Spartacus was a gladiator – a slave who fought other gladiators to entertain crowds of bloodthirsty ancient Romans. He managed to escape, raise an army of slaves, and lead them into battle against the fearsome Roman Army.
GLADIATOR SCHOOL
Spartacus was born around 109 BC, probably in Thrace (now Bulgaria). He was captured by the Romans and enslaved at a gladiatorial school near Capua, around 160 kilometres south of Rome. At the school they were taught how to fight one another to the death!
ESCAPE
In 73 BC Spartacus was part of an escape plot. Around 200 gladiators were about to make their getaway when they were betrayed, but they put up a fight. They made a dash for the kitchens, armed themselves with anything dangerous they could lay their hands on, and took on the guards. About 70 of them managed to fight their way to freedom.
A CUNNING PLAN
Over the next few days the band of escaped gladiators was joined by more runaway slaves. They elected Spartacus and two other gladiators as their leaders and headed for Mount Vesuvius, where they were met by Roman troops. The Romans didn’t realise that Spartacus and the slaves were busy making vines into ropes, abseiling down the other side of the mountain, and sneaking around to surprise them from behind. The Romans were defeated and Spartacus and his army marched on, defeating a second Roman force. They were joined by more rebels as they went.
ANGRY ROMANS
The rebels had divided into two forces, one led by Spartacus and one by Crixus. Crixus’s 30,000-strong slave army was slaughtered by the Romans, but Spartacus’s forces managed to defeat the Romans in revenge. By now the Romans were worried. The Roman general, Crassus, went after Spartacus and his rebels with eight legions (up to about 50,000 men).
THE END OF SPARTACUS
The rebel army managed to keep fighting for many more months. But eventually, in 71 BC, it was trapped in southern Italy and defeated by Crassus. Most of the slaves were killed. Spartacus’s body was never found.
See here for the Gladiatorial Games Survival Guide.
