A year after the
Battle of Catalaunian Fields, Attila launched an invasion of Italy, passing through
Pannonia into
Venetia, where he laid siege to
Aquileia. Jordanes states that the city was well defended, to the point where Attila considered withdrawing. Indeed, Ian Hughes suggests that since
Aetius was unable to blockade the
Julian Alps, he instead reinforced the city garrison to force Attila into a siege, or otherwise risk Roman forces cutting off his potential retreat. The siege lasted for some time, and Jordanes states that as Attila was considering withdrawing, the city fell in a renewed assault and he razed it to the ground. Before its destruction, Aquileia was a center of government (with an imperial residence), commerce and finance (with a mint), military defense, and
Christianity (with a
bishop). Its destruction and Attila's subsequent unimpeded ravaging of the province of Venetia (modern
Veneto and
Friuli) paved the way for the rise of
Venice, which within a few centuries replaced and even surpassed it in importance. == Aftermath ==