Retiarius: Armed with only a net and trident.Dimachaerus: Wielded two swords at once.Equites: Entered the arena on horseback.Thraeces: Thracians who fought with a round shield and dagger.There were several types of gladiators including: These men usually came from a low social standing and hoped to become popular with crowds and win patronage from wealthy Romans.īy the time the Colosseum opened, the games were well organized with warriors placed in different ‘classes’ depending on skill level, experience, and previous records. Those who weren’t forced into the arena did so because the rewards were potentially immense.
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Get Your Guide Who Were the Gladiators?Īlthough a large percentage of combatants were conquered peoples, slaves or criminals, a number of free men decided to fight. Apparently, the final straw came when a monk, who jumped between two fighters in combat, was stoned to death by the outraged crowd. Honorius outlawed the games in 404 AD, some five years after closing gladiator schools. Notably, women were allowed to compete until Septimius Severus banned them in 200 AD.
Construction was finally completed in around 96 AD during the reign of Domitian, and events regularly attracted crowds of up to 50,000 people. Titus opened the Colosseum in 80 AD with a spectacular 100-day festival of gladiator games. Gladiatorial combat was a way for the aristocracy (and later, Emperors) to display their wealth, celebrate military victories and birthdays, mark visits from prominent officials, or distract the people from the various social and economic problems they faced.Įmperor Vespasian ordered the construction of the Colosseum in Rome which began in 72 AD, but he died before its completion. However, the first ‘official’ games didn’t begin until 105 BC. The first recorded gladiator games were organized by two Etruscan sons in 264 BC to commemorate the death of their father. The remains at the two locations above helped historians form a clearer picture of who the gladiators were, how they fought, and how they died. We were reliant on ancient texts and the occasional artifact to glean knowledge of these fearsome warriors. Before the discoveries of Herculaneum and Pompeii (two cities destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD) in the 18th century, we knew relatively little about the lives of gladiators.
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