Gladiators in Ancient Rome
Who were these ancient warriors?
When one thinks of ancient Rome, they almost certainly imagine gladiators in the famous Colosseum. At its height, the Roman Empire covered over two million square miles. Gladiator contests were held everywhere from Britain to Turkey. For the unwilling warriors, the gladiator games were a matter of life and death.
Ludus Magnus
East of the Colosseum was the Ludus Magnus, a training camp connected to the famous amphitheater by an elaborate network of tunnels. It was discovered by modern archeologists in 1937. The Ludus was built sometime between 81 and 96 AD, during the reign of Emperor Domitian. It was constructed as a scaled model of the Colosseum, just under half the size. It stood three stories high, surrounded by 300-foot walls. The entire edifice was covered in gleaming marble. It included barracks for hundreds of Roman gladiators. The complex also had kitchens, medical facilities, and an on-site weapons factory. Access to the Ludus was strictly guarded. After the Fall of the Western Empire, buildings such as the Ludus were looted for their stone and marble.
Gladiators
Gladiators came from all walks of life. Several senators began their public careers in the arenas of Rome, where they won respect for their bravery and physical strength. Emperor Commodus was trained at the Ludus, although he was assassinated before his first scheduled match. However, the vast majority of Roman gladiators were slaves and prisoners of war. Gladiators were trained and armed with weapons, helmets, and shields that mimicked the appearance of foreign armies. In most cases, the outfits were intended to handicap the gladiators, not protect them. Some matches were advertised as sine missione, which translates to “without release.” Those matches were fought to the death. Emperor Claudius was infamous for rarely sparing a gladiator’s life. However, gladiators were very expensive, and they were spared most of the time.
The Colosseum
Like other amphitheaters, the Colosseum had an intricate substructure. The main axis was used to hoist up large props and stage scenery for the wild beast hunts. Over twenty trap doors were used to introduce gladiators or the animals into the show above. Hundreds of backstage workers operated the machinery. The gladiators spent most of their time in the underground substructure, waiting to spring into action. Chambers held the gladiator weapons, which were handed out immediately before the fight. Vast pulling systems were used to haul the animals.
Spartacus
Spartacus is the most famous Roman gladiator. He was a Thracian slave who was forced into the gladiatorial school in Capua. He was sold off in a Roman slave market, where gladiator schools vetted the healthiest and most athletic warriors-to-be. With a band of eighty other gladiators, Spartacus managed to break free from the Capua school. He seized knives from the school’s kitchen, and a wagon full of weapons. Over time, Spartacus’ army swelled to over 120,000 men, mostly slaves. For two years, Spartacus and his rebels successfully resisted the Romans. But when the Roman legions overwhelmed the slaves, Spartacus was killed in action. To punish the slaves, the Emperor had them impaled on stakes along the Via Appia. Spartacus’ revolt, known as the Third Servile War, sent a shockwave across the Roman world. Gladiator schools became much more careful.
The games
Gladiatorial games at the Colosseum typically followed a predictable schedule. The morning began with animal hunts. After lunch and wine, public executions were held. This led up to the main event. In a typical battle, a few dozen gladiators were matched up against each other. To commemorate special events, such as military victories, as many as 5,000 pairs of gladiators would fight over a span of four months. Over time, organizers staged more extravagant spectacles to accompany the gladiator games. Water from aqueducts filled the Colosseum, propping up the ships for full-blown naval battles. The gladiator fights were always the most popular and lucrative part of any scheduled entertainment.
Prostitution
The Roman gladiators were permitted to go across town to Pozzuoli’s underground red light district. When the Romans occupied the Rione Terra quarter of the city, they repurposed the Greek cisterns into basements. Brothels were about the size of a city block, with about a dozen rooms. Prostitution was legal, and sex workers were officially registered with the Roman state. They paid taxes. Most prostitutes were slaves, and the conditions were very unsanitary. Many died of disease. Despite the prevalence of illness, Roman men from all classes happily frequented these underground dens of pleasure. The gladiators were no exception. Even though they were legally slaves themselves, they enjoyed sexual discretion. Prostitutes offered specific sexual positions to the gladiators. Those positions were advertised on the wall, which influenced the gladiators’ choice of which room to enter. Ancient Rome was full of these erotic images. Some were found in the ruins of nearby Pompeii. One underground graffiti from a prostitute boasted that the virile gladiators were her most satisfied customers.
Bread and circuses
For the ancient Romans, games were a way of preventing political revolts. It was a form of self-preservation for the ruling elites. The Circus Maximus was used to host chariot races and gladiator games. The Theater of Balbus was built in 13 BC by Lucius Cornelius Balbus, an aide to Julius Caesar. The theater was built to commemorate a mighty Roman military triumph. It was the third-largest theater in ancient Rome. In Antiquity, the Eternal City was filled with monumental civic buildings. Some of them handed out free wheat to the citizens of Rome each month. Roman satirists described this with the famous phrase panem and circenses, which means “bread and circuses.” The government appeased the commoners with food and entertainment. But the constant wars and internal revolts of Rome showed a growing discontent. So the Empire had to ramp up its entertainment. Gladiator games became an outlet for the public’s rage. They were financed by senators, Emperors, and rich Romans looking to gain popularity. Emperor Caesar owned so many gladiators, that the Senate had to limit the amount of money any one person could spend on games. The senators feared that a large well-equipped private army could easily threaten the stability of the Roman government. Emperor Nero was especially savage, combining classical theater with blood sport. He held performances of Greek tragedy, where the roles were played by condemned criminals. Real-life executions were conducted on stage.
Cult of Mithras
In the southeast corner of the Balbi Theater, Rome’s warrior class worshiped in a military cult. It was dedicated to the god Mithra. In the 3rd century AD, the space behind Balbi was turned into a sanctuary for the Persian deity. Bulls were scarified ritually on altars. The blood was collected in stone holes. Like other mystery cults in the Roman Empire, Mithraism was introduced by Roman soldiers returning from the east. Mithras was seen as an invincible god, which had an obvious psychological appeal to Roman gladiators. The cult of Mithras grew in popularity, rising up the social ranks. It was practiced by senators and even Emperors. Nero and Commodus were special adherents to Mithraism, and shared an affinity for gladiatorial games. Mithraism became enormously popular in ancient Rome. When Emperor Constantine converted in the 4th century, he merged many Mithraic symbols and rituals with Christianity. December 25 was the birthday of Mithras. Constantine turned it into Christmas, the birthday of Jesus.
Funerary rituals
The Romans were constantly on the edge of life and death. The average life expectancy was 25 years old. The Romans normally cremated their loved ones. Before placing the dead person on the funeral pyre, elaborate rituals were conducted. Gladiator games possibly originated from these funerary rituals, in which military men battled to the death in honor of a deceased person. Funerary games were an expression of a person’s social importance. The bigger the games, the more prominent the deceased person had been in life. Gladiators were buried according to social status. Higher ranking gladiators were paid for by unions. Lower ranking gladiators were buried in mass graves, or sometimes dumped in a river. The burials of senators and Emperors were accompanied by grand orations, celebrations, parades, and eventually gladiator games as well. The Romans were acutely aware of their own mortality. Their gladiator games were a unique cultural expression of the thin line between life and death. The last gladiator battle was recorded in 404 AD. For over six centuries, gladiator games were the most grandiose spectacle of the Roman Empire. Spanning all social classes, the heroic gladiators were among the most celebrated athletes in world history.
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