Attila the Hun Confronts Pope Leo the Great

Michael Streich

The meeting between Attila, the “Scourge of God,” and Pope Leo the Great on the banks of the Mincio River in the summer of AD 452 has become the subject of sermons, works of art, and Hollywood movies. The pope’s turning back of Attila the Hun was, in the words of 18^th Century historian Gibbon, a “noble legend.” Both men benefited from the arrangement yet Attila’s reasons are still largely unclear.

 

Attila, King of the Huns

 

The Huns originated in eastern Asia where they were known as Hsiung-Nu, attacking northern China and causing, in part, the building of the Great Wall. Superb horsemen, Hunnish cavalry was unequaled as was their ruthlessness. The Huns arrived in the Eastern Roman Empire in the 5^th Century, originally trading with the Romans and accepting tribute.

 

As relations deteriorated and tribute was ended, the Huns invaded the empire. Attila, whose kingship was consolidated after murdering his brother, entered the Eastern Empire in 447. In 450, he crossed the Rhine, in the Western Empire, with 300,000 to 700,000 men, depending upon which source is to be believed.

 

At the battle of Chalons, considered an historically decisive battle, the Roman General Aetius defeated the Huns with substantial help from the Visigoths. Temporarily defeated, Attila withdrew. By 452, however, he was ready to invade Italy with the intention of taking Rome.

 

Pope Leo the Great

 

Catholic historian Gustav Schnurer writes that Leo I “signifies…the high point of the papacy in Christian antiquity.” Pope Leo has also been referred to as the “father of the medieval papacy.” Part of this accolade stems from his meeting with Attila, yet Leo was also a superb church administrator.

 

Leo’s meeting with Attila occurred half way through his 21-year pontificate. A spiritual man who had fought the Manichaean heresy and championed the sanctity of Christian marriage, Leo was trusted and appeared the logical choice to confront Attila.

 

The Pope and Attila at Mincio

 

Pope Leo was joined by Trigetius, Praetorian Prefect of Rome, and Gennadius Avienus, a politician. Contrary to the works of art, such as Raphael’s “Repulse of Attila” in the Vatican Stanze which shows the Hunnish king and the Roman pope meeting on horses, the parlay was conducted in Attila’s tent.

 

Given the absence of written records of the meeting, not much is known about the conversations. Pope Symmachus, writing at the end of the century, mentions Attila’s return of prisoners which may indicate the payment of a ransom. The Huns were often bought off with gold. One legend, recounted in the Gallic Chronicle, relates that Pope Leo was flanked by the spirits of St. Peter and St. Paul, frightening Attila into submission.

 

Attila Withdraws from Italy

 

Financial payment is the most likely reason Attila spared Rome. Yet historians have identified other important factors. Attila’s army had entered Italy in the midst of famine and plague, most likely malaria. At the same time, the Eastern Emperor, Marcian, had dispatched troops across the Danube, threatening to cut-off the Huns.

 

Finally, Attila’s own advisors recounted the tale of Alaric who had earlier plundered Rome but died soon thereafter. The Pope’s visit to Attila’s tent occurred amidst all of these elements. It is very possible that at the time of the meeting, Attila was already predisposed to withdrawing north.

 

Attila died shortly after these events from a nosebleed on his wedding night and was buried in a secret spot. The Scourge of God, however, would be long remembered in legend and myth, as would his meeting with Leo the Great.

 

Sources:

 

Patrick Howarth, Attila the Hun: the Man and the Myth (Barnes & Noble, 1994)

Philip Matyszak, The Enemies of Rome from Hannibal to Attila the Hun (Thames and Hudson, 2004)

Gustav Schnurer, Church and Culture in the Middle Ages (St. Anthony Guild Press, 1956)

 [copyright owned by michael streich]