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The roman gladiators played an important role in roman life. They lived lives of fame and fear while in the dangerous amphitheaters. On a daily basis citizens would come to see them fight for their survival. Outside of their fighting they went through major training in order to perform for the people of the roman empire. Julius Caesar put these battles on in honor of his father and made him a popular ruler.

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Gladiator in Latin means swordsman. They were trained fighters that fought in an amphitheater for entertainment, in front of large crowds or romans.

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They have been around since the 4th century BC, they had a role in society for over 700 years. Some believe that they existed when the Etruscans ruled in Italy before the Romans.

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Some gladiators were forced into fighting because they were slaves, prisoners and war criminals that the Romans had control over. They fought their survival and freedom.

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It is estimated that 400,000 people died within the walls of an area called the Colosseum.

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When the battles grew in popularity some chose to join the battles. This brought them fame among the people and an attractive amount of money.

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Owners of gladiators were wealthy as their gladiators had to be trained, fed and housed. Not to mention medical attention after fights if they survived, if they died then the investment was lost.

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The battles began as a way to honor the dead and developed into a way to celebrate and entertain.

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The life of a gladiator was spent in a training barrack where they would be trained by a retired gladiator.

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Most gladiators were vegetarians, this was because vegetables and barley were cheaper compared to meat.

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It is clear that the lives of gladiators were difficult but played an important part in Roman society. Some of these facts may be shocking as the battles would be considered inhuman to us in modern times. The use of these gladiators by the government as a distraction of their control and power was deceitful and smart and will be remembered in history.

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A famous gladiator named Sparticus was a soldier who had been captured and sold as a slave. He escaped and started a major uprising of gladiators and slaves. His group defeated the roman armies many times until he was captured.

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There were different types of gladiators, they were separated by size and strength and used different weapons. Some include the thracian, murmillo, retiarius, secutor and velitus.

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Gladiator battles ended in 404 CE. when the Romans had become a christian-minded empire.

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These battles were used by the government to distract the people and prevent uprisings. It was also a distraction from the power and control that the imperial rulers had.