Explain_and_Discuss_What_Life_Was_Like_for_a_Gladiator.

Explain and Discuss, What life was like for a Roman Gladiator – Aron Lawford Gladiators were a form of entertainment during the Roman Empire. This essay focuses on explaining and discussing what life was like for a Roman Gladiator. Attention will be brought to the different types of gladiators, how they were recruited, their weapons and armory, their training, the inaugural games, diet, and how the public perceived of them. Miriam Greenblatt suggests in “Augustus and Imperial Rome” that there were many types of gladiatorial bouts in the arena. Such as Individual gladiatorial fights, dual gladiatorial fights, chariot races, man vs. animal fights including lions, bears, elephants and rhino’s. Individual gladiator bouts didn’t just occur in the arena, they were also the entertainment of many parties. The Major arena for the Gladiatorial bouts was The Colosseum or originally known as The Flavian Amphitheatre. It was under Emperor Vespasian’s Reign; between 70-80 CE the he constructed the Colosseum. The final production was completed under Emperor Titus, the son of Vespasian after his death at the age of 69, midway through the production of the Colosseum. It was built, capable of holding 50,000 spectators. Most gladiators were slaves, volunteers, criminals or prisoners of war. It wasn’t often that an upper class roman man was a gladiator. However there are some cases of upper class roman men breaking the law to do battle for the thrill and fame of being a gladiator. Archaeological sources such as the Goblet d’Aco and mosaics and frescos of Roman gladiators found throughout Pompeii and Herculaneum indicate their popularity and fascination from all levels of the population regardless of their status. It is recorded by Romans such as Seneca that the first gladiators were slaves who were made to fight to the death at the funeral of a distinguished aristocrat, Junius Brutus Pera, in 264 BC. This spectacle was arranged by the heirs of the deceased to honour his memory. Prior to becoming a gladiator an oath had to be taken, the oath of the gladiator “Sacramentum Gladitorium. The Petronius Satyricon 117 states the oath, as URI, VINCIRI, VERBERARI, FERROQUE NECARI “or” I will endure, to be burned, to be bound, to be beaten, and to be killed by the sword. It was sworn to the lanista or manager of their gladiator schools known as ludi gladiatorii. In taking the gladiators oath, the gladiator sold their freedom for the fame and glory. They were paid after each fight only released after surviving at least three to five years of combat. There wasn’t just one type of gladiator. During the Roman Empire many types of gladiators existed, Such as the Velites, Thraces, Secutores, Provocatores, Retiarii and Hoplomachi. Secutores were the most common type of gladiator, armed with a helmet, sword and shield. Velites armed themselves with a spear; Thracian gladiators equipped themselves with a broad metal helmet that roofed their entire head and a small shield, against their common opponents the Hoplomachi or Samnite, the heaviest armored gladiators. The Retiarii were equipped with a trident, dagger, net and armor extending across the chest. The gladiators equipped themselves to be effective in battle. The most common types of weaponry and armory were the Galea, Gladius, Ocrea, Parma and Scutum. Galea is the Latin word for helmet. The helmet worn by the gladiators was initially made of leather until metal helmets were later produced. The Gladius or double-edged sword was used for thrusting at the opponent. The metal leggings worn by the Hoplomachi were called Ocrea; they served the purpose of protecting the legs. The circular iron shield “Parma” was a fantastic tool because of its lightweight built and strong structure. Whereas the Scutum was much larger and proved to be a lot more difficult to defend oneself with. Many people don’t realise who the Roman Gladiators were and how they came about their position. The majority of the gladiators were either slaves, criminals or condemned prisoners of war. However In BBC’s Documentary “Colosseum, Rome’s Arena of Death” Verus was recruited as a slave who made him self noticed to the lanista and taken to a gladiator school. It was forbidden for an upper class man to become a gladiator, though there is known to have been exceptions were upper class men volunteered their services to become a gladiator for the thrill and fame. Gladiators were trained by Doctrines in gladiatorial schools identified as ludi gladiatorii owned by a lanista. They trained like modern day athletes of today, dedicating most of their time to learning how to use various weapons. They were trained for every aspect of a gladiatorial bout, not just how to fight with the weapons but the camaraderie that came with it, including how die with honour. The lanista, Medici and doctores initially assessed a new recruit or Novicius prior to any participation in training activities. Before the gladiators were introduced to the use of weapons they had to be at their peak of fitness. Only then were they allowed to train with wooden swords called a Rudus. A Rudus was also given to a highly successful gladiator as a sign of freedom. The battle of Verus and Priscus recorded by Marcus Valerius Martialis in De Spectaculis, XXIX on the opening day of the 100-day inaugural gladiatorial games, depicts a tough fought struggle between the gladiators to both be rewarded with wooden swords and palms, as a sign of freedom. Martial's recording of the battle between Priscus and Verus was a very rare outcome, the majority of gladiatorial fights were only ended when one competitor raised a finger to signal defeat. However Pamela Bradley indicates that based on mosaics found, regulations regarding enforcement of the death penalty on losers of contests was quite complex and arbitrary depending on the mood of the crowd and the sponsor of the event. Emperor Titus initiated the 100-day inaugural gladiatorial games at the completion of the long awaited Colosseum. The Colosseum took eight years to develop during the time of 72-80 CE. It finally opened, at a critical time for Titus; according to the writer Suetonius the fire of 80 CE that burnt large parts of Rome for three days and the eruption of the volcano at Pompeii left the Romans with a judgment that Titus was out of favor with the Gods. The eruption of Vesuvius in 79AD provides modern