Download The Story of Spartacus

Introduction

In 73 BC, six hundred and eighty-one years
after the founding of the city of Rome, during
the consulship of Lucullus and Cassius the
republic was fighting wars at both ends of the
Mediterranean. The Romans were attempting
to defeat Pompey on one side and attempting to
dominate Northern Africa and Asia Minor. The
Romans were also struggling to deal with
Pirates sailing the seas.
Introduction

Slavery was common in Ancient
Rome. Almost every wealthy
family owned slaves. Many
slaves were used for house and
field work. But others were
forced to become Gladiators. It
was common for these
Gladiators to become heroes in
Rome. One of the most famous
Slave Gladiators was Spartacus.

Spartacus was a tribal warrior from the
Ancient region of Thrace. As a warrior,
he received decent training. One day the
Romans destroyed Thrace and Spartacus
was taken as a slave. Seen as a strong
warrior and fighter, Spartacus joined the
Roman army. After he attempted to
desert the army, Spartacus was captured,
brought to Rome, and sold into Slavery.

As a slave, Spartacus was
forced into Gladiator
school. There, Spartacus
received harsh treatment
and brutal training. Slaves
often were starved and
beaten in order to make
them tougher.

Eventually Spartacus started a small riot at the
Gladiator school. Spartacus and two other strong
gladiators eventually escaped the school and
slavery. The three men were now fugitives and
were fleeing through the Roman Empire. In the
streets, the men found gladiatorial weapons and
stole them.
ESCAPE

Roman soldiers eventually caught up to
Spartacus and the other two men. The soldiers
tried to stop the escaped slaves, but the three
slaves used their weapons to easily defeat the
Soldiers. Spartacus and the other two slaves
took the better military weapons and continued
on their journey. Along their route, they picked
up many other rural slaves.
SPARTACUS ORGANIZES HIS SLAVE
TROOPS

Spartacus defeated several other small
groups of Roman Soldiers along his
journey. The group of escaped slaves
continued to grow in size as they
travelled throughout the empire. The
Roman government did not realize how
well Spartacus had organized the slaves.
They government made no attempt to
end the revolt.

Eventually, Spartacus had picked up
around 100,000 Slaves! They headed
towards the Alps. Once they reached
the Alps, Spartacus had intended for
the slaves to disband and move into
other villages far from where they had
originated. This group of run-away
slaves was now referred to as
Spartacans, and Spartacus was
becoming a legend throughout Rome.

One of the problems Spartacus encountered
was he had little control over the 100,000 slaves.
Instead of disbanding, the group stayed
together. Many felt that they would be a strong
force in driving out the corrupt Consuls.
Common citizens feared the Spartacans because
many of the men pillaged and destroyed the
countryside.

The Roman way of life for the wealthy was
dependent upon slaves. The use of slave labor
was one of the main reasons so many poor
Roman citizens were out of work. Slave labor
was free. About 1/3 of the people in the Roman
Empire were slaves. Wealthy citizens could not
allow this revolt to succeed, not if they wanted
to keep their lifestyle. Finally, the Roman
Government had to take the Spartacans
seriously.
BECOMING A
LEGEND

Catching Spartacus was not easy. Spartacus and his
followers spent their first winter with plenty of good
food that they stole from the surrounding countryside.
They prepared for battle and they made weapons. The
gladiators taught others how to fight like a gladiator
and because of this the Spartacans became a strong
force. Spartacus had become a famous slave leader
throughout Rome and was a legend. Not many people
knew what he looked like, but stories told that he was
a large and powerful individual

The Romans combined five legions of their Army
to find and defeat the Spartacans. Spartacus heard
news of these and continued to prepare for a
battle. Spartacus saw the movement of the army
and he command his men to attack the Roman
Army from the rear. The Spartacans were
successful!
TIME TO ESCAPE

The Roman Army decided
to combine ten legions
from all throughout the
Roman Republic. The
Spartacans attempted to
flee to a higher ground.
They continued to move
North.

The Romans continued to pursue the
Spartacans. They had the goal of capturing
Spartacus alive or dead. Eventually the
Spartacans had no strong escape route because
the Roman Army had blocked their routes.
There was nothing left to do but for Spartacus
and his men to attempt to defeat the Roman
Army in battle.
SURROUNDED

The Spartacans were quickly
surrounded during this battle.
It lasted for hours! Thousands
of Spartacans were slayed.
Under 1000 Romans died.
Although many Spartacans
had escaped into the
mountains, six thousand
fleeing slaves had been
captured by the Romans.
TURN HIM IN!

The Roman Generals demanded
to find Spartacus in the crowd of
6,000 captured. They said that
the captured would be allowed
to return to their lives of slavery
without further punishment if
they presented the Roman
Government with the body of
Spartacus, living or dead. If
they failed to do so, all of the
men would be crucified.
One by one, the 6,000 Spartacans began to stand, each
one proclaiming “I am Spartacus!”.

END RESULT

Baffled and stunned by this occurrence,
the Roman Generals had no choice but to
destroy all 6,000 captured slaves.
THE END

The body of Spartacus was never found.
But his legacy would live on in Rome for
thousands of years.