Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 3.djvu/73

Rh ATTICUS,, the friend of Cicero, was one of the most distinguished men during the period of the decline and fall of the Roman republic. His life gives an admirable picture of the classical man of culture, who, withdrawing from the stir of political affairs, devoted himself to literary and artistic pursuits. He was born at Rome, and was thus three years older than Cicero, along with whom he and the younger Marius were educated. His family is said to have been of noble and ancient descent ; his father belonged to the equestrian order, and was very wealthy. &quot;When Pomponius (who afterwards received the surname Atticus, on account of his long resi dence at Athens, and his intimate acquaintance with Greek literature) was still a young man, his father died, and he at once took the prudent resolution of transferring himself and his fortune to Athens, in order to escape the dangers of the civil war, in which he might have been involved through his connection with the murdered tribune Sulpicius Rufus. Here, in retirement, he contrived to keep himself free from the entanglements of faction, while preserving friendly relations with all parties. Sulla, who urged him to come to Rome and join his party, took no offence at his refusal, but treated him with marked kindness. He assisted the younger Marius and Brutus with money when they were fleeing from their enemies, and remained on the most cordial terms with Cæsar and Pompey, Antony and Octavianus. His most intimate friend, however, was Cicero, whose correspondence with him extended over many years, and who seems to have found his prudent counsel and sympathy a remedy for all his many troubles. His private life was tranquil and happy. He did not marry till he was 53 years of age, and his only child became the wife of Vipsanius Agrippa, the distinguished minister of Augustus. His large fortune was increased on the death of his uncle, L. Cæcilius, who bequeathed to him the greater part of his property. He formed a large library at Athens, and kept a staff of slaves engaged in making copies of valuable works. He probably derived considerable profits from the sale of these books. In he was seized with an illness believed to be incurable. He resolved not to protract a painful and hopeless struggle, and died after five days of voluntary starvation. As might have been expected from his easy temper and equable disposition, Atticus professed a mild Epicureanism, but. philosophical problems, as such, do not seem to have had much interest for him ; he was emphatically a man of literature. Of his writings none are extant, but we have notices of two, one a Greek history of Cicero's consulship, the other, in Latin, on Roman annals, a subject to which he had given much attention. This work was highly commended for its minute exactness, chronological accuracy, and simple style.

 ATTICUS HERODES,, a very wealthy citizen of Athens, was born about His grandfather s estates had been confiscated for treachery, but the fortunes of the family had been restored by the discovery in his father s house of an enormous sum of money, which the Emperor Nerva permitted them to retain. This great wealth Herodes afterwards increased by his marriage. He received a careful education under the most distinguished masters of the time, and specially devoted himself to the study of oratory, to excel in which seems to have been the ruling motive of his life. While very young he delivered a speech before one of the emperors; but it was so ill received that he was with difficulty restrained from throwing himself into the Danube. He ultimately attained to great celebrity as a speaker and as a feacher of rhetoric. Among his pupils were Marcus Aurellas and Lucius Verus. He was highly esteemed by the Antonines, particularly by Aurelius, and received many marks of favour, among others the archonship at Athens and the consulate at Rome. Atticus is principally celebrated, however, for the vast sums he expended on public purposes. He built at Athens a great race-course of marble from Pentelicus, and a splendid musical theatre, called the Odeum. At Corinth he built a theatre, at Delphi a stadium, at Thermopylae hot baths, at Canusium in Italy an aqueduct. He even contemplated cutting a canal through the Isthmus of Corinth, but it is said did not dare to carry out his plan because the same thing had been unsuccessfully attempted before by the Emperor Nero. Many of the partially ruined cities of Greece were restored by Atticus, and numerous inscriptions testify their gratitude to their bene factor. His wealth, and, it is reported, some disagreement with regard to one of the provisions of his father s will, roused up the enmity of the Athenians against him. He withdrew from Athens, and resided at his villa near Marathon, where he died about None of his writings are extant.

 ATTILA, or, the famous leader of the Huns, surnamed the “Fear of the World,” or the “Scourge of God,” was born probably about His father Mundzuk, king of the Huns, was succeeded by his brothers Octar and Rhuas ; and on the death of Rhuas, in, Attila and his brother Bleda together ascended the throne. They ruled not only over the Huns, but over nearly all the tribes north of the Danube and the Black Sea ; under their banners fought Ostrogoths, Gepidae, Alani, Heruli, and many other Teutonic peoples. Their dominions are said to have extended from the Rhine to the frontiers of China. Attila was superstitiously reverenced by his countrymen ; he was said to possess the iron sword of the war-god, Mars, and he proclaimed himself to be the man-child born at Engaddi, who was destined to rule over the whole world. In and  the brothers ravaged Thrace and Illyria, defeated the troops of the Eastern Empire in three great battles, and penetrated as far as Thermopylae. Peace was made on the Romans agreeing to pay a heavy tribute. About this time Attila contrived to make away with his brother Bleda, and thus secured undivided supremacy. In and the following years, he again directed his attacks against the Eastern Empire, and laid waste the whole country round Constantinople. Nowhere did he meet with resistance save from the brave little town of Azimus. The empire seemed about to succumb, when Theodosius entered into negotiations and made terms with his conqueror. While matters were being arranged, a plot was laid to assassinate Attila, in which the emperor was implicated. The conspiracy was discovered, and the barbarian upbraided the Christian monarch with his want of honour and manly courage. Theodosius died soon after, and his successor, Marcian, returned a firm refusal to Attila s demands for tribute. War seemed inevitable ; but at this time the attention of the Hun was drawn to the Western Empire. It is said that the Princess Honoria, sister of Valentinian, tired of her life of enforced celibacy, sent her ring and an offer of her hand to Attila, who upon this grounded his claim to a part of the empire. It is probable, however, that he merely used this as a pretext, and that his real designs were more comprehensive. He evidently thought it a favourable opportunity for taking advantage of the enmity between the Romans and the Visigoths ; and to this plan he was also induced by the proposals of Genseric, king of the Vandals, who offered to unite with him against his rival, Theodoric, king of the Visigoths. In Attila assembled his forces, it is said 700,000 strong, led them through the centre of Ger many, probably by Franconia, and crossed the Rhine, at what place cannot be determined, He defeated the Burgundians, and pushed on through the heart of Gaul, until his centre was checked by the valiant resistance offered 