Page 75 - All About History - Issue 26-15

THE CATALAUNIAN

PLAINS

CHAMPAGNE-ARDENNE REGION, FRANCE 20 JUNE 451

he Battle of the Catalaunian Plains (or the former to form an alliance with the Roman empire.
Battle of Chalons, as it is sometimes referred Thus, Aetius and his troops, along with an alliance
to) played host to a skirmish between two of Visigoths led by King Theodoric I and groups of
opponents experiencing varying fortunes. Alans and Burgundinians, made for Orleans.
T On one side was the Roman Empire, a once- As it turned out, they made it just in time, on 14
mighty force on the wane in the wake of constant June, with Orleans on the verge of surrender. Despite
assaults courtesy of increasingly powerful tribes the fact that his forces greatly outnumbered the
from across Europe. On the other was one of the Roman coalition, Attila ordered his troops to retreat
chief perpetrators of said attacks: Attila the Hun. in good order, preferring to face them in open battle
Known as ‘the scourge of God’, Attila and his rather than the confines of the city. Making camp
Huns inspired great fear, and for good reason. near Chalons, he waited until the cover of darkness.
He and his tribe were renowned for the manner All the while Aetius and his force remained in battle
in which they swept through the eastern formation. On 20 June, the fighting commenced.
Roman Empire, laying waste to all in their path, The battle was one of the bloodiest fought of
indiscriminate of age, race or rank. And they were that age. Although Attila took the early upper hand,
looking for a new target, ultimately settling on Gaul ploughing through the soft centre of the Alans
(now France). Although nominally counted as part (purposefully placed there due to their unreliability),
of the Roman Empire, in actuality it was largely the Romans and Visigoths returned fire by attacking
controlled by the Visigoths, who found themselves the flanks, turning the tide of the battle. With light
under threat from Attila. The barbarian rampaged returning and his life at risk, Attila again withdrew.
through Gaul, with cities like Cologne, Mainz, Metz, Exact numbers of the dead (including Theodoric
Theodoric Strasbourg and Rheims falling before the onslaught; among them) are unknown, although some sources
The leader of the
Visigoths agreed to he then lay siege to Orleans. paint the figure as high as 200,000-300,000.
an alliance with the But the Romans had, as their leader, a man Faced with the opportunity to wipe out the Huns,
Romans in the face capable of facing off with the mighty Attila in Aetius stayed his hand. This has been attributed to
of danger from the battle. Aetius was, by equal measures, a warrior and the fact that the existence of a common foe in the
Huns, as they inhabited politician, having won numerous battles as a general, Huns was the only reason their alliance with the
Gaul, which Attila was
targeting. Ultimately, and served as chief political adviser to Valentinian Visigoths held, which they still needed to safeguard
Theodoric lost his life in III, the emperor of the western Roman Empire. against further attacks from the Vandals in the
the battle. Having spent large parts of his youth growing up south (who themselves had first mooted the idea of
with Visigoths and even the Huns, he knew their invading Gaul to Attila). The Huns would eventually
ways and habits. This experience, combined with return to ravage Italy, but for now, the future of the
his political and military nous, was to prove vital in eastern Roman Empire was secured – thanks in
not only defeating the latter, but in persuading the large part to Aetius, the ‘last of the Romans’.

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