ATTILA

Thousand years ago, the Turkic peoples were the main military and political force in the world. The Hunnic Empire, the Avarian Khanate, the Khazar state, the Polovtsian Kingdom, the Tartar-Mongol state and the great Mongol and Ottoman Empires occupied huge territories in Asia, Europe and Africa. The strength of these gigantic empires rested on the heroism and courage of the Turkic peoples, who were renowned for their martial spirit. Turkic military units carried out operations in Java (modern-day Indonesia) and Spain, in France and Vietnam, in India and Palestine, in Algeria and Korea, in China and Poland, in Austria, Italy, the Caucasus and the Balkans. The devastating attacks of the Turkic armies and their remarkable military successes gave rise to great empires, one of which was the Hunnic Khanate, which was Turkic in origin and covered the whole of Eastern Europe in the 2nd-5th centuries AD.

"Wur Ah!"

The khanate emerged after the dissolution of the Hunnic Empire in Siberia and the east of modern China. After the dissolution of the empire, the tribes split into three branches, one of which decided to stay in what is now Mongolia, the second set out for the territory of present-day Kazakhstan, and the third settled on the banks of the Itil (Volga) and Yaik (Ural) rivers.

In 360 AD, the Huns started a war against the Alan, who were also a Turkic tribe living between the Itil and Dnepr rivers. And although the Alan army outnumbered the Huns and was better trained, the Huns defeated it in 370 and their mobile cavalry detachments began their control of the endless steppes of the North Caucasus between the Caspian and Aral seas. Further west, from the Baltic to the Azov Sea, the territory belonged to the Goths, an East Germanic tribe which was considered a formidable enemy: the Goth infantry men could lift a horseman and his horse in the air with their long spears.

In 374, the Huns elected Balamir, who was famed for his gallantry and who was born on the banks of the Itil, as their bashbug (khan). Balamir gathered his troops and started a campaign against the Goths. Having defeated the Ostrogoths, Balamir's troops moved further west and, in 375, defeated units of the Visigoths, not far from the Dnepr River. Most of the Visigoths fled and were forced to seek protection from the Byzantine Emperor Valentinian; a small number of them hid in the area between the rivers Prut and Danube. In the meantime, the Huns who crossed Siberia and the Caspian and Black Sea steppes were moving towards Western Europe and, in 378, approached the borders of the Roman Empire. Wearing long, wide cotton robes and thick tanned leather and horsehair short coats, with heavy helmets and big fur hats on their heads, the Huns were warriors feared all over the world. The Europeans were scared of the very sight of the Huns and other Turkic tribes as they rode in their high, narrow saddles.

The Huns were nomads: their families endured all the difficulties and troubles of nomadic life, moving around in carts which also served as housing, they rarely used fire and could not cook tasty meals. They spent their entire lives in the saddle and remained mounted even when bargaining in the market. They were afraid to live in tents, calling them traps. Most of their ration was raw meat, which they kept under the saddle to soften it. When attacking the enemy they roared and loudly shouted "wur ah!" (hence the famous "hurrah!"). The whoosh of their arrows caused panic and horror among the Europeans. Worshipping the spirit of the divine heavens (Tanra), the Huns considered the five elements of nature - earth, metal, air, fire and water - to be sacred. The colours corresponding to these elements were yellow, blue, red, white and black. Their faith made the Huns brave and daring, and they were not afraid to die on the battlefield.

