Gladiators

Gladiators PDF Author: Roger Dunkle
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317905210
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 409

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Book Description
The games comprised gladiatorial fights, staged animal hunts (venationes) and the executions of convicted criminals and prisoners of war. Besides entertaining the crowd, the games delivered a powerful message of Roman power: as a reminder of the wars in which Rome had acquired its empire, the distant regions of its far-flung empire (from where they had obtained wild beasts for the venatio), and the inevitability of Roman justice for criminals and those foreigners who had dared to challenge the empire's authority. Though we might see these games as bloodthirsty, cruel and reprehensible condemning any alien culture out of hand for a sport that offends our sensibilities smacks of cultural chauvinism. Instead one should judge an ancient sport by the standards of its contemporary cultural context. This book offers a fascinating, and fair historical appraisal of gladiatorial combat, which will bring the games alive to the reader and help them see them through the eyes of the ancient Romans. It will answer questions about gladiatorial combat such as: What were its origins? Why did it disappear? Who were gladiators? How did they become gladiators? What was there training like? How did the Romans view gladiators? How were gladiator shows produced and advertised? What were the different styles of gladiatorial fighting? Did gladiator matches have referees? Did every match end in the death of at least one gladiator? Were gladiator games mere entertainment or did they play a larger role in Roman society? What was their political significance?

Gladiators

Gladiators PDF Author: Roger Dunkle
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317905210
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 409

Get Book Here

Book Description
The games comprised gladiatorial fights, staged animal hunts (venationes) and the executions of convicted criminals and prisoners of war. Besides entertaining the crowd, the games delivered a powerful message of Roman power: as a reminder of the wars in which Rome had acquired its empire, the distant regions of its far-flung empire (from where they had obtained wild beasts for the venatio), and the inevitability of Roman justice for criminals and those foreigners who had dared to challenge the empire's authority. Though we might see these games as bloodthirsty, cruel and reprehensible condemning any alien culture out of hand for a sport that offends our sensibilities smacks of cultural chauvinism. Instead one should judge an ancient sport by the standards of its contemporary cultural context. This book offers a fascinating, and fair historical appraisal of gladiatorial combat, which will bring the games alive to the reader and help them see them through the eyes of the ancient Romans. It will answer questions about gladiatorial combat such as: What were its origins? Why did it disappear? Who were gladiators? How did they become gladiators? What was there training like? How did the Romans view gladiators? How were gladiator shows produced and advertised? What were the different styles of gladiatorial fighting? Did gladiator matches have referees? Did every match end in the death of at least one gladiator? Were gladiator games mere entertainment or did they play a larger role in Roman society? What was their political significance?

Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants

Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants PDF Author: Garrett Ryan
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1633887030
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 289

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Book Description
Why didn't the ancient Greeks or Romans wear pants? How did they shave? How likely were they to drink fine wine, use birth control, or survive surgery? In a series of short and humorous essays, Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants explores some of the questions about the Greeks and Romans that ancient historian Garrett Ryan has answered in the classroom and online. Unlike most books on the classical world, the focus is not on famous figures or events, but on the fascinating details of daily life. Learn the answers to: How tall were the ancient Greeks and Romans? How long did they live? What kind of pets did they have? How dangerous were their cities? Did they believe their myths? Did they believe in ghosts, monsters, and/or aliens? Did they jog or lift weights? How did they capture animals for the Colosseum? Were there secret police, spies, or assassins? What happened to the city of Rome after the Empire collapsed? Can any families trace their ancestry back to the Greeks or Romans?

Roman Standards & Standard-Bearers (1)

Roman Standards & Standard-Bearers (1) PDF Author: Raffaele D’Amato
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472821815
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 65

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Book Description
Roman unit standards played a important role, both ceremonially and on the battlefield. With the armies of the late Roman Republic and early Empire continually engaged on the frontiers, the soldiers selected for the dangerous honour of carrying them were figures of particular renown and splendour. Standard-bearers wore special armour, with the heads and pelts of animals such as bears, wolves, or even lions draped over their helmets and shoulders. The standards themselves varied greatly, from the legion's Eagle and imperial portrait image to various cohort signa, flags (vexilla) and even dragon 'windsocks' (dracones) copied from barbarian enemies and allies. This first volume of a two-part series by Roman army expert, Rafaele D'Amato uses detailed colour plates and the latest research to examine these vital cogs in the Roman army machine that drove its soldiers to conquer the known world.

