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12/15/2016
Spartacus By Vickie Chao
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1
Ancient Rome had a lot of marvels. Back in its heyday, the Romans put up
many spectacular structures. Some of them still remain standing today. As we
admire the civilization that ancient Rome left behind, we must keep one thing in
mind. Rome's glory was built largely on the backs of countless slaves.
2
Slaves played an important role in ancient Rome. Aside from doing
construction, they also worked as servants at bathhouses or private homes. They
took part in public games, fighting as gladiators. They labored away on farms. As
slaves, they had little control over their lives. They had to do everything they were
told. If they refused to take orders, they could get beaten. If they tried to escape,
they could even be killed. Once sold, most slaves simply resigned themselves to
their fate. Of the few who rose up to defy the Romans, Spartacus was the most
famous.
3
Spartacus was actually not a slave by birth. According to a popular account, he once served in the
Roman army as an auxiliary. For reasons unknown to us, he deserted the army and ran away.
Unfortunately, he was not able to elude the Romans for long. After being caught, he was sold into
slavery and began his rigorous training as a gladiator in Capua. In 73 B.C., Spartacus broke out of the
gladiatorial school with over seventy followers. To fend for themselves, they used knives and other
kitchen tools as weapons. Once they managed to escape the school compound, they went straight to
nearby Mount Vesuvius to hide.
4
The Romans were not pleased with this turn of events. Fearing more slaves would join
Spartacus's forces, they wanted to crush the uprising quickly. The first one up for the challenge was
Claudius Glaber. Glaber and his army of 3,000 had success at the beginning. They besieged the
rebels on a hill and blocked the only path leading to the top. They thought that a victory was at hand,
but they were wrong. Using vines as ropes, Spartacus and his men climbed down the other slippery
side of the mountain undetected. Once they reached the ground, they circled around and ambushed
Glaber's troops. As the Roman soldiers ran for their lives in haste, Spartacus ordered his followers to
haul away the discarded weapons for future use.
5
Disappointed by the defeat, the Roman senate replaced Claudius Glaber with Publius Varinius. It
also doubled the army to a legion of 6,000 men. When the two sides clashed later that year, the
Romans suffered another defeat. To make matters worse, this time they even lost their fasces. Fasces
were bundles of rods tied together with an ax. They were the Romans' symbol for power and
jurisdiction.
6
The loss of their fasces was a huge blow to the Romans. To reclaim their pride, the senate
dispatched another legion to deal with Spartacus. But they failed, too! Finally, the Romans came to
see that they had underestimated Spartacus all along. Over only a short period of several months,
Spartacus had managed to overtake many cities in southern Italy. He had also increased his troops to
nearly 70,000.
7
By the following spring in 72 B.C., Spartacus decided to leave Italy for good. He wanted to take
his people back to their homelands and give them back their freedom. On their way north, the forces
split up into two. The Gauls and the Germans went with Crixus and the rest with Spartacus. Little did
they know that the Romans had a surprise for them!
8
Determined to do away with Spartacus and his people once and for all, the Senate sent its top two
officials, Lucius Gellius Publicola and Cnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus, to the frontline. Each of
the two consuls led two legions. Publicola stationed his troops near Foggia and ambushed Crixus'
bands there. During the fierce battle, Crixus lost 2,000, or two­thirds, of his men. He also lost his own
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life. While the fight was going on, Clodianus attacked Spartacus. But he failed to crush the rebels. In a
dramatic turn­around, Spartacus defeated first Clodianus and then Publicola. Rumor had it that
Spartacus was very upset about Crixus's death. To avenge the death, Spartacus had 300 Roman
soldiers, all POWs, fight in pairs until they died.
9
After finishing off the two consuls' forces, Spartacus continued to travel north. Along the way, he
won a couple more battles and finally arrived at the Alps. Freedom was nearer than ever! Once there,
however, things took a surprising turn. For whatever reasons (probably convinced by his followers),
Spartacus suddenly changed his mind. He turned his troops around and headed back south again.
10
The Roman senate was not ready to trust the two consuls to fight again. So it picked a new chief,
Marcus Licinius Crassus, for the task. Before the showdown, Crassus asked a commander, Mummius,
to move his troops south. He specifically told the man not to make any contact with the enemy. Eager
to score a victory for himself, Mummius ignored the order. He attacked Spartacus and lost. When
Crassus learned of the defeat, he was furious. He rounded up Mummius' remaining forces and killed
one out of every ten soldiers! The lesson was crystal clear ­ never disobey or stray away from the
order. This practice gave us the word, "decimate," which means to kill one person in ten.
