Roman Entertainment
There were many things the Romans did for entertainment. Even though this
entertainment was cruel and brutal it satisfied the Roman's need for excitment and relaxation. In
Rome most people loved to watch others suffer and fight to their death. While others loved to go
and get a good laugh at the theater or relax and talk about politics at the baths. In the city the
state provided most of the entertainment. Outside of the city the people made their own
entertainment.
One of the places that the state provided for entertainment was the Colosseum. The
Colosseum could seat up to about 50,000 people, upper and lower class. The lower class and
women had to sit in the highest level of the Colosseum. The rich and upper class had the best
seating and the easiest access to the Colosseum. Even though many people think that the
Colosseum was used just for gladiatorial battles, the Colosseum was also filled water so the
navy could work on its strategies. The gladiatorial battles usually took place from sunrise to
sunset. The gladiators not only fought against other gladiators but also against wild beast such
as lions, tigers, and many other dangerous animals. In the beginning, slaves were the main
fighters in the arena. Then they realized that the slave population was not enough to continue the
battles; so many criminals were sent to the gladiatorial schools. Since the criminals were getting
sent to the gladiatorial schools to become a gladiator, criminals thought twice before commiting a
crime.
Another state provided form of entertainment was chariot racing. The chariot races were
held in what was called The Circus Maximus. The chariot races held in the Circus Maximus were
considered the most popular form of entertainment. The Circus Maximus' entertainment was
much like the Colosseum, a visitor could come and stay all day. The Circus Maximus could seat
as many as 255,000 spectators. Men and women could sit together, but there was reserved
seating for the Emporer, senators, knights, Vestal virgins, and women of the Imperial family. On
the day of the event, there were about ten to twenty four races. Just like today there were many
precautions taken before each race. The horses and the drivers were both checked to ensure
that they had not been drugged, and were able to compete in the games. After each race the
crowd was amused with acrobats, rope-dancers, and trick-riders.
The Circus Maximus was a large place in Greece. The Circus Maximus was a horse chariot race running around a track. Almost like our NASCAR races today, these races where the biggest attraction in the day of the Greece. The citizens were greatly involved in the racing of the Circus Maximus.("Circus Maximus princeton.edu") Because so many people were involved with these races, they had to find a way to seat all of these people. ("Circus Maximus aviewoncities.com”) This was the first time they invented stadiums. There were also other events held in the Circus Maximus. These events were held for a long time and were eventually ended around 549 BC. The Circus Maximus reflected the values of ancient Rome for entertainment and competition in ancient Roman culture.
Nero and Caligua spent Rome’s money on lavish lifestyles, not the upkeep. One citizen even said “Do people feel for others? Are they numb to the well-being of others?” Rome originally saved a few days for games, but toward the end of the empire, game days totaled 170. Most poor spent money gambling and drinking. During the millennium festival more than 100 people and exotic animals were killed. The poor didn’t care about the empire to the extent that thy welcomed the Germanic and Barbaric tribes. With the lack of spirit from its citizens, Rome began to fall into the deepest
Rome’s most famous landmark, Colosseum is a large Amphitheatre that could hold up to 50,000 people seated, which is located in Rome, Italy. The Colosseum was used as a royal treat, entertainment where gladiators would fight with wild beast in front of people, animal hunt, theatre performances and public executions for public entertainment and also the King himself. Most of the public event was held at Colosseum. The Roman Colosseum was built between 69 to 79 CE by the Vespasian emperor.
The citizens of Rome loved to go to these bloody warfares. In the city of Rome, these events were held in the Colosseum. An arena so large that it could hold 50,000 spectators and host fights between men and animals.
It is now common knowledge that, in Ancient Rome, people often attended (and enjoyed) gladiatorial fights to the death, wild beast hunts, naval battles and chariot racing, all which often had religious origins. During the reign of Caesar, thousands of men and animals were butchered just to make a Roman holiday! The Romans also enjoyed pantomimes and plays which too were often very violent in nature - "It was not uncommon for a condemned criminal to be executed [on stage] as part of the play."
A gladiators life was far from easy. Most were slaves, prisoners of war, or hardened criminals, therefore they were not free men. Often times they were trained and forced to take part in the events, hoping for their freedom if they were to conquer their grim fate and survived for a few years (wik). This was depicted in the most recent movie GLADIATOR. In this film Russel Crowe Maximus' starts out as an army general under Marcus Aurelius, until Commudus murders his own father out of spite for his fathers loyalty to Maximus and not him. He then inherits the title of king, and condemns Maximus to a gruesome fate as a slave/gladiator. Though this doesn't sound like the ideal life, to some at the time is was an appealing, so much so that some free men degraded themselves so they could battle in the games. Was it for basic living? Possibly but more than likely it was for the Fame and Prestige of a Gladiator. These free men were known as Professional gladiators.
