Customer Reviews

The Huns (The Peoples of Europe Series)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

The book fits fairly well into the scope of the series-the peoples of Europe. However the people considered here are basically of Asiatic origin hence one needs to consider the abundant Asiatic sources for further gleanings about the Huns. The primary faults are the inability of the author to use the Asiatic information sources and a highly biased view regarding the material civilization of the Huns. For example, he takes it for granted that the Huns never minted their own coins but, there is ample evidence from the regions in and around India which were under Hun occupation that they indeed did mint coins. The book however does give an excellent view of the Hun world as seen by Priscus. This is possibly one of the main reasons why it would be a fairly good possession for a student of Central Asia. The book also goes on to analyze Attila in detail and probably the author is right in pointing out that Attila was a general of far less magnitude than Chingiz Khan. However, Attila was not the absolute luck rider as the author makes it appear. He was definitely capable of considerable organizational abilities especially given that his nomads were fair less disciplined than those of Chingiz. In any case I would strongly recomend the book for an Eurocentric enthusiast and would hope that in future a far more detailed analysis of these much feared Central Asian peoples does emerge

I'm sure this is a fine book. On this page, I read a review (now deleted, apparently) that mentioned the book by Otto J. Maenchen Helfen titled "the World of the Huns", now sadly out of print. I ordered my copy from amazon marketplace, and found it probably the ultimate book on this subject ever. Any hunophile will find Helfen's book absolutely essential as he was the world's greatest living authority on the huns bar none. He never finished the book for fear of new discoveries outdating it, so upon his death, his colleagues put it together out of his notes and drafts. I apologize for this not really being a review of Professor Thompson's book, but I thought it necessary for people looking for info on the huns to know about Helfen's work also. If you can find a copy, snap it up. Chapters deal with agriculture, lassos, trade, cauldrons, amulets, turkic names, coins, relations with Goths, and many, many other things, that is just a drop in the bucket.

E.A Thompson's book entitled "A History of Attila and the Huns" was first published in 1948. This is a slightly revised version of that same book, with a different title to make it fit into Wiley-Blackwell's "People of Europe" series. Given the original title, the reign of the Attila is the bulk of this book. While I would consider this to be a limitation, it is hardly one that I can fault Thompson for, given the paucity of source material on the Huns around that period. The books starts off with a discussion of those sources, and this is to Thompson's credit, as far too many history books fail to give a discussion of the relevant source material before diving into it. He analyzes the main literary sources and discusses the limitations of archaeological evidence, although in the afterward, Peter Heather suggests that the archaeological understanding of the Huns has advanced since Thompson's day.

Thompson takes the reader through a journey of the obscure early days of the Huns, of which very little is known. It is good that he includes some excellent maps to illustrate their early movements, as I suspect most readers will not be familiar with many of the geographical features of Eastern Europe mentioned. The focus from this point on is the relationship between the Huns and the Roman Empire. With careful analysis, Thompson details the events that led up to the rise of Attila, his wars with Rome, the embassy that Priskos participated in, and his eventual fall. The book ends with an afterward by Peter Heather, one of the most renowned historians on the barbarians of the later Roman Empire, which provides a nice supplement. However, it would have been a lot better if Heather had simply edited the text, as currently it forces readers to go through the final section and decide whether they would prefer to believe Thompson or Heather on several issues.

Unfortunately, while the book ends with a short description of why the Hun Confederacy was unable to stay together following Attila's death, that is its end. It never goes on to detail the many interactions between small Hun groups and the later Eastern Roman Empire, which is really too bad because Dr. Thompson's insight would certainly have been appreciated given the questionable "Hun" status of many of those groups. I am aware that this is a book focusing on the interactions between Rome and the Huns, but even a paragraph or two on the Huns against the Sassanian Empire would have rounded it out nicely. Additionally, the reason why Attila received the title "Flagellum Dei" and so much notoriety in later European thought is never explained. Thompson also makes a few questionable points, such as the Huns being present at the Battle of Adrianople, and the issue of Attila's strategic competence. There is little information on the former, and Thompson's thesis is nothing more than speculation, whereas for the latter I wonder if perhaps Attila was being driven to maintain the Hun Confederacy the only way he knew, and as such was on the proverbial tiger that he could not get off.

This is a good book, although it is dated and should be read critically. Nonetheless, it remains an excellent account of Attila and the Huns, and will probably remain the standard work on the field for some time.

A solid scholarly work, now updated by Peter Heather. Nomadic peoples are often a difficult subject, lacking the same amount of archaeological and written evidence that urban civilizations have but Thompson does a good job of sifting through the evidence. Some modern authors, as well as some older ones, use this lack of evidence as encouragement to pursue wild speculation--but Thompson stick closely to what little evidence there is at hand.

This is a good book, but doesn't adequately address the point that many Chinese and Western scholars have brought up in recent years--that evidence suggests that they were a multi-ethnic tribal confederation with just a Turkish speaking elite. Also, they may not be the same people that the Chinese sources refer to as the Hsiung-nu, as many scholars have assumed. The first reviewer is wrong because the "Huns" have not been properly matched with a tribe in Asian records--therefore when using Chinese sources you cannot be sure that you are talking about the same group. Likely they were Turkish or Mongolian mounted warriors who picked up Samartians, Germans and Alans along the way to the Roman Empire.

A text, a classic, a most scholarly work; i can hardly pass just judgement upon this book, the less so since i read it really to get an introduction to the Huns, a people of whom i knew next to nothing. Interestingly, it turns out, there is a reason for my ignorance: Not a lot is known, so not a lot could have been taught to me. This text is, according to the Afterword by Peter Heather, who prepared this edition for publication (Thompson originally wrote over fifty years ago), "a, or arguably, the central text shaping argument in the field"; it certainly has all the trappings of a major, authoritative, well prepared opus ~ from copious, referential notes to seven (!) appendices. Let my awe inform you: This is not the work i had hoped for (an introduction to the Huns), but a full-fledged scholar's treatise. Interesting, but on the level of Ibsen (in Norwegian) instead of the expected Wilde. All my surprise and expectations aside, this was an enjoyable read, because Thompson is a good writer. Without a doubt he knows his subject, backwards, forwards, every-other-wards, and more than knows it, he loves it. The Huns have a fascination for him which he is blessed with the ability to pass on to his readers. Normally at this point in the review i would mention anticipating continuing to learn; this time, of course, i have nowhere else to turn. What i do anticipate is reading more about and learning more of the Eastern Empire of the Fifth Century ~ something i currently know next to nothing about. Thompson has whetted my appetite for that knowledge. Also, of course, i would like to read others in the series, The Peoples of Europe, that Heather revised this work for; i should like to read The Picts, The Scots, The Basques, The Franks ~ all of them, in fact.

As a person interested in the history of Turkish people, I really liked this detailed account of Huns - aincient Turkish people. In the fifth century this brave people managed to built a vast empire and received an annual triute from the Roman Empire. It is true that Attila's empire collapsed briefly after his death but the Huns and their empire were the sings of things to come e.g. Seljuks and Osmalni (Ottoman) Turks.

college-level libraries with a specific interest in the period will consider The Huns an important addition, packed with information drawing together all the research known about the Huns. The Huns joins other 'Peoples of Europe' titles but stands well alone, providing an excellent review of the presence and effects of the Huns in European history.