11
At the onset of winter in 71 B.C., Spartacus and his men arrived in southern Italy. They wanted to
cross a short strait to the island of Sicily. To their disappointment, the Sicilian pirates they had hired
never showed up, but Crassus did. Left with no choice, Spartacus engaged his men in a bloody battle
and got crushed. In the end, Crassus killed tens of thousands of rebels, but he never found
Spartacus's body. He recovered the fasces taken by Spartacus. And he crucified 6,000 of Spartacus's
soldiers along the Via Appia, the road between Rome and Capua. He gave clear instructions to never
take down the 6,000 crosses. He wanted to use them as a vivid reminder of the consequence of
defying the Romans! Everybody got the message.
12
As Crassus celebrated the victory, a small band of Spartacus's forces broke loose and escaped.
They ran into Pompey's army and were slaughtered. Since Pompey was the one who killed
Spartacus's remaining followers, he got credit for suppressing the rebellion. This, of course, did not sit
well with Crassus, who actually did most of the fighting! The feud between the two would last for
decades!
13
Spartacus, in spite of all the difficulties, stood up against the Romans and fought for his rights.
His initial successes caught everybody by surprise. Though he eventually failed, his legacy lived on.
For centuries, he represented the oppressed class in the society whose only aim was to be treated
fairly and equally. Even in modern times, his story continues to inspire people. His struggle for
freedom will be remembered forever!
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Name _____________________________
Date ___________________
Spartacus
1. How many years did it take the Romans to
end Spartacus's uprising?
9 years
5 years
11 years
3 years
2. Which of the following Roman military
commanders did Spartacus not defeat?
Publius Varinius
Mummius
Claudius Glaber
Marcus Licinius Crassus
3. Who was credited for ending Spartacus's
uprising?
Marcus Licinius Crassus
Pompey
Lucius Gellius Publicola
Mummius
4. What did the Romans use fasces for?
To symbolize their power and jurisdiction
To carry off wounded soldiers
To please the god of wars
To mark the different legions
5. Where was Spartacus trained to be a
gladiator?
Sicily
Capua
Faggio
Rome
6. Which of the following events took place first?
Mummius defeated Crassus's order and
attacked Spartacus.
Crassus crucified thousands of
Spartacus's men along the Via Appia.
Spartacus and his men arrived at the
Alps but decided to turn back.
Spartacus ordered 300 Roman captives
to fight until their death.
7. Why did Spartacus break out from the
gladiatorial school?
He wanted to join the Roman army.
He was starving.
He wanted freedom.
He was being bullied.
8. How many of Spartacus's men did Crassus
crucify?
2,000
1,000
6,000
3,000
9. When Spartacus first broke out of the
gladiatorial school, how many people did he
have?
About 2,000
About 6,000
About 70
About 70,000
10. Which Roman commander recovered the
fasces taken by Spartacus?
Marcus Licinius Crassus
Cnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus
Pompey
Lucius Gellius Publicola
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Name _____________________________
Date ___________________
Spartacus
Suppose you were Spartacus. What would you do after you reached the Alps? Would you cross the
mountain ranges and be a free man? Or would you want to continue to fight the Romans? Explain your
reasons.
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Name _____________________________
Date ___________________
Spartacus
Aside from Spartacus, think of another person famous for his or her struggle for freedom. Write a story
about that person.
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Spartacus By Vickie Chao
ancient
death
legions
reclaim
standing
frontline
turn­around
rebellion
legion
stood
refused
auxiliary
showdown
determined
commander
avenge
bloody
Directions: Fill in each blank with the word that best completes the reading comprehension.
Ancient Rome had a lot of marvels. Back in its heyday, the Romans put up many
spectacular structures. Some of them still remain (1) _______________________ today.
As we admire the civilization that ancient Rome left behind, we must keep one thing in
mind. Rome's glory was built largely on the backs of countless slaves.
Slaves played an important role in (2) _______________________ Rome. Aside
from doing construction, they also worked as servants at bathhouses or private homes.
They took part in public games, fighting as gladiators. They labored away on farms. As
slaves, they had little control over their lives. They had to do everything they were told. If
they (3) _______________________ to take orders, they could get beaten. If they tried
to escape, they could even be killed. Once sold, most slaves simply resigned themselves to their fate. Of the few
who rose up to defy the Romans, Spartacus was the most famous.
