1. How were gladiators chosen?
Despite the Hollywood heroics, gladiators did not usually choose their profession - it chose them. Slaves, prisoners of war and condemned criminals were first in line to be taken up by a lanista, a trainer who would purchase gladiator candidates and then sell them or rent them out for use in combats staged by wealthy individuals or public officials. Arson, murder, mutiny and bankruptcy were among the acts that could win a sentence of "damnatio ad ludum" or "condemned to the gladiator schools." (As demand for gladiators increased, this judgement became more frequent.)
On the other hand, those citizens simply drawn by the potential for prize money and popular acclaim could volunteer to become a gladiator and receive a sign-on bonus. In surrendering their liberty and rank as Roman citizens, however, they were viewed with a degree of disdain. Gladiators, for all their glories, were still slaves.
2. Could a woman become a gladiator?
Yes, up until they were banned by Emperor Septimus Severus in 200 AD from fighting as gladiators, women did become -often of their own accord - gladiators, fighting other women or male dwarfs. However, though a male gladiator's social rank was low, a woman's was even lower. The satirical writer Juvenal scoffed, "What modesty can be looked for in some helmeted vixen, a renegade from her sex, who thrives on masculine violence - yet would not prefer to be a man?"
3. How would a gladiator learn to fight?
Student gladiators started out with wooden swords to do battle with a wooden pole called a palus, then moved on to a straw dummy before practicing footwork, thrusts and feints on fellow students. Ex-gladiators acted as instructors (doctores) and provided coaching in in the fighting techniques and weapons of specific gladiator roles.
As gladiator games grew, imperial ludi (schools) became the only institutions authorized to instruct novices in the gladiator craft. The ludi were spread throughout the Roman empire. Rome featured three (Ludus Magnus, Ludus Gallicus, Ludus Dacicus), the largest of which, Ludus Magnus, was connected to the Colosseum by an underground passageway.
4. What was life like at a gladiator school?
Tough. Gladiator schools were closely guarded - Spartacus's famous revolt in 73 BC had started in a school in Capua and the government did not want a repeat. Living quarters were organized like cells in a penitentiary ; Pompeii's gladiator school contained a prison with sitting-room only. No real weapons were allowed inside the school, nor were gladiators-in-training allowed to exit.
At the same time, to guarantee a return on their investment, gladiator owners had an interest in making sure their fighters lived long. Medical staff included dieticians and masseurs. (Galen, the most famous of Roman doctors and personal physician to Emperor Marcus Aurelius, got his start as a doctor at a gladiator school in Asia Minor.) Gladiators ate three high-protein meals a day consisting of barley grains (thought to protect the arteries with fat and prevent bleeding to death), boiled beans, oatmeal and, ash, believed to help fortify the body. Gladiators were often called hordearii or "barley men."
5. What were the most common gladiator roles?
Trainers at gladiator schools would make the decision of what role a gladiator was best suited to play. The five main roles were: Thracian, Samnite/Hoplomachus, Retarius, Murmillo, and Secutor. But gladiators could also fight as Dimachaerus (two-sworded gladiator with no shield); Laquearius (fought with a lasso and perhaps a dagger); Eques (fought on horseback with a lance); Essedarius (fought from a moving chariot); Provocator (only gladiator to wear a full breastplate of armor); Andabatus (wore a helmet without eye holes).
Gladiators could also be selected to be a venator or bestiarius -- an animal fighter - though this required separate training, perhaps at Rome's Ludus Bestiariorim. One of the more dazzling displays for games audiences was to see gladiators dressed as enemies of Rome - Greeks and Persians - fighting in naval battles (naumachia) in a flooded arena.
6. What were a gladiator's chances for survival?
Most gladiators died young. The celebrity fighter Flamma died at the age of 30 after winning 21 of 34 fights. Another respected fighter, Felix, was one of the more long-lived, dying at age 45 after receiving Roman citizenship.
Aside from his own skill, how a gladiator's fight went depended largely on the crowd. Once a gladiator could fight no more, he would raise his left hand to the emperor or the highest public official present. At that point, the emperor looked to the crowd for their recommendation. If they showed thumbs down and shouted "Iugula!" (Cut his throat!), he was killed. If they showed thumbs up and shouted "Mitte!" (Release him!"), he was allowed to leave the arena and have his wounds treated.
However, at the same time, some celebrity fights are thought to have been fixed. To ensure that a slain gladiator was actually dead, a slave dressed as the Etruscan demon Charon would knock him on the head with a hammer. The slain gladiator was then dragged from the arena through the Gate of Death and slaves raked over the arena to prepare it for the next fight.
7. What could a gladiator win?
Gladiators who won in the arena were presented with palm branches and a bowl, usually made of silver, containing gold coins. If they continued to win fights and their fame grew, they could receive additional gifts. The Emperor Nero, a hard-core devotee of gladiator games, gave a palace to the gladiator Spiculus. Other gladiators were promoted to form the personal guard of Mark Anthony.
8. Could a gladiator ever retire?
Yes, if the crowd voted for his retirement. This was something, though, that was only offered to the most successful of gladiators. The symbol of the event was a wooden sword given to the gladiator by the emperor. Only one gladiator, Flamma, is known to have ever turned down retirement - an incredible four times. After a few years, gladiators might be sent to work in the gladiator schools for several more years. Rich gladiators could retire to a life of ease. Emperor Tiberius once offered 1,000 gold coins to retired gladiators who would agree to return to the arena.
9. How did Romans perceive gladiators?
Successful gladiators could enjoy a following not far different from what modern athletes command today. The Roman Empire valued military exploits above all else and the ability of a fighter to face death without flinching was highly revered. A gladiator willing to submit to authority and die in the arena displayed herculean discipline, courage and heroism, by Roman standards.
Gladiators were featured in wall mosaics, oil lamps and other ornaments. Rich women flocked to the banquets held for gladiators on the eve of their games. Procuring female companions was no problem for the victorious gladiator. Rumors circulated that the wife of Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD) enjoyed regular trysts with gladiators at various coastal cities.
Emperor Commodus gave one of the most potent displays of the extent to which gladiators could command the respect of their audience. Rumored to be the son of a gladiator, Commodus fought a reported 300 times as a gladiator, dressed as the god Hercules and showing a particular like for taking on wild animals such as tigers and elephants. His plans to rule the empire as a gladiator finally came to an end when he was strangled to death - by a champion gladiator - in 193 AD.
Ironically given their popular acclaim, though, unless a family member or admirer paid for a private burial, gladiators were not allowed to be buried in cemeteries.
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