By 451 Aetius had been the foremost general in the Roman Empire for many years, and he was also the chief political adviser to the Emperor of the West, Valentinian III. In the previous forty years the once great Empire had suffered staggering setbacks, especially in the West. Aetius had done more than anyone else to keep what remained of the Roman world strong and prosperous.
Despite Aetius' efforts, when Attila crossed the Rhine with the Huns in 451, he threatened a tottering relic of power. The Western Roman Empire had already been ravaged by Visigoths, Vandals, Suebi, Alamanni, Burgundians and other barbarian tribes. Visigoths had an independent kingdom in Aquitaine, and Vandals occupied North Africa with a capital at Carthage. Roman rule in many parts of Gaul and Spain was merely nominal.
(Excerpt) Read more at historicaltextarchive.com ...
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Ping to "Attila's Antics" at Chalons
Interestingly, Attila seems to have died after consuming alcohol to excess on his wedding night. Quite an inglorious end for a great warrior.
Some credible anthropological sources claim that the Huns (or Hunas as they were known in Asia) were the ancestors of the Mongols.
How many of these invasions were caused by weather?
That's a great question....I don't know the answer though. If the historical assumptions about the Huns and the Mongols are correct, I guess weather (and the lack of grazing land)must have played a major role in their drive toward Europe.
Most interestingly, I am not aware of the historical record of the Huns after they left Rome following the death of Attila.
War for resources, again.
"When you come upon the enemy, smite him. Pardon will not be given. Prisoners will not be taken. Whoever falls into your hands is forfeit. Once, a thousand years ago, the Huns under their King Attila made a name for themselves, one still potent in legend and tradition. May you in this way make the name German remembered in China for a thousand years so that no Chinaman will ever again dare to even squint at a German!"
Very interesting quote, ClearCase_guy
Surprising the kaiser didn't use the Goths as a reference...they were feared by the Romans too, weren't they?
Cool article. Bump for more time.
ping
Yeah, couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.
Thanks for the link.....some interesting info there.
The Visigoths had been allowed by Theodosius the Great (AD 378–395) to settle along the Danube inside the borders of the Empire. The barbarians were recognized by treaty as an independent people having their own rulers and their own army. (Most Romans of the time were disarmed.) The Visigoths were exempted from Roman taxation and Roman civil and criminal law. In return, they agreed to help defend the Empire against other barbarians. (Doing a job that Romans wouldn't do?) That policy led directly to the fall of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476.
(Doing a job that Romans wouldn't do?)"
LOL.....
Thanks for the fascinating bit of history in the rest of the post.
to bury his brother, Atilla moved a river, buried Blada in the middle, and then put the river back over the grave so it couldn't be plundered.
You oughta make that your tagline. 
Huns defeat French, starting a 1500 year tradition.
After the wars, the Huns settled the plains of what became Hungary.
Naaaaah. too misunderstood by liberals.
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