Scourge of God

After the death of Balamir Khan, his son Ulduz came to power in 400 AD. In 409, Ulduz crossed the Danube and started a war with Byzantium. Failing to resist, the emperor sent messengers to Ulduz, begging for mercy. Ulduz's son Mundzuk, who replaced his father in power, strove to unite the Turkic tribes. Although Mundzuk had two sons, Attila and Buda, he was succeeded by his brother Rua. At that time the Hun state stretched from the Aral Sea to the Dnepr River. In 422, Rua gathered his troops and invaded the Roman Empire, seizing Pannonia (modern-day Hungary). Rua's death in 434 brought Attila to power, helped by his brother Buda in matters of governance for 11 years. Attila's name, he was also known as Adil Khan or Itil Khan, proves that he was of Turkic origin from the banks of the Itil (Volga). Not too tall, but broad-shouldered, with sharp eyes and dark hair, Attila was a man of unswerving will and huge inner energy. His fiery speeches inspired his men to victory. He was terrifying in anger, merciless towards enemies and did not tolerate two-facedness or idleness. At the same time, he was wholeheartedly attached to his brothers in arms, who loved their motherland and had no fear. Although he did not like pomp, his hospitality knew no limits. Historians say that he ate from wooden tableware, but his warlords were served their food on silver plates. In Western Europe, he was called "The Scourge of God." The empire which the brothers inherited from their uncle Rua spread from the Alps and the Baltic Sea in the west to the Khazar Sea (Caspian Sea) in the east. After Attila's ascent to power, the Huns conquered huge territories in the east of the Roman Empire. The peace treaty which the Romans signed with the Huns, forced them to pay double the tribute they had before.

Taking advantage of the fact that the Romans were engaged in combat operations in the Asian part of the empire, Attila crossed the border in 441 on the Danube River, crushed the small Roman army and raided and seized numerous towns and villages. After lengthy talks, the Romans managed to conclude a peace agreement in 442, thereby winning time to move their troops to other borders. In 443, Attila again campaigned against Byzantium and seized a large part of its territory. His main goal was to seize Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. After a few clashes, Attila engaged the Romans' main force, defeated them and moved towards the coasts to the north and south of Constantinople, but the city walls proved impenetrable for the Huns. Angered, Attila pursued the people who were hiding on the Gallipoli peninsula (in the European part of the present-day Turkey, between the Dardanelles and the Aegean Sea) and exterminated them. One of the conditions of the peace treaty that followed was payment by the Romans of their outstanding debt in tribute. However, not content with this, Attila also demanded a year's tribute in advance.

Striving to achieve single-handed rule, Attila killed his brother in 445 and became sole ruler of the Huns. In 447, he started his second campaign in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. The main thrust of his armies was aimed at the southern provinces of the Black Sea kingdom of Scythia.  On their way, the Huns engaged the Roman Army and destroyed it, but suffered major losses themselves. Although Attila did plunder the Balkans, his campaign in Greece ended in a fiasco. For the next three years, Attila negotiated with Roman Emperor Theodosius II and finally signed a peace treaty. Attila demanded large territories to the south, from the middle reaches of the Danube, and forced the Romans to pay him tribute. In 451, he sent his troops to the Roman province of Gaul.

It was suggested that Attila had very good relations with Aetius, commander of the Roman Palace Guard, whom the Huns had protected from persecution by the Roman Senate. While among the Huns, Aetius studied the subtleties of the Huns' military organization but, on his return to Rome, he became their sworn enemy. Attila could not reconcile himself to this treachery. Disguising his intentions, the great warlord first said that he had no issue with the Western Roman Emperor Valentinian III. But when he received a wedding ring from the emperor's sister Honoria in 450 and declared her to be his wife, he demanded part of the empire as her dowry. After the invasion of Gaul by the Huns, with support from neighbouring states, Aetius started to make preparations for war against Attila. He even offered highly lucrative posts to traitors from among the Huns. Enraged by this, Attila vowed revenge. Speaking in front of his loyal troops he demanded victory from them.  Famous for his eloquence, Attila told them: "Defence is cowardice, the brave man is he who can deal a blow, revenge is the greatest gift of nature and he who is certain of victory will not be touched by the arrow." At the end of his speeches, he used to say: "Everyone who prefers to rest when Attila fights should see himself in his grave." After one of these speeches, Attila drew his sword from the sheath, shouted out: "In the name of the Almighty!" and started the battle. His loyal commanders followed him, shouting "hurrah!"

