Arcadius had then made Alaric magister militarium of Illyria, an astonishing decision which in one stroke gave the Goths access to the best weapons the Roman arsenals could turn out. Once equipped with these arms, Alaric turned on the west and invaded Italy. The emperor Honorius was living in luxury in his palace in Medialanum (Milan) when the Goths approached and he fled to a small town called Asta where he was beseiged, but Stilicho arrived in time with a hastily assembled army - at the cost of stripping the Rhine defences bare - and put the Goths to flight at the Battle of Pollentia in 402, and again at Verona the following year. Honorius now made his seat of government the more inaccessable city of Ravenna, and it was here that Casca served the emperor.
Stilicho defeated another large invading horde of barbarians at Florence, killing their king Radagasius in the process. However, Stilicho's success worked against him and Honorius, fearful of the ambitions of the military man, listened to the whispers of Olympius, an oily courtier who intrigued successfully against him. Stilicho's generals were murdered in a Roman version of 'the night of long knives' and Stilicho himself arrested in Ravenna and executed. In one move the stupid Honorius had removed the only obstacle standing between Alaric and Rome.
Alaric's invasion of Italy in 410 ended with the sack of Rome, a feat witnessed by Casca whilst a prisoner of Alaric. It was now that Alaric allowed Casca to go free and he left the tottering Roman Empire for the sanctuary of Helsfjord. When he returned it was threatened by another danger - Attila and his Huns. Attila had become king of the Huns in 443 when his brother Bleda died, either from a hunting accident or at the instigation of Attila himself. Bleda had been king and his death opened the way for Attila to take up the reins of power, therefore rumours of murder abounded.
In 447 Attila's first campaign was directed against the Balkans, part of the Eastern Roman Empire, and he ravaged as far as Greece, then turned back due to an outbreak of malaria amongst his troops. He increased demands for tribute from the Empire and even demanded territory. This act persuaded the Imperial counrt that as long as Attila lived there would be no peace. A plot to assassinate Attila was hatched and in 449 the conspirators made their way to Attila's court as part of an ambassador's entourage, but the plot was discovered and the would-be killer sent back to Constantinople in disgrace.
Attila now turned his attention to the west. One of the Imperial family there, a woman called Honoria who had been in disgrace for sexual promiscuity, offered her hand in marriage to Attila if he would free her. Attila considered this to be a perfect pretext to obtaining half of the Western Empire as dowry. The emperor Valentinian III rejected such an arrangement and Attila decided on war. With an army of Huns, Gepids, Ostrogoths, Skirians, Swabians and Alemans, he set off towards Gaul through Germania. Most of the army was Germanic and moved slowly. On 7 April 451 they lay seige to the city of Metz on the Moselle. They sacked and burned the city before moving into Gaul.
They by-passed Lutetia, now known as Paris, having destroyed Rheims amongst other cities, and headed towards Toulouse which was the capital of the Visigothic kingdom. To prevent this the Roman military commander Aetius decided on making a stand near the city of Orleans, a city he had fortified some time earlier during campaigns to subdue the Burgundians. Aetius used Hunnic and Alan mercenaries then, so he had a good idea how these people fought. Aetius knew however he needed the help of the Visigoths if he was to have any chance of stopping Attila's army. He learned that the Visigoths intended to join forces with Attila once he reached their territory so he quickly travelled to the court of the Visigothic king Theodoric and persuaded him to change his mind.
Aetius now had an army that included Alans, Burgundians, Franks, Saxons and Visigoths. Atilla raised the seige of Orleans and marched on Aetius. He was told by his shamans that the Huns would meet with disaster but fortold that the opposing commander would be killed. Attila assumed this to mean Aetius. The choice of battlefield was made by Attila and he picked a site with open fields so that his largely Germanic army would be able to function properly. As they made their way northwards, Aetius' vanguard of Franks clashed with Attila's rearguard of Gepids, which resulted in a draw.
The site of battle has never been determined but it appears to be close to the city of Troyes. It is known as either the Battle of Chalons or Catalaunian Fields, or even as Campus Mauriacus. Attila gave a rousing speech to his troops prior to the battle. Of the battle itself, details available say it was fought on a level plain with one small hill that was hotly disputed. Aetius' troops initially held it. Attila arranged his forces with the Huns in the centre, the Gepids under their king Ardaric on the right and on the left the Ostrogoths led by three brothers. Aetius commanded his right wing and the Visigoths under Theodoric the left. The centre was held by the untrustworthy Alans under king Sangiban.
The initial Hun charge and shower of arrows broke through the Alans and they wheeled onto the Visigoths where the hand-to-hand fighting was savage. King Theodoric rallied his men but was struck down by an Ostrogothic spear and died. Attila now knew the prophecy meant him, not Aetius. Theodoric's son Thorismund took over and counter-attacked, driving the Ostrogoths back. Also the small hill remained in Aetius' hands. By nightfall the Huns were entrenched behind defences which included the wagons mentioned in the book, and it was now that the burning of the saddles took place. Aetius decided to beseige the Huns but before he could the Visigoths abandoned the battlefield, leaving Aetius no choice but to retreat.
Attila retreated also and returned to the Hunnic homelands around the Danube and Tisza rivers. The following year he decided on invading Italy. The seige of Aquilea took place much as described in The Damned, including the storks, and its fall destroyed the city forever. today it is nothing more than a village. The Huns passed into the fertile lands of Italy where Aetius was waiting. The Visigoths and Alans were no longer with him, and his forces were diminished. He could not take the huge Hunnish army on so he retreated, waiting. The emperor, Valentinian, refused Aetius permission to fight, and he himself moved from Ravenna to Rome. All the while the cities fell to Attila; Padua, Verona, Mediolanum, Ticinum. Then, on the banks of the Mincio River, he came face to face with Pope Leo.
Whatever transpired at that meeting is not known but it resulted in Attila turning back. Malaria was rife again and the Eastern Emperor Marcian was now advancing to the rear, so Attila may have had good reasons other than being persuaded by the Pope. Within a year Attila was dead, dying of a haemorrhage on his wedding night to Ildico.
Attila king of the Huns by Patrick Howarth, Constable books of London