Facts about GladiatorsFact 3: Gladiator games were seen as a method to appease the Roman gods and avert Rome from disasterFact 4: Gladiatorial combats were first fought in wooden arenas. The first stone built amphitheatre in Ancient Rome was called the Amphitheater of Statilius Taurus was built in 29 BC. The Roman Colosseum was built in 80AD Fact 5: Nearly 30 types of gladiators have been identifiedFact 6: The role of the Gladiator became big business in the Roman Empire. Political careers could be launched on the back of spectacular games. Large sums of money could be won by gambling on the outcome of gladiator fights Fact 7: The games organised by Julius Caesar, on the death of his daughter Julia, featured 320 matched pairsFact 8: Roman courts were given the authority to sentence criminals to death fighting as gladiators Fact 9: Slaves, criminals and prisoners of war were forced into the roles of the first gladiatorsFact 10: By the period of the Roman Empire free men started to enrol as gladiators. Some were ex- soldiers, some wanted the adulation and the glory and some needed money to pay their debts. A Free gladiator was called Auctorati Fact 11: Gladiators were allowed to keep any prizes or gifts they were given during gladiatorial gamesFact 12: Entrance to the gladiator games was free but spectators, between 50,000 - 80,000 were issued with tickets Fact 13: Trainee gladiators were called Tirones or TiroFact 14: Female Gladiators, some noble and wealthy, appeared in the arena Fact 15: 42 different Roman Emperors witnessed the carnage at the Roman Colosseum Fact 16: Catervarii was the name given to gladiators when they did not fight in pairs, but when several fought together Fact 17: Bestiarii (Beast Fighters) were the gladiators who fought wild animalsFact 18: The Praegenarii were the 'opening act gladiator'. This type of gladiator only used wooden swords, accompanied to festive music. Fact 19: Elite types of Gladiators were the Rudiarius who were gladiators who had obtained their freedom but chose to continue fighting in gladiatorial combatsFact 20: Gladiatorial schools "Ludi Gladiatorium". The gladiator schools also served as barracks, or in some cases prisons, for gladiators between their fights. Fact 21: New Gladiators were formed into troupes called 'Familia gladiatorium' which were under the overall control of a manager (lanista)Fact 22: At the end of the day the gladiators who had been killed were dragged through the Porta Libitinensis (Gate of Death) to the Spoliarium where the body was stripped and the weapons and armor given to the dead gladiator’s lanista. Fact 23: Prospective gladiators (novicius) had to swear an oath (sacramentum gladiatorium) and enter a legal agreement (auctoramentum) agreeing to submit to beating, burning, and death by the sword if they did not perform as required .Fact 24: Gladiators often had tattoos (stigma, from where the English word stigmatised derives) applied as an identifying mark on the face, legs and hands. Fact 25: Trained gladiators joined formal associations, called collegia, to ensure that they were provided with proper burials and that compensation was given to their families. Fact 26: The early enemies of Rome included the Samnites, the Thracians and the Gauls (Gallus) and gladiators were named according to their ethnic roots Fact 27: Gladiators were always clothed and armed to resemble barbarians with unusual and exotic weapons and their fights depicted famous victories over barbarians and the power of the Roman EmpireFact 28: One of the most famous gladiators was the Emperor Commodus (177-192 AD) who boasted that he was the victor of a thousand matches. The Roman Emperors Caligula, Titus, Hadrian , Cracalla, Geta and Didius Julianus were all said to have performed in the arena.Fact 29: The Emperor Honorius, decreed the end of gladiatorial contests in 399 AD Fact 30: The last known gladiator fight in the city of Rome occurred on January 1, 404 AD.Facts about Gladiators
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