¶ … movie Gladiator made a number of people turn their attention to what might be called the Ur Roman History Movie - Spartacus. But while most of us know the film for Charlton Heston's lean, pre-NRA president look or for the fact that it enjoys a cult standing among gay men of a certain age, very few of us have probably thought much about the real history that lies behind the movie. Indeed many people may well not even know that there was a real person named Spartacus who did in fact lead the Gladiatorial War against Rome in the years 73 to 71 BCE. While some of the facts about Spartacus's life are relatively well-known, others can only be guessed at. It is known that he was born in Thrace, a region of the Southeastern Balkans that now lies partly in Turkey, partly in Greece and partly in Bulgaria.

It is also known that Spartacus served in the Roman Army, a not uncommon career path for an ambitious man from the (relatively) outer provinces. While the position one held at birth mattered a great deal more in Rome than it does today in the United States (or at least somewhat more) it remained true at this period of Roman history that a person could substantially improve - or lower - their position through their own actions. (Although it should be noted that this was substantially less true for women than for men.)

Had Spartacus not deserted the army, his career in public service to Rome might well have netted him lifelong financial security if not

It was because of these raids that he was captured and sold as a slave. And it was as a slave that he became a gladiator. The custom of gladiatorial fights seems to stem from the Etruscans (an Italian people who were absorbed into the Roman Empire). Gladiators would fight at funerals with the purpose of killing or dying: Those who died served as companions in the afterlife to the one being interred. This historical source of gladiatorial conflict as part of a funereal ceremony was no doubt responsible for the tradition of mortal combat in the arena.
After they became incorporated into Roman public life, gladiatorial fights grew in popularity - and elaborateness.

At shows in Rome these exhibitions became wildly popular and increased in size from three pairs at the first known exhibition in 264 BC (at the funeral of a Brutus) to 300 pairs in the time of Julius Caesar (d. 44 BC). Hence the shows extended from one day to as many as a hundred, under the emperor Titus; while the emperor Trajan in his triumph (ad 107) had 5,000 pairs of gladiators. Shows were also given in other towns of the Roman Empire, as can be seen from the traces of amphitheatres.

Although gladiators might be drawn from a wide variety of different social realms, the majority of them were either slaves or criminals; indeed it is difficult to imagine that anyone with any other career path open to him (or sometimes her) would willingly enter the arena as a gladiator.

There were apparently compensations for the very short life expectancy that gladiators "enjoyed." Many of them became famous, and those that were "according to the satires of Juvenal, enjoyed the favours of society women." This hardly seems like sufficient compensation or inducement to join the gladiatorial…