the Romans to be paying them tribute, whereas the Romans preferred to view this as payment for services rendered. By the time Attila came of age during the reign of his uncle Rugila, the Huns had become a great power, to the point that the Patriarch of Constantinople, Nestorius , deplored the situation with these words: "They have become both masters and slaves of the Romans." [ 10 ] :128 Campaigns against the Eastern Roman Empire The death of Rugila (also known as Rua or Ruga) in 434 left the sons of his brother Mundzuk , Attila and Bleda (Buda), in control of the united Hun tribes. At the time of two brothers' accession, the Hun tribes were bargaining with Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius II 's envoys for the return of several renegades (possibly Hunnic nobles who disagreed with the brothers' assumption of leadership) who had taken refuge within the Eastern Roman Empire . The following year Attila and Bleda met with the imperial legation at Margus ( Požarevac ) and, all seated on horseback in the Hunnic manner, [ 23 ] negotiated a successful treaty . The Romans agreed, not only to return the fugitives, but also to double their previous tribute of 350 Roman pounds (c. 115 kg) of gold, to open their markets to Hunnish traders, and to pay a ransom of eight solidi for each Roman taken prisoner by the Huns. The Huns, satisfied with the treaty, decamped from the Roman Empire and returned to their