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Facts about Gladiators
Fact
3: Gladiator games were seen as a
method to appease the Roman gods and avert Rome from
disaster
Fact
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 identified
Fact
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 pairs
Fact
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 gladiators
Fact 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
games
Fact 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 Tiro
Fact 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 animals
Fact 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
combats
Fact
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 Empire
Fact
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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