This book examines the age of Attila, roughly the fifth century CE, an era in which western Eurasia experienced significant geopolitical and cultural changes. The Roman Empire collapsed in western Europe, replaced by new `barbarian` kingdoms, but it continued in Christian Byzantine guise in the eastern Mediterranean. New states and peoples changed the face of northern Europe, while in Iran, the Sasanian Empire developed new theories of power and government. At the same time, the great Eurasian steppe became a permanent presence in the European world. This book treats Attila, the notorious king of the Huns, as both an agent of change and a symbol of the wreck of the old world order.

Examines a broad map, from central Asia to the Atlantic
Shows the interaction of four great geopolitical regions: the Roman Empire, northern Europe, Iran, and the steppe
Discusses cultural changes within all of these areas
Attila and the Huns are properly contextualized in terms of this panoramic view

EDITOR:
Michael Maas, Rice University, Houston
Michael Maas is Professor of History and Classical Studies at Rice University. The focus of his research is late antiquity. His publications include The Cambridge Companion to the Age of Justinian (Cambridge University Press, 2005), Exegesis and Empire in the Early Byzantine Mediterranean (by Mohr Siebeck, translated by Michael Maas, 2003) and Readings in Late Antiquity: A Sourcebook, 2nd edition (2010).

CONTRIBUTORS:
Michael Maas, Geoffrey Greatrex, Peter Sarris, Kenneth G. Holum, Raymond Van Dam, Brian Croke, Hugh Elton, Caroline Humfress, Jonathan P. Conant, Étienne de la Vaissière, Christopher Kelly, Peter Heather, Noel Lenski, Walter Pohl, Andy Merrills, Richard Payne, Susanna Elm, Susan Wessel, Michele Renee Salzman, Joseph E. Sanzo, Ra`anan Boustan, Edward Watts, Scott Fitzgerald Johnson