Who was Attila the Hun? Attila the Hun is known as the most prolific killer of the Early Middle Ages. But the facts about Attila's life are much more complicated than that. Born into the royalty of a small but ambitious steppe tribe, Attila and his brother Bleda were groomed for a life of combat. They ascended to control the Hunnic Empire, and were soon at war with Rome. Information on Attila the Hun is hard to come by and often biased. We know he was an innovative general feared by his enemies, but did you know that his conquests were instrumental in founding the city of Venice? Or that one of his greatest invasions started with a possibly fraudulent marriage proposal?