Europe 445: Attila’s Empire

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Notes

Akatziri and the “Scythian Kingdom” (Kuban Huns)

Little is known about the region north and east of the Black Sea in the first half of the fifth century, except that in c. 400 a “Scythian King” (almost always assumed to be a Hun) lived in the Kuban region and by the 440s a Hunnic people known as the Akatziri lived east of the Dniester. Although fragmented, the Akatziri were powerful enough that, when the Eastern Romans aligned with all but one of their kingdoms in 447, it took over a year for Attila’s armies to crush them and install his son as their king. After this, Attila contemplated invading Persia, implying that suppressing the Akatziri had bought the periphery of his empire close to the Caucasus. All this suggests that the Akatziri may have extended into the North Caucasus and that the “Scythian King” may have been part of the Akatziri, although this is of course conjecture.

Main Events

442–444? Bagaudae revolt in Gaul ▲

In 442, possibly in relation to a plague sweeping the Roman Empire, a renewed bagaudae revolt broke out in northern Gaul. In response, the Western Roman magister militum Aetius dispatched the general Majorian against them with a small force. Almost certainly supported by the local Alan foederati, Majorian crushed the uprising at some point between 443 and 445. in wikipedia

443 Romano-Hunnic Treaty ▲

In early 443 Anatolius, commander of the Eastern Roman army, signed a new treaty with the Hunnic kings Bleda and Attila, establishing peace in return for agreements by the Eastern Romans to hand over any Hunnic fugitives, to pay as much as 6,000 pounds of gold in arrears, and to pay an annual tribute of between 1,000 and 1,500 pounds of gold (the exact amount is uncertain)—a significant increase over the 700 pounds of gold the Eastern Romans had agreed to at Margus (435). After this, the Huns seem to have threatened the Western Roman Empire, compelling the Western Romans to sign their own treaty with the Hunnic kings either later that year or in 444. in wikipedia

443 Merobaudes’ Spanish campaign ▲

In 443 Merobaudes, the son-in-law of Astyrius, was dispatched to northern Hispaniae to complete his father-in-law’s war against the bagaudae. Merobaudes swiftly crushed the bagaudae and captured their stronghold in Aracelli (Araciel, Navarre), but these early successes provoked jealousy in Italy and soon afterwards he was recalled to Rome. in wikipedia

443 Regnum Burgundionum ▲

In 443 the Western Roman Empire granted parts of Sapaudia, around Lake Geneva, to the Burgundians to live in as Roman foederati. This relocation of a previously defeated people may have been in response to manpower shortages facing the Romans as they attempted to deal with the threats to Gaul posed by the bagaudae, Franks, and/or Huns. in wikipedia

444 Assassination of Bleda ▲

In the early 440s tensions grew between Bleda and Attila, perhaps over differing opinions over how to act towards the Roman Empire or because Bleda’s jester Zercon insulted Attila or over some other reason. This falling out culminated in late 444 (or possibly early 445) when Attila contrived to have his brother killed and, forcing Bleda’s people to submit to him, became sole ruler of the Hunnic empire. Possibly emboldened by the chaos that followed the assassination, the Eastern Roman Empire stopped paying tribute to the Huns and, in November 444, ordered a remission of taxes in Constantinople. in wikipedia

445 Hunno–Akatziri war ▲

Attila’s assassination of Bleda in 444 led to a brief internal struggle in the Hunnic empire as Attila asserted control over his brother’s followers. Perhaps in relation to this, war broke out between Attila’s Huns and the Akatziri—a branch of Huns living north of the Black Sea—by 445. After a number of battles, the Akatziri were subdued and together their many kings submitted to Attila’s domination. in wikipedia

445 Vandal raid on Turonium ▲

In 445 the Vandals mounted a raid against the Suebi in Gallaecia, suddenly landing their ships at Turonium (near Vigo) and capturing many families. It is uncertain whether this attack had been encouraged by the Romans or was simply a result of tribal disputes between the Vandals and Suebi. in wikipedia

445? Battle of Vicus Helena ▲

In the late 430s and early 440s Chlodio, king of the Salian Franks, appears to have taken advantage of Western Roman weakness by capturing a number of Gallic cities, including Colonia Agrippina (Cologne), Augusta Treverorum (Trier), and Atrebatum (Arras). In response, the Western Roman generalissimo Aetius and his general Julius Majorian (later emperor) ambushed a significant Frankish wedding at Vicus Helena (probably near Arras) and captured the bride. This apparently minor ‘battle’ must have threatened Chlodio himself, as by c. 445 Aetius had regained Augusta Treverorum and compelled the Franks to agree to peace. in wikipedia

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Europe 445: Attila’s Empire

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Theodosian Dynasty: Hunnic Wars

Europe

Attila’s Empire