Some idea, however, of the manners and civilization of the Huns, during the reign of Attila, may he formed from the account which Gibbon has given us of the entrance of that monarch into his capital, and of the royal feast. " The entrance of Attila into the royal village was marked by a very singular ceremony. A numerous troop of women came out to meet their hero and their king. They march ed before him, distributed into long and regular files: the intervals between the files were filled by white veils of thin linen, which the women on either side bore aloft in their hands, and which formed a canopy for a chorus of young virgins, who chanted hymns and songs in the Scy thian language. The wife of his favourite Onegesius, with a train of female attendants, saluted Attila at the door of her own house, on his way to the palace ; and offered, ac cording to the custom of the country, her respectful ho mage, by entreating him to taste the wine and meat which she had prepared for his reception. As soon as the mon arch had graciously accepted her hospitable gift, his do mestics lifted a small silver table to a convenient height, as he sat on horseback ; and Attila, when he had touched the goblet with his lips, again saluted the wife of Onegesius, and continued his march."- " The Romans both• of the East and of the West, were twice invited to the banquets, where Attila feasted with the princes and nobles of Scythia. Maximin (the Roman ambassador) and his colleagues were stopped on the thres hold, till they had made a devout libation to the health and prosperity of the king of the Huns ; and were conducted, after this ceremony, to their respective seats in a spacious hall. The royal table and couch, covered with carpets and fine linen, was raised by several steps in the midst of the hall ; and a son, an uncle, or perhaps a favourite king, were admitted to share the simple and homely repast of Attila. Two lines of small tables, each of which contained three or four guests, were ranged in order on either hand ; the right was esteemed the most honourable, hut the Ro mans ingenuously confess, that they were placed on the left ; and that Berle, an unknown chieftain, most probably of the Gothic race, preceded the representatives of Theo dosius and Valentinian. The barbarian monarch received from his cupbearer a goblet filled with wine, and cour teously drank to the health of the most distinguished guest, who rose from his seat, and expressed in the same manner his loyal and respectful vows. This ceremony was successively performed for all, or at least for. the illus trious persons of the assembly ; and a considerable time must have been consumed, since it was thrice repeated as each course was set* upon the table. But the wine still remained after the meat had been removed; and the Huns continued to indulge their intemperance after the sober and decent ambassadors of the two empires had withdrawn themselves from the nocturnal banquet. let before they retired, they enjoyed a singular opportunity of observing the manners of the nation in their convivial amusements. Two Scythians stood before the couch of Attila, and recited the verses which they had composed, to celebrate his valour and his victories. A profound silence prevailed in the hall ; and the attention of the guests was captivated by the vocal harmony, which revived and per petuated the memory of their own exploits : a martial ardour flashed from the eyes of the warriors, who were im patient for battle ; and the tears of the old men expressed their generous despair, that they could no longer partake the danger and glory of the field. This entertainment, which might be considered as a school of military virtue, was succeeded by a farce, that debased the dignity of hu man nature. A Moorish and a Scythian buffoon succes sively excited the mirth of the rude spectators, by their deformed figure, ridiculous dress, antic gestures, absurd speeches, and the strange unintelligible confusion of the Latin, the Gothic, and the llunnic languages ; and the hall resounded with loud and licentious peals of laughter. In the midst of this intemperate riot, Attila alohe, without a change of countenance, maintained his stedfast and inflexi ble gravity ; which was never relaxed, except on the en trance of lrnac, the youngest of his sons : he embraced the boy with a smile of paternal tenderness, gently pinched him by the cheek, and betrayed a partial affection, which was justified by the assurance of his prophets, that Irnac would be the future support of his family and empire. Two days afterwards the ambassadors tcccived a second invitation ; and they had reason to praise the politeness, as well as the hospitality of Attila." On the death of Attila, Ellac, by the will of his father, succeeded to an extensive empire, which, however, was soon embroiled in civil war by the ambition of his younger brothers. They insisted upon an equal division of their father's dominions, and immediately took up arms to sup port their demand. This afforded a favourable opportunity to the nations that had been subjected by Attila to throw off the yoke. Ardaric, king of the Gepid2e, accordingly declared that he would no longer obey the sons of Attila ; and other nations, led by his example, hastened to join his standard. Ellac, who possessed both intrepidity and ex perience in war, marched against him with all his forces. The two armies met on the banks of the Netad in Panonia, where the Huns were utterly routed ; and king Ellac fell in the field, after having performed prodigies of valour worthy of the representative of the great Attila. They afterwards received repeated defeats, both from the Goths and Romans, and were compelled to confine themselves to their own settlements for nearly sixty years.
