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Attilla The Hun

Attila the Hun (Old Norse: Atle, Atli; German: Etzel; ca. 406–453 AD) was the last and most powerful king of the Huns. He reigned over what was then Europe's largest empire, from 434 until his death. His empire stretched from Central Europe to the Black Sea and from the Danube River to the Baltic. During his rule he was among the direst enemies of the Eastern and Western Roman Empires: he invaded the Balkans twice and encircled Constantinople in the second invasion. He marched through France as far as Orleans before being turned back at Chalons; and he drove the western emperor Valentinian III from his capital at Ravenna in 452.

Though his empire died with him, and he left no remarkable legacy, he has become a legendary figure in the history of Europe. In much of Western Europe, he is remembered as the epitome of cruelty and rapacity. In contrast, some histories lionize him as a great and noble king, and he plays major roles in three Norse sagas.
Contents
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    * 1 Background and beginnings
    * 2 Shared kingship
    * 3 Sole ruler
    * 4 Attila in the west
    * 5 Invasion of Italy and death
    * 6 Appearance, character, and name
    * 7 Notes
    * 8 See also
    * 9 References
    * 10 External links

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Background and beginnings

    Main article: Huns

The European Huns are often thought to have been a western extension of the Xiongnu (Xiōngnú), (匈奴) n., a group of nomad tribes from north-eastern China and Central Asia. These people achieved military superiority over their rivals (most of them highly cultured and civilized) by their state of readiness for combat, amazing mobility, and weapons like the Hun bow.

Attila was born around 406. Nothing certain is known about his childhood; the supposition that at a young age he was already a capable leader and a capable warrior is reasonable but unknowable.

Following negotiation of peace terms in 418, the young Atilla, at the age of 12, was sent as a...