Spartacus was actually not a slave by birth. According to a popular account, he once served in the Roman
army as an (4) _______________________ . For reasons unknown to us, he deserted the army and ran away.
Unfortunately, he was not able to elude the Romans for long. After being caught, he was sold into slavery and
began his rigorous training as a gladiator in Capua. In 73 B.C., Spartacus broke out of the gladiatorial school
with over seventy followers. To fend for themselves, they used knives and other kitchen tools as weapons. Once
they managed to escape the school compound, they went straight to nearby Mount Vesuvius to hide.
The Romans were not pleased with this turn of events. Fearing more slaves would join Spartacus's forces,
they wanted to crush the uprising quickly. The first one up for the challenge was Claudius Glaber. Glaber and his
army of 3,000 had success at the beginning. They besieged the rebels on a hill and blocked the only path leading
to the top. They thought that a victory was at hand, but they were wrong. Using vines as ropes, Spartacus and his
men climbed down the other slippery side of the mountain undetected. Once they reached the ground, they
circled around and ambushed Glaber's troops. As the Roman soldiers ran for their lives in haste, Spartacus
ordered his followers to haul away the discarded weapons for future use.
Disappointed by the defeat, the Roman senate replaced Claudius Glaber with Publius Varinius. It also
doubled the army to a (5) _______________________ of 6,000 men. When the two sides clashed later that
year, the Romans suffered another defeat. To make matters worse, this time they even lost their fasces. Fasces
were bundles of rods tied together with an ax. They were the Romans' symbol for power and jurisdiction.
The loss of their fasces was a huge blow to the Romans. To (6) _______________________ their pride, the
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senate dispatched another legion to deal with Spartacus. But they failed, too! Finally, the Romans came to see
that they had underestimated Spartacus all along. Over only a short period of several months, Spartacus had
managed to overtake many cities in southern Italy. He had also increased his troops to nearly 70,000.
By the following spring in 72 B.C., Spartacus decided to leave Italy for good. He wanted to take his people
back to their homelands and give them back their freedom. On their way north, the forces split up into two. The
Gauls and the Germans went with Crixus and the rest with Spartacus. Little did they know that the Romans had
a surprise for them!
(7) _______________________ to do away with Spartacus and his people once and for all, the Senate sent
its top two officials, Lucius Gellius Publicola and Cnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus, to the
(8) _______________________ . Each of the two consuls led two (9) _______________________ . Publicola
stationed his troops near Foggia and ambushed Crixus' bands there. During the fierce battle, Crixus lost 2,000,
or two­thirds, of his men. He also lost his own life. While the fight was going on, Clodianus attacked Spartacus.
But he failed to crush the rebels. In a dramatic (10) _______________________ , Spartacus defeated first
Clodianus and then Publicola. Rumor had it that Spartacus was very upset about Crixus's
(11) _______________________ . To (12) _______________________ the death, Spartacus had 300 Roman
soldiers, all POWs, fight in pairs until they died.
After finishing off the two consuls' forces, Spartacus continued to travel north. Along the way, he won a
couple more battles and finally arrived at the Alps. Freedom was nearer than ever! Once there, however, things
took a surprising turn. For whatever reasons (probably convinced by his followers), Spartacus suddenly changed
his mind. He turned his troops around and headed back south again.
The Roman senate was not ready to trust the two consuls to fight again. So it picked a new chief, Marcus
Licinius Crassus, for the task. Before the (13) _______________________ , Crassus asked a
(14) _______________________ , Mummius, to move his troops south. He specifically told the man not to
make any contact with the enemy. Eager to score a victory for himself, Mummius ignored the order. He attacked
Spartacus and lost. When Crassus learned of the defeat, he was furious. He rounded up Mummius' remaining
forces and killed one out of every ten soldiers! The lesson was crystal clear ­ never disobey or stray away from
the order. This practice gave us the word, "decimate," which means to kill one person in ten.
At the onset of winter in 71 B.C., Spartacus and his men arrived in southern Italy. They wanted to cross a
short strait to the island of Sicily. To their disappointment, the Sicilian pirates they had hired never showed up,
but Crassus did. Left with no choice, Spartacus engaged his men in a (15) _______________________ battle
and got crushed. In the end, Crassus killed tens of thousands of rebels, but he never found Spartacus's body. He
recovered the fasces taken by Spartacus. And he crucified 6,000 of Spartacus's soldiers along the Via Appia, the
road between Rome and Capua. He gave clear instructions to never take down the 6,000 crosses. He wanted to
use them as a vivid reminder of the consequence of defying the Romans! Everybody got the message.
