The following year Attila pressed a claim for Honoria, sister of Valentinian III, who he had previously married. Rebuffed, he vowed to destroy Italy. Beginning with Aquileia, Attila pressed a three month siege to conclusion and then leveled the city. One by one the other cities and towns fell like dominoes before him: Vicenza, Verona, and Bergamo were destroyed while Milan and Pavia paid tribute to avoid the fate of the others.
Desperate to stop the carnage, the bishop of Rome and others were sent to negotiate with Attila and a treaty was struck for the withdrawal of his army from the peninsula. Before it could be signed, however, Attila died suddenly of a burst artery. The year was 453 A.D.