Page:The Fall of Constantinople.djvu/72

 54 THE FALL OF CONSTANTINOPLE. they are compelled to abandon most of the territory they have plundered, they leave in it isolated settlements which remain permanently, usually keeping distinct for many generations, but generally becoming merged, after a time, in the surround- ing populations. Thus Anna Comnena mentions a colony of Huns at Orchrida in the eleventh century, although when she wrote the boundaries of the kingdom of Hungary were fairly well established, and very far to the north of that town. At an early period a number of them were converted to Chris- tianity. Such portion sought the protection of the emperors and usually received it, being planted in isolated colonies in various parts of the empire. Many of these colonies retained their language until quite recent times.^ Ultimately the whole of the Huns became Christian, and at the close of the twelfth century constituted an important Christian state. They were always a turbulent people, and gave constant oc- cupation to the imperial forces. In 1182 they were unusually They attack troublcsomc. During the dynastic struggles in Con- the empire, stautinoplc, Maria, the dowager empress and widow of Manuel, was accused of having urged her brother-in-law, Bela, King of Hungary, to invade the empire and to attack Branitzova and Belgrade, and this while she had been acting as regent for the boy emperor, Alexis the Second. She was tried, found guilty, and executed. Thereupon Bela, her broth- er-in-law, entered the empire and devastated the neighboring provinces. He was successfully opposed, but he continued hostile as long as he lived. In the Crusade of 1189 he gave all the assistance he could to Frederic Barbarossa. The great army of that prince, intended to attack the Saracens, was hard- ly less troublesome to the Emperor of the East, and was greatly aided by the Huns, the Servians, and the Bulgarians. The latter devastated the countr}^ around Sophia. Frederic him- self pushed on to Phih'ppopolis, destroyed it, and then, wasting the country as he continued his march, went on to Adrianople. The news of his conduct had preceded him, and he found the city deserted. At Adrianople he received liostages from the ^ Pouqueville, " Voyage de la Grtice," iii. p. 74.