In 539, however, the Cuturgurian and Uturgurian Huns united, broke into the empire, and laid waste Thrace, Greece, Illyrium, and all the provinces from the Ionian sea to the very suburbs of Constantinople. They then retired without molestation, with immense booty, and 120,000 captives. The Uturgurian Huns proceeded to
their own country on the Euxine Sea ; but the Cutur gurians received lands in Thrace, and an annual pension from the Emperor Justinian, upon condition of their serv ing when wanted in the Roman armies. Unable, however, to restrain them from committing continual depredations in the neighbouring provinces, Justinian had recourse to the Uturgurians; and by means of presents, and offers of pensions, embroiled the two nations in a bloody war, which lasted many years, and by which they were so weakened, that they were long prevented from offering farther moles tation to the empire.
From this time, no credible historian makes particular mention of the Huns, till A. D. 776, when the remains of this nation, reinforced by the Avars, and other northern tribes equally barbarous with themselves, and with whom they are frequently confounded by historians, seem to have recovered their strength, and we find them masters of Dacia, Upper Mcesia, and the two Panonias. Two of their princes sent ambassadors to Charlemagne, desiring his friendship and alliance. Charles received them with ex traordinai y distinction, and readily agreed to their request; but a misunderstanding afterwards arising between him and them, he entered their territories with two numerous armies, ravaged the country with fire and sword, the Huns being unable to keep the field against so powerful an enemy. Alter a war of eight years continuance, he m ducecl them to complete subjection, and built strong forti fications along the Raab to repress their predatory irrup tions into his territories.
They remained within this boundary for more than a century, when Arnolph, emperor of Germany, invited them to his assistance against the king of Moravia. Equally ferocious with their ancestors, and glad of an opportunity to renew their devastations, they ravaged Bavaria, Suahia, and Franconia. Germany afterwards became a prey to their fury ; and Louis IV. submitted to an annual pension to get rid of them. In the reign of Conrad I. who also became their tributary, they again devastated Germany, penetrated into Lorraine and Languedod, plundering and niassacreing the inhabitants wherever they went.
The Huns were at this time subject to petty chiefs, whose precarious authority rested on no solid foundation, and were respected only because the choice fell on the bravest. Fear naturally attached thein to the man whose vengeance they dreaded, or to whom they looked for pro tection in the continual wars in which they were engaged. Their last irruption into Germany was severely chastised by the valour of Otho the Great, and the united power of the German princes, who compelled them, after a dread ful slaughter, to retire within the limits of Hungary, and to fortify with a ditch and rampart the most accessible passes into their country.
In process of time, and by their intercourse with other nations, civilization began insensibly to spread among them; and in 997, under their first king Stephen, they assumed' a place among the nations of Europe. This monarch established the Catholic religion in his dominions, and re ceived from the Pope the title of Apostolic, which the sovereigns of Hungary to this day retain. From him also they date the origin of many of those institutions and laws by which the state is still governed. On his death, the respect in which his memory was held by his subjects, led them to choose his son as his successor to the throne; and, without renouncing their right of election, to main tain the royal dignity in his family for more than three centuries.
There were twenty-four kings of the dynasty of Ste phen, few of whom, however, deserve to be drawn from oblivion. The most remarkable were : Ladislaus, sur named the Saint, on account of the purity of his life, who added Dalmatia and Croatia to his dominions, and flourish ed near the end of the eleventh century. Geicza or Geiza II. expelled the Saxons, Austrians, and Bavarians, from Poland and a part of Hungary, where they had committed great ravages. Bela III. after having freed his territories from the brigands which infested it, employed himself in the internal administration of his kingdom. He instituted many judiciary regulations, which still remain in force, and was the first who divided the kingdom into counties, appointing a governor to each. His son, Andrew II. was one of the most renowned sovereigns of his age. He joined the Crusade in the beginning of the thirteenth cen tury, with a numerous army, and acquired great glory by his bravery and skill in war ; and the nobles, as a reward for their services on this occasion, received from him very extensive privileges. In his reign, the regulations of his father were perfected and formed into a national code, call ed the Golden Bull, which every king at his accession was obliged to confirm by a solemn oath. The famous clause, however, which granted to every noble the right of veto in the election of their monarchs, had been so often the occa sion of civil wars, that it was abolished in the reign of Leopold 1. in 1687. The reign of Bela IV. is remarkable for the invasion of the Scythians, who, after having over run Russia and Poland, penetrated as far as Pesti:, spread ing terror and rapine throughout the kingdom. Bela, sur prised in his camp, was compelled to fly. The Scythians continued in possession of the country. for nearly three years; but Bela, with the assistance of the Knights of Rhodes, dispersed the invaders, and regained this throne. His son Stephen V. was celebrated for his victories over the kings of Bohemia and Bulgaria. His daughter Mary espoused Charles, king of Sicily, from whom sprung the famotts Charles Martel, the father of Charles of Anjou, who afterwards became king of Hungary. Andrew IV. the last, and perhaps one of the most illustrious of the dynasty of Stephen, received the surname of Venetian, from his conquests over the Venetians. He died without issue at Buda in 1301.