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Quick Facts
Attila, King of the Huns
Famous for: An empire covering 4million sq km
Born: 406AD, Pannonia (modern Hungary)
Died: 453AD, Jazberin (modern Hungary)
Married: how many wives he had is unknown, but Attila had at least three sons: Ellac, Dengizich, and Ernakh
Profession: king, tyrant, plunderer, murderer, father
Nickname: Scourge of God, because he killed so many Christian Romans
The Great Warrior King
Find words that mean: speak softly, fight, convinced
In about 400AD, a fierce tribe called the Huns arrived in Eastern Europe. When they got to the borders of the Roman Empire, the Romans gave their new neighbours lots of gold
and hoped for peace. But this was not to be.
The Huns were led by the brothers Attila and Bleda. For 11 years they ruled together.
Then Bleda died. Many whispered that Attila had murdered him.
Attila began to take over more land. In just a few years, the Huns owned an empire
that stretched from Russia to Germany.
But when Attila tried to take France from the Romans, he was defeated. It was the
one and only time Attila the Hun lost a battle.
Humiliated, Attila went to Italy. He fought his way towards Rome, winning every single battle. But when he got to the city, Attila suddenly decided to go home.
Nobody knows why Attila quit. Some say he was afraid of a plague in the city.
Others say the Pope persuaded Attila to go home.
Once back in his capital in central Hungary, Attila announced he would take a new wife. The king died of a nosebleed during the wedding party. He was 47 years old.
Terrifying Pony-back Soldiers   
Look at the words in bold and match them with a word that means the opposite: comforting, admit defeat, forgotten   
The Huns didn't farm or trade. They made their living as warriors. The Huns would conquer other tribes and make them pay taxes every year.   
The Huns travelled about on horses. They fought from horseback with bows and swords. They could fight even while galloping.   
Ordinary people were terrified of the Huns. Attila knew this and encouraged singers to spread around frightening stories. He wanted everyone to be too scared to resist him.   
This worked so well that Attila the Hun is still remembered with fear   1,600 years later!   
Partying With Attila The Hun   
Fill in the gaps with words from the list below   
In 448AD, the Romans sent Priscus to visit Attila the Hun. The _______ travelled for   months before he found Attila in an army camp.   
The king invited Priscus to a party. It started at 3PM. Priscus was impressed by   the gold _______ , delicious food, silver plates and fantastic wine.   
At first all the guests _______ each other. Then they drank to Attila. Every time   more food appeared, everyone drank again.   
Everyone got very drunk. Afterwards, _______ sang about Attila  victories. Then   Zerkon the dwarf told lots of jokes.   
Priscus had a good time but Attila disappointed him. The ______ ate from a wooden plate, didn't wear any jewellery and never once laughed at Zerkon jokes!   
DIPLOMAT, KING, MUSICIANS, ORNAMENTS, TOASTED   
True or false?   
To test your memory, try answering without referring to the   text. If you can't remember the details, read the piece again   
1 Attila the Hun was born in what is now Hungary.   
2 Attila had one wife and three sons.   
3 The Hun could ride horses and fight at the same time.   
4 Attila only lost one battle in his life.   
5 The Romans tried to keep the Hun from invading their land by bribery.   
The Hun Bow   
The Huns used a composite bow. That means the bow was not just made from wood like the bows in Europe. What was special about the Hun bow was that it was asymmetrical. They were also smaller than the traditional longbow, but more powerful. The top part of the bow was larger than the bottom part. The bottom part had to be smaller because Huns fought on horseback, and the warriors had to be able to move the bow from one side of   the horse to the other when in battle. The size of the bow and its shape meant it had a longer range than those of the Germanic tribes. The Huns could start using their bows before their enemies were close enough to use theirs.   
Recurve bows   
When it is not strung a bow curve can face towards an archer or away from him. Recurved bows, like the Hu's, curve away from the archer, thereby compacting more force into a shorter length. 
Types of bows   
Bows are good weapons for hunting and for war. They shoot arrows by a combination of the elasticity of the string and the flexibility of the limbs. Bows can roughly be divided into three groups:   
Solid wood: These were made out of wood only, such as the English longbow.   
Laminated: These were made out of thinner pieces of wood glued together. This gave them more flexibility and sent the arrows further. The Japanese used these kinds of bows.   
Composite: These were state-of-the-art bows made from a mix of wood, horn and sinew all held together with a glue made by boiling fish bones or animal hooves. Horn and sinew store more energy than wood.  




History-maker Part 1: Attila 'The Hun'