Emperors Don't Die in Bed

Emperors Don't Die in Bed PDF Author: Fik Meijer
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 113438405X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
This fresh and engaging book looks at each of the Roman emperors from Julius Caesar in 44BC to Romulus Augustulus in AD 476, illuminating not only the manner of their deaths but what their final days tell us about their lives. We also hear how the most powerful position in the history of the Western world held a permanent appeal, despite its perils, with eager candidates constantly coming forward to seize the throne. Very few of the Roman emperors died a natural death. The insane Caligula was murdered after leaving the theatre; Caracalla while he was relieving himself. Caesar was stabbed twenty three times and Otho was dragged into the Tiber with a flesh-hook. However great an emperor's power, danger was ever present. Emperors Don't Die in Bed provides a clear history of the imperial succession as well as a compelling depiction of the intrigue and drama of Roman imperial politics.

Girl in the Arena

Girl in the Arena PDF Author: Lise Haines
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1599906155
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
As a modern gladiator's daughter, Lyn and her family live by the rules of the Gladiator Sports Association. But those rules can turn against you. When Lyn's seventh father dies in the ring, his opponent, Uber, captures Lyn's dowry bracelet-and her hand in marriage. To win her freedom, Lyn will do what no girl has done before: enter the arena and fight her father's murderer-even though she's falling in love with him.

Emperors and Gladiators

Emperors and Gladiators PDF Author: Thomas Wiedemann
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134990405
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 231

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Book Description
Of all aspects of Roman culture, the gladiatorial contests for which the Romans built their amphitheatres are at once the most fascinating and the most difficult for us to come to terms with. They have been seen variously as sacrifices to the gods or, at funerals, to the souls of the deceased; as a mechanism for introducing young Romans to the horrors of fighting; and as a direct substitute for warfare after the imposition of peace. In this original and authoritative study, Thomas Wiedemann argues that gladiators were part of the mythical struggle of order and civilisation against the forces of nature, barbarism and law breaking, representing the possibility of a return to new life from the point of death; that Christian Romans rejected gladiatorial games not on humanitarian grounds, but because they were a rival representation of a possible resurrection.

Spectacles of Death in Ancient Rome

Spectacles of Death in Ancient Rome PDF Author: Donald G. Kyle
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134862725
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 301

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Book Description
The elaborate and inventive slaughter of humans and animals in the arena fed an insatiable desire for violent spectacle among the Roman people. Donald G. Kyle combines the words of ancient authors with current scholarly research and cross-cultural perspectives, as he explores * the origins and historical development of the games * who the victims were and why they were chosen * how the Romans disposed of the thousands of resulting corpses * the complex religious and ritual aspects of institutionalised violence * the particularly savage treatment given to defiant Christians. This lively and original work provides compelling, sometimes controversial, perspectives on the bloody entertainments of ancient Rome, which continue to fascinate us to this day.

The Gladiators

The Gladiators PDF Author: Fik Meijer
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 9780312364021
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 292

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Book Description
An analysis of the lives of ancient Rome's gladiators explores how they were both despised and hero-worshiped, chronicling how tens of thousands of gladiators perished publicly over the course of six hundred years.

Gladiator Fight for Freedom

Gladiator Fight for Freedom PDF Author: Simon Scarrow
Publisher: Hachette+ORM
ISBN: 1423174550
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 281

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Book Description
Eleven-year-old Marcus is forced to train and fight as a gladiator in this fast-paced action-adventure set in Ancient Rome.

Life as a Gladiator

Life as a Gladiator PDF Author: Michael Burgan
Publisher: Capstone
ISBN: 1429647841
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 58

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Book Description
"Describes the lives of gladiators in the Roman Empire. The readers' choices reveal the historical details of gladiators rebelling with Spartacus, training at a gladiator school in Pompeii, and trying to earn their freedom"--Provided by publisher.