Alright, so you've binge-watched 'Spartacus' or read our first article and now you're thinking, “Hey, I could totally be a gladiator!” Then, you’ve come to the right place. Buckle up, because we're about to uncover the thrilling journey to becoming a gladiator, from the dusty training grounds to the roaring crowds of the Colosseum.
What is a Gladiator?
Before we explore the steps to becoming a gladiator, let's first establish what a gladiator is. Derived from the Latin word gladius, meaning sword, the term 'gladiator' essentially means “swordsman”. Gladiators were armed combatants who fought in arenas for public entertainment in ancient Rome. The introduction of gladiatorial games to Rome is believed to have occurred in 264 BC.
Gladiators were mainly owned by a lanista, who served as their trainers. Essentially, being a lanista resembled being a personal trainer, except that their clients were less concerned about their beach bodies and more worried about surviving the next fight. Pep talks such as “If you don't get those lunges right, you'll end up as lion food” were great workout motivation, working like magic to keep the gladiators motivated. Apart from their role as trainers, lanistas would also rent and sell gladiators, enabling them to accumulate considerable wealth.
The role of a gladiator was typically not chosen voluntarily, as it was often forced upon slaves or criminals. However, some free Romans who seek fame and honor would also have chosen this profession willingly.
Gladiatorial Fashion
In the arena, gladiators typically wore minimal clothing, often fighting bare-chested, a sign of masculinity amongst Romans at the time. They were wearing a garment called subligaculum, which was a canvas loincloth. For footwear, they either wore sandals, or just went barefoot into the arena. As for protective gear, this varied depending on the class of gladiator; such as Thracians, Mirmillones, Retiarii, Laquerarii, and Secutores.
Overall, some of the protective clothing worn by gladiators included:
Manicae: leather wraps as arm and wrist padding.
Balteus: Sword belt
Cingulum: leather belt worn to prevent injuries from waistline which may also be covered with metal plates for more protection.
Ocrea: metal leg guard
Fascia: protective leg padding which was made with leather, skin, or different type of material.
Galerus: metal shoulder guard
Subarmalis: armor padding worn under armor to bolster the armor’s protection, which was made with linen.
The weaponry of the gladiators included: daggers (pugio), swords (gladius, spatha, semispatha, and sica), tridents (fascina), nets, lassos, lances and spears (hasta, lancea, pilum)
Mastering the Arena: A Guide to Becoming a Gladiator
Now, let’s dive into the steps to becoming a gladiator.
Step 1: Capture or Enslavement:
Get yourself caught. Yup, it's as simple as that. You don't need years of experience in gladiatorial combat as a job requirement. Whether you're a prisoner of war or just owe a guy some serious denarii, getting captured or enslaved is your ticket to the Colosseum.
Many gladiators were either people born as slaves, individuals enslaved through other means such as debt or punishment, condemned prisoners or prisoners of war captured during Roman conquests. Captured during Roman conquests, many gladiators had their free lives abruptly upended by the harsh realities of war. In military ethos of Rome surrendering or being captured as an enemy soldier was seen as an undeserved chance at life. By undergoing training as gladiators, they were provided with a unique opportunity to reclaim their honor and restore their dignity within the arena. Whether by the fortunes of battle or the weight of circumstance, for some of these individuals, becoming a gladiator was a means of survival in captivity.
Step 2: Sale into Ludus
So, you've nailed the first step – congratulations! Now, it’s time to be sold into the Ludus, a training school for gladiators. Of course, not all slaves were gladiators, some worked domestic or business roles for their masters. Certain slaves found themselves sold or sentenced to gladiatorial schools, as a form of punishment or at their masters’ behests. So, it wasn't just a case of being laid off, they were also expected to exchange performance reviews for fights to the death. Talk about a tough career transition!
For the other slaves, they were directly purchased by the Ludus owners from slave markets, because of their strength, stamina, and good looks. So, being in shape was one of the job requirements for becoming a gladiator.
Step 3: Training
Once you are in the Ludus, of course the next step is training to get ready for gladiatorial fight. In training, you should learn how to fight like your life depends on it... because, well, it probably does.
Training played a vital role in shaping gladiators into skilled fighters and worthy opponents. Each category of gladiator had its specific weaponry, and therefore, its own mentors, known as doctores, typically former gladiators themselves. So, behind almost every gladiator's epic victory was a doctore, watching him with tearful eyes, saying, “I taught him that!” In some cases, lanistas could also serve as trainers. In the initial phase of training, gladiators frequently engaged in practice sessions using wooden weapons. This served to prevent unnecessary injuries and enhance endurance, as these weapons were both blunted and heavier compared to their metal counterparts. Additionally, during this phase, gladiators underwent drills against the palus, a wooden post firmly anchored in the ground, standing at approximately six feet in height.
Gladiator training revolved around mastering different combat styles and weaponry unique to each gladiator type. Gladiators equipped with heavy armor required specialized techniques and skills, contrasting with those wielding lighter gear, who relied on speed and agility. Each fighter's training regimen was tailored to their specific armor, weapons, and fighting methods, ensuring they were well-prepared for the arena.
If you don’t train enough, you’d be whipped to teach you a lesson. And of course, I don’t even talk about trying to escape. Because if you attempt that and get caught, you’d be branded as a runaway slaved, whipped (and sometimes more), or thrown in the ludus prison.
Step 4: It's Showtime
Once you proved your skill and stamina, now you are ready to be rented to producers of games for public battles in amphitheaters. Here, collaborating with the lanista, sponsors strategically matched gladiators to ensure fights were not swiftly concluded and that opponents were evenly matched in ability and expertise.
Once they select an opponent for you, it's time to put the skills you learned in training to the test. Here, we must debunk a common misconception: Gladiators didn't always fight to the death. Only on rare occasions, and usually with special authorization from the emperor, battles known as sine missio would lead to certain death for the loser, with no possibility of mercy. However, it was more typical for defeated gladiators to be spared, known as missio, and allowed to exit the arena alive. While sparing a gladiator's life might appear anticlimactic or unjust to the victor, it's important to recognize that gladiators represented a significant financial investment. If a gladiator were to die during combat, his owner could demand compensation from the event organizer, often amounting to fifty times the usual rental fee to cover the loss.
As for the frequency of these battles, it obviously wasn’t like your typical 9 to 5 job. Overall, gladiators fought two or three times a year, which could make you think a gladiator had a better work-life balance than you did. But on the downside, a gladiator was expected survive for four years on average.
Final Act
So, there you have it, folks: steps to becoming a gladiator. if you're good enough – and lucky enough – in the arena, you might just win yourself some fortune and fame, and become a household name. Eventually, If you grow bored of this job and seek a career change, there is a possibility of becoming a trainer, personal bodyguard of a wealthy patrician or politician, or even earning your freedom. In regard to earning freedom, we can look to one of the greatest gladiators as an example: Flamma, meaning ‘flame’. This Syrian gladiator was exceptionally successful, in 13 years, he fought in 34 fights, winning 21, settling for a draw in 9, and honorably losing 4, which led to his survival. Flamma was given rudis (a wooden sword granted to a gladiator upon achieving freedom or retirement) four times. But each time he rejected the chance to live as a free man. So, some of these people were content to remain as gladiators, enjoying the fame and prizes offered for victories, or maybe finding greater fulfillment and purpose within the arena.