As Crassus celebrated the victory, a small band of Spartacus's forces broke loose and escaped. They ran into
Pompey's army and were slaughtered. Since Pompey was the one who killed Spartacus's remaining followers, he
got credit for suppressing the (16) _______________________ . This, of course, did not sit well with Crassus,
who actually did most of the fighting! The feud between the two would last for decades!
Spartacus, in spite of all the difficulties, (17) _______________________ up against the Romans and
fought for his rights. His initial successes caught everybody by surprise. Though he eventually failed, his legacy
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lived on. For centuries, he represented the oppressed class in the society whose only aim was to be treated fairly
and equally. Even in modern times, his story continues to inspire people. His struggle for freedom will be
remembered forever! Copyright © 2016 edHelper
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12/15/2016
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Name _____________________________
Date ___________________
Create words from: d i s p a t c h e d D T S T A T S T D A H E H D T D S C S S T T T C
A P D H E H Z T T E T A E E E T A T I H I C D T
S S A S E H S C S A T I E D S S I P D A T D D C
A D I S I D D I H S I A A A H I I D E T E C H S
A E S D T P E P T A T S D E P I S D A S A E H C
I I T E E I P E P P H A D A S E H I T H S E S E
T E H E H I T D D S H A P E S H S E T C A H S T
P E T D A T H E I D A T T S T I H D T A H I D H
S I A H H I C S P E I D C S E A I I S T I H C H
H S I P O I T P A S I H D A E T H D T E D O E H
A T H E S S I A A A P S C H E A T S E D S T S T
E I C A E S I E C H A A S E D E E P A E S A A I
H I I H T I P S S C E D A A A T D D H P D I A C
E C A T A E T A E D I P I C T H I T C E T D S H
E E A O D E T T A D P K A H T E E I I H I T S E
P H I E S A E T S A P H D E A A D D E S T E H S
S H C I S A S P E E E E D E D T A E I S I A I E
a ___
i ___
___ i ___
s ___ ap ___
c ___ ___ ___ e ___
c ___ ___ at ___
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h ___
___ t
___ e ___
___ ___ p ___ h
d ___ ___ ict
___ t
___ ___ t
___ e ___
pas ___ ___
___ ___ ___ he ___
___ ___ p
d ___ ___ ___ d
as ___ ___ e
de ___ ac ___
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Spartacus ­ Answer Key
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 3 years
Marcus Licinius Crassus
Pompey
To symbolize their power and jurisdiction
Capua
Spartacus ordered 300 Roman captives to fight until their death.
He wanted freedom.
6,000
About 70
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Spartacus
By Vickie Chao
Answer Key
Ancient Rome had a lot of marvels. Back in its heyday, the Romans put up many spectacular structures.
Some of them still remain (1) standing today. As we admire the civilization that ancient Rome left behind, we
must keep one thing in mind. Rome's glory was built largely on the backs of countless slaves.
Slaves played an important role in (2) ancient Rome. Aside from doing construction, they also worked as
servants at bathhouses or private homes. They took part in public games, fighting as gladiators. They labored
away on farms. As slaves, they had little control over their lives. They had to do everything they were told. If
they (3) refused to take orders, they could get beaten. If they tried to escape, they could even be killed. Once
sold, most slaves simply resigned themselves to their fate. Of the few who rose up to defy the Romans,
Spartacus was the most famous.
Spartacus was actually not a slave by birth. According to a popular account, he once served in the Roman
army as an (4) auxiliary . For reasons unknown to us, he deserted the army and ran away. Unfortunately, he
was not able to elude the Romans for long. After being caught, he was sold into slavery and began his rigorous
training as a gladiator in Capua. In 73 B.C., Spartacus broke out of the gladiatorial school with over seventy
followers. To fend for themselves, they used knives and other kitchen tools as weapons. Once they managed to
escape the school compound, they went straight to nearby Mount Vesuvius to hide.
