填空题 .Attila the Hun
    Attila the Hun was the leader of a tribe of Eurasian nomads that invaded the Roman Empire in the mid-fifth century. Around 370 A.D., the Huns appeared from east of the Volga River and settled in the land that is Hungary today. They warred against Rome and other tribes, and they overran parts of the Eastern Roman Empire before invading the Western Roman Empire while under Attila's command. They employed mounted archers to engage in mobile warfare, and they developed reputations for being fierce warriors from whom others fled in terror. Eventually, the Romans themselves branded Attila with the moniker "The Scourge of God."
    Attila's birthdate is uncertain, but some historians place it around 406. Two of Attila's uncles ruled together as they followed a common practice of the Huns involving joint-rule by brothers. During that period, the Huns had a cordial relationship with the Eastern Romans, who employed the Huns as mercenaries for their wars with the barbaric tribes pushing against the empire's northern borders. In 434, both of Attila's uncles died, so Attila and his older brother Bleda became the co-rulers of the Huns.
    After the initiation of some troubles with the Eastern Roman empire, the brothers negotiated a peace that brought the Huns a great amount of wealth in the form of tribute and the ransoming of Roman prisoners. But this peace only lasted until 440, when the Huns and the Eastern Roman Empire began battling each other again. ❶By 443, the Hun army had marched to the walls of Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, but the soldiers could not get past the prominent defenses; however, they had defeated Roman field armies, so, once again, the Romans negotiated a peace requiring them to pay a much larger tribute of gold and higher ransoms for prisoners. ❷Satisfied, the Huns returned to their homelands. ❸Then, in 445, Bleda died, leaving Attila as the sole ruler.❹
    Attila then set out on his greatest campaign: the invasion of the Western Roman Empire. The impetus for the invasion was a marriage. In 450, Honoria, the sister of Valentinian, the emperor of the Western Roman Empire, had written to Attila and requested his assistance because she wished to avoid an arranged marriage to a Roman senator. Attila interpreted her plea as a marriage proposal, claimed Honoria as his bride and half her brother's empire as her dowry, and invaded the west. The Huns marched through the Germanic lands and invaded Gaul while allying with other tribes along the way.
    Attila's vast host met the Romans and their Visigoth allies at the Battle of Chalons in 451. The battle ended in a stalemate but effectively terminated the Huns' invasion of Gaul. A year later, a problem with supplies resulted in a failed invasion of northern Italy, which led to a decline in the Huns' fortunes. Thwarted in his attempt to marry Honoria, Attila took a new bride from a Germanic tribe in 453. However, during his wedding night feast, Attila suffered a seizure and died. Some historians speculate that poison was the cause while others attribute his death to heavy drinking. Whatever the case, Attila's heirs fought over who would rule the Huns, which divided them and resulted in the ultimate defeat of the Huns at the hands of a confederation of Germanic tribes.
    *cordial: friendly
    *dowry: money or other items of value a bride gives to her husband when they are married28.  Vocabulary
    ______=to name