All roads lead to Rome

Attila had a 100,000-strong army of Turkic warriors and he formed another 100,000-strong army from men of different tribes. The army which the Roman emperor had gathered from all over Christendom also was 200,000-strong. Ready for the decisive battle, the armies met at Catalaunum in present-day France. The battle continued for two days. By the evening of the second day the Roman legions were on the retreat. The world saw once again that the Turkic tribes were invincible.  Attila decided not to follow the fleeing enemy. He gave his armies a 20-day break and moved towards Rome. In 452, his troops entered Italy and sacked Aquileia, Patavium, Veronia, Brixia, Bergomum and Mediolanum. The Roman troops were unable to confront the Huns and Attila finally approached Rome itself. The residents of the capital, the Senate and the Pope had no other choice but to submit themselves to the mercy of the victors. Pope Leo I, accompanied by the clergy and representatives of Emperor Valentinian, went out to meet Attila to ask him not to destroy the objects of culture, Rome's libraries and countless manuscripts. Attila granted their request and agreed to withdraw his troops if tribute was paid. Thereby Rome, the greatest cultural centre of the world, remained intact. After the military operations in which he crushed his enemies, Attila decided not to move deeper into Europe and returned to what is today's Hungary. Here he married a beautiful girl called Ildiko from the Germanic tribe the Burgundians, whom he exterminated himself. Taking revenge for her people, Ildiko killed Attila on their first night (453 AD). European rulers were glad to hear about the death of the glorious ruler of the Huns, who was a huge threat to their realms. The death of Attila inflicted great suffering on the Huns: men were pulling out their hair and cutting their faces with knives: great warlords were to be mourned with blood, not tears. A silken tent was pitched in a field and the body of their commander lay in state there. Detachments of the best Hun warriors guarded the tent day and night and mourned the death of their beloved leader. Women were not allowed out during the mourning period: their crying might disturb the spirit of the brave warrior. After the mourning and dirges, the lamentation began with a great feast over his grave. Mourning gave way to celebration. The meaning was that the dead ruler could see that the happy life which he won for his people continued. Attila was buried at midnight in a triple coffin of gold, silver and iron. Trophy weapons seized from the enemy in the battle lay next to the coffin. Decorations and jewellery, which Attila never wore when alive but which could prove useful in the afterlife, were also put into the coffin. To avoid ransacking of the tomb, everyone who knew of its location was killed. Some sources say that he is buried at the bottom of the Tisza River.

Historians are ambivalent towards Attila. Some Christian sources describe him as a merciless conqueror and blood-thirsty aggressor with a heart of stone. According to others, Attila was a true patriot, diplomat, reformer, a great statesman and an unequalled military commander. He managed to unite nomadic tribes and create an army which made the European nations tremble. His statements such as "leaders who cannot ask the right questions will always get the wrong answers from their subordinates," "a weak chief always rallies weak Huns around him," "if a Hun seems busy, it does not mean that he is really working" and so on remain useful advice to those who want to take positions of leadership.

Attila was a military commander with inborn talent. According to legend, one shepherd brought Attila a rusty sword which he had found in the steppe. Attila took the sword and said: "This sword remained on the ground for a long time. Now it is the gift of the virtuous, sacred skies to bring all the people under my rule." Indeed, under Attila's command, the Huns conquered huge territories, from the Caucasus in the east to the Rhine in the west, from the Danish isles in the north to the right bank of the Danube in the south. After Attila's rise to power in 434, his victorious campaigns transformed the Hun state into a great empire stretching from Altay to the Danube, with the centre on the steppes of Tisza and, after his death, the empire fell apart into uluses.

Attila's campaigns resulted in the dissolution of the Roman Empire, the abolition of slavery in Europe and the advent of monotheism. Movements of the Turkic Huns set many people into motion across Europe and started a great resettlement of people and tribes. And Attila's era saw a climax to that process. The steppe dwellers moved and settled in Europe before the Huns and Attila. This process changed beyond recognition the life style of both nomads and Europeans. Throughout the centuries, people learned to survive droughts, floods and other natural disasters. The longer the nomads' route, the greater were the changes in anthropology, language, traditions and material culture. The Huns brought numerous gifts to civilization. In different historical periods, Napoleon Bonaparte, Adolf Hitler and George Bush Jr named Attila their role model. And Attila earned his fame as the warlord of all time and all people.