The Romans were not pleased with this turn of events. Fearing more slaves would join Spartacus's forces,
they wanted to crush the uprising quickly. The first one up for the challenge was Claudius Glaber. Glaber and his
army of 3,000 had success at the beginning. They besieged the rebels on a hill and blocked the only path leading
to the top. They thought that a victory was at hand, but they were wrong. Using vines as ropes, Spartacus and his
men climbed down the other slippery side of the mountain undetected. Once they reached the ground, they
circled around and ambushed Glaber's troops. As the Roman soldiers ran for their lives in haste, Spartacus
ordered his followers to haul away the discarded weapons for future use.
Disappointed by the defeat, the Roman senate replaced Claudius Glaber with Publius Varinius. It also
doubled the army to a (5) legion of 6,000 men. When the two sides clashed later that year, the Romans
suffered another defeat. To make matters worse, this time they even lost their fasces. Fasces were bundles of
rods tied together with an ax. They were the Romans' symbol for power and jurisdiction.
The loss of their fasces was a huge blow to the Romans. To (6) reclaim their pride, the senate dispatched
another legion to deal with Spartacus. But they failed, too! Finally, the Romans came to see that they had
underestimated Spartacus all along. Over only a short period of several months, Spartacus had managed to
overtake many cities in southern Italy. He had also increased his troops to nearly 70,000.
By the following spring in 72 B.C., Spartacus decided to leave Italy for good. He wanted to take his people
back to their homelands and give them back their freedom. On their way north, the forces split up into two. The
Gauls and the Germans went with Crixus and the rest with Spartacus. Little did they know that the Romans had
a surprise for them!
(7) Determined to do away with Spartacus and his people once and for all, the Senate sent its top two
officials, Lucius Gellius Publicola and Cnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus, to the (8) frontline . Each of the
two consuls led two (9) legions . Publicola stationed his troops near Foggia and ambushed Crixus' bands there.
During the fierce battle, Crixus lost 2,000, or two­thirds, of his men. He also lost his own life. While the fight
was going on, Clodianus attacked Spartacus. But he failed to crush the rebels. In a dramatic (10) turn­
around , Spartacus defeated first Clodianus and then Publicola. Rumor had it that Spartacus was very upset
about Crixus's (11) death . To (12) avenge the death, Spartacus had 300 Roman soldiers, all POWs, fight in
pairs until they died.
After finishing off the two consuls' forces, Spartacus continued to travel north. Along the way, he won a
couple more battles and finally arrived at the Alps. Freedom was nearer than ever! Once there, however, things
took a surprising turn. For whatever reasons (probably convinced by his followers), Spartacus suddenly changed
his mind. He turned his troops around and headed back south again.
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The Roman senate was not ready to trust the two consuls to fight again. So it picked a new chief, Marcus
Licinius Crassus, for the task. Before the (13) showdown , Crassus asked a (14) commander , Mummius, to
move his troops south. He specifically told the man not to make any contact with the enemy. Eager to score a
victory for himself, Mummius ignored the order. He attacked Spartacus and lost. When Crassus learned of the
defeat, he was furious. He rounded up Mummius' remaining forces and killed one out of every ten soldiers! The
lesson was crystal clear ­ never disobey or stray away from the order. This practice gave us the word,
"decimate," which means to kill one person in ten.
At the onset of winter in 71 B.C., Spartacus and his men arrived in southern Italy. They wanted to cross a
short strait to the island of Sicily. To their disappointment, the Sicilian pirates they had hired never showed up,
but Crassus did. Left with no choice, Spartacus engaged his men in a (15) bloody battle and got crushed. In
the end, Crassus killed tens of thousands of rebels, but he never found Spartacus's body. He recovered the fasces
taken by Spartacus. And he crucified 6,000 of Spartacus's soldiers along the Via Appia, the road between Rome
and Capua. He gave clear instructions to never take down the 6,000 crosses. He wanted to use them as a vivid
reminder of the consequence of defying the Romans! Everybody got the message.
As Crassus celebrated the victory, a small band of Spartacus's forces broke loose and escaped. They ran into
Pompey's army and were slaughtered. Since Pompey was the one who killed Spartacus's remaining followers, he
got credit for suppressing the (16) rebellion . This, of course, did not sit well with Crassus, who actually did
most of the fighting! The feud between the two would last for decades!
Spartacus, in spite of all the difficulties, (17) stood up against the Romans and fought for his rights. His
initial successes caught everybody by surprise. Though he eventually failed, his legacy lived on. For centuries,
he represented the oppressed class in the society whose only aim was to be treated fairly and equally. Even in
modern times, his story continues to inspire people. His struggle for freedom will be remembered forever!
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