historians with the most informative guide to gladiatorial life. The amphitheatre was central to life in Pompeii, it was amongst the first buildings reconstructed following an earlier earthquake in 62AD and in 59AD, a ten year ban was placed on gladiatorial contests in the city after riots broke out amongst Pompeian spectators and those from nearby Nuceria. The fact the arena accommodated for more than double the estimated population of the town and that it catered for all social classes, demonstrated the universal popularity of the games. Titus felt that his failure with result in the assassination of himself. His last asset, the Colosseum was so successful it saved hiss life and his reputation, leaving him one of the most of the successful Emperor’s of the Roman Empire. The Roman Gladiators are depicted as fine men with slender and well-developed muscular bodies. The discovery of the Gladiatorial grave found in Ephesus, 1993 found by a team of Venetian archaeologists allowed for in depth investigation into their lives. Austrian Scientists, Dr Kanz and Professor Grosschmidt crushed the accepted perception that gladiators had lean, muscular bodies. By analysing the chemical content from the bones they established that the gladiators consumed vegetarian foods, rich in carbohydrates, such as barley bens and dried fruits. The diet would have left them slightly overweight and with a very different image of how we perceive of them. Professor Grosschmidt came to the conclusion that, “Gladiators needed subcutaneous fat. A fat cushion protects you from cut wounds and shields nerves and blood vessels in a fight”. A common question that arises about the Ancient Romans is were they obsessed with violence' The Ancient Romans are often portrayed as brutal and ruthless people who enjoyed and sought after out violence and considered it entertaining to observe people being injured and killed to the point of obsession. The Romans idolised the gladiators as their heroes. Anyone and everyone who could afford to attend the gladiatorial fights would be there. The upper class males would get the best available seats, on the ground floor close to the action, Whereas the women and lower class males would assemble themselves on the higher tiers of seating. Due to the popular demand of the sport by the Romans, it became a powerful instrument in politics. Julius Caesar as recorded by Suetonius borrowed extensively from Marcus Crassus to stage the grandest and most spectacular gladiatorial displays Rome had ever seen in 36BC to make himself more popular with the people and make his election to the position of consul more certain. Advertisements for gladiatorial displays have survived at Pompeii, painted by professional sign-writers on house-fronts, or on the walls of tombs clustered outside the city-gates indicating that even in a provincial town these events were extremely common and exceptionally popular events. This ambivalent view of gladiators provided by modern archaeological sources confirms the rather contradictory viewpoints recorded about the lives of a Roman gladiator. What can be validated is that they were an integral part of the social, cultural and political framework of Ancient Rome until Emperor Honorius brought an end to the games, with the last known gladiator competition in the city of Rome occurring on January 1, 404AD. Essentially, gladiators can be compared to a modern day footballer, in that the Roman Gladiators were bought and sold like the footballers of today. Although they lived very different lives they still spent most of their time training for the profession and were idolised by the public. The entertainment value and the contemporary appeal of these larger than life symbols of courage and bravery are an undeniable legacy of one of the greatest civilizations recorded in history. Bibliography Documentaries • Colosseum Rome’s Arena of Death, documentary, BBC, Unknown, 2003 Websites • Linda Alchin; ‘Life of a Gladiator’, Roman Colosseum, 2008, 30/5/10, http://www.roman-colosseum.info/gladiators/life-of-a-gladiator.htm • CTCWebEditors, ‘The Roman Gladiator’, Ablemedia, 2005, 30/5/10, http://ablemedia.com/ctcweb/consortium/gladiators.html • Mathieu Courchesne, ‘Weapons of the Roman Gladiators’, Article Friendly, 2010, 31/5/10,http://www.articlefriendly.net/Art/62961/237/Weapons-Of-The-Roman-Gladiators.html ( Roger Dunkle, “Roman Gladiatorial Games”, Brooklyn College Classics Department, 2002, 20/8/10, http://depthome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/classics/gladiatr/index.htm ( Rumyana Mokanova, “The Gladiatorial Games”, Suite101, 2009, 20/8/10, http://www.staging.suite101.com/content/the-gladiatorial-games-a178615 Books ( Miriam Greenblatt, ‘Augustus and Imperial Rome’, Benchmark Books, 2000 ( Don Nardo, ‘Life Of A Roman Gladiator’, Lucent Books, 2003 ( John J Dobbins and Pedar W Foss, ‘The World of Pompeii’, Routledge, 2007 ( Istituto Geografico De Agostini, ‘Pompeii: An Archaeological Guide’, Routledge ( Alison E Cooley and M G L Cooley, ‘Pompeii: A Sourcebook’, Routledge, 2004 ( Paul Wilkinson, ‘Pompeii: The Last Day’, BBC Books, 2003 Evaluation of Sources – Documentary – Colosseum, Rome’s Arena of Death Strengths – The Documentary is a visual representation of attainable information. It contains information on all aspects of a gladiator’s life. It is a much more reliable source than an Internet website. Weaknesses – The Documentary is much harder to attain than an easy to access Internet website of the modern day world. Evaluation of Sources – Website – “The Gladiatorial Games” – Rumyana Mokanova Strengths – The website is very easy to access in this technology enriched, modern day world. It features Archaeological evidence, which is needed in backing up information in essay. The author of the article has recognized her sources below the article. The article is less than a year old. Weaknesses – The article contains, a lot of advertisements, which are very irritating. Otherwise it is an effective source. Evaluation of Sources – Book – “Life of a Gladiator” – Don Nardo Strengths – I found it as easy to understand and a good book for a reader of my age. The book discussed all relevant aspects of my research question, and it is much more reliable than an Internet site due to the fact that it has been published by a company. Weaknesses – Quite difficult to access compared to an Internet site, because not everyone has heaps of books.