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Battle of Chalons: Attila the Hun Versus Flavius AetiusMilitary History | 5 comments | Print This Post | Email This Post
Attila utilized the strength Aetius’ lenient terms left him to invade the Western Empire again only a year after Châlons. This time the Huns crossed the Alps to ravage northwest Italy, including the cities of Aquileia, Padua, Verona and Mediolanum (Milan). Powerless to stop Attila at that time, Aetius sent a famous deputation headed by Pope Leo I (the Great) that met the Hunnic leader at Mantua. Legend has it that the mighty Attila was turned back by the sheer aura surrounding the pope as God’s earthly representative. More likely, perhaps, Attila’s army was already laden with booty and had also suffered heavy losses to disease. Whatever the real reason, Attila accepted Aetius’ terms as presented by the pope and so ended the last Hunnic invasion of Rome’s disintegrating empire. Subscribe Today
Within a year Attila was dying of a nasal hemorrage in the arms of his new and very young wife. His empire did not long outlive him. As his sons quarreled over the spoils, their German subjects rose up in revolt against their divided, weakened erstwhile overlords and defeated them over the next several years. Driven from the Pannonian plains, the Huns receded into the vast spaces of Central Asia from which they had emerged.
This article was written by Richard Gordon and originally published in the December 2003 issue of Military History.
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            Tags: Ancient-Medieval, Historical Conflicts
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5 Comments to “Battle of Chalons: Attila the Hun Versus Flavius Aetius”
Finally a report that humanizes Attila. Thank you.
By adonasetb on Aug 16, 2008 at 8:20 pm
attila the hun was badass
By ashley on Feb 12, 2009 at 3:18 pm
that was crap u tosser
By cameron on May 28, 2009 at 8:59 pm
From reading this article I wonder how Aetius got the Visigoths the potential enemy of Rome if the Huns wouldn”t have invaded to take the brunt of the battle rather than his legionaries. This seems more of a visigoth victory than a roman.
By David French on Jul 4, 2009 at 12:12 am
If you read the original sources,.e. Getica, it sure looks like Attila won the battle and both the Visigoths and Aetius escaped from the battlefield. Based on the battle description the so called roman victory is imagined by later historians…
By Jeliko on Jul 10, 2009 at 5:12 pm