There were four different genres of such entertainment in the games held in amphitheatres (Amphi-theatres are outdoor arenas. "theatres in the round": Amphi- meaning "round" in Greek.) : Gladiatorial combat, the theatrical execution of foreigners, beast shows, as well as chariot racing. Watching someone or a beast kill another was applauded for the method, skill, or artistry used in the slaughter. The games themselves provided ways for Rome to demonstrate the power of their empire, as huge investments of wealth, time, and emotion was put into the games. Death became a spectator sport with the viewers and the viewed both contributing to a wild and gory performance. Already by the late Republic magistrates were spending huge amounts of money on these games. The Latin word for gladiatorial games is Munus which means obligatory offering. This reflects the origin of these games as funerary offerings to the dead. While magistrates in the Republic may well have put on games to gain popular favour, this was in their private capacity and not as magistrates. Only gradually did the gladiatorial shows come to be assimilated with the games put on by magistrates.
The first chapter of Strauss’ work, titled “The Gladiator”, explores both Spartacus’ background as a gladiator and Rome’s fascination with the sport. Strauss outlines how a gladiator match worked in Rome, usually in carefully chosen pairs starting with a practice match with wooden weapons followed by the real officiated match that was generally to the death unless the crowd decided that the wounded deserved to live. The attention is then turned to where the Spartacus legend begins, Capua. Strauss gives a sweeping view of Capua’s history in the Roman Empire, from being punished for allying itself with Hannibal to returning to some prominence as a slave center, in particular for gladiators. Gladiators were usually slaves, and much like Spartacus, were foreign. Spartacus was a Thracian, feared by Romans for their fierceness on hors...
... we could still imagine the fame and the glory of the gladiators who fought here and sacrificed themselves for the Roman citizens. Regardless the bloodshed and the brutality of the Gladiatorial fights, the Colosseum’s appearance undeniably inspired many other great architectures in the world and served the Roman citizens with laughter and entertainment.
Alan Baker states in his book The Gladiator – The Secret History of Rome’s Warrior Slaves that, “attendance at the amphitheater was an essential part of being a Roman, a member of a powerful warrior state” (Baker 2000, 39). It is said that the Romans were known for their honor and glory as a reflection of the society they lived in. This may perhaps explain why the gladiator games were popular to the citizens, because the Romans enjoyed observing these characteristics throughout the battles. Most of the time the contestants were slaves, these individuals were bought and traded at the coliseum with the intentions of battling in these games until their death.
The Colosseum was an enormous entertainment center. Roman audiences watched a variety of athletic events and spectacles, including animal hunts, fights to the death between gladiators or between gladiators and wild animals, performances of trained animals and acrobats, and even mock sea battle. The colosseum is designed in an oval shape, like many stadiums today, and seats up to 50,000 spectators. The concrete core, with its vaulted corridors and stair ways is devised to ensure the smooth flow of traffic to and from the arena. The semi-circle outer walls of the Colosseum consist of three levels, the three Classical orders are superimposed according to their "weight": Doric, the oldest, on the first level, it's followed by the Ionic, then the third level the Corinthian capitals. These are the basic structures of the Colosseum in Rome.
The Architecture of the Colosseum is very grand, with the capacity to hold up to 80,000 people. The Colosseum is over 160 feet tall, it “has a length of 620 feet and was close to 513 feet wide” (“Colosseum Architecture.”). Because the Colosseum was so big, it would have been very difficult to get so many people in and out of it had it not been for the various arches and stairs built within it. In total there are about 80 arches that each led to various stairways. These stairways then led to all the different levels of the Colosseum, which in turn made it a lot easier and more comfortable for a lot of people to exit it in a short amount of time. The Colosseum also had many arches of which four were “reserved exclusively for royalty and nobles” and the others were for the rest of the people (“Colosseum Architecture.”). Unlike other amphitheaters which had a circular shape, the Colosseum had the unique shape of an oval, which helped the people watching have a better view of the arena. This added to the overall different feel that the Colosseum had.
The Colosseum is an important part of ancient Roman history. The amphitheater is a symbol of Roman culture. The Colosseum displayed the violence of Roman culture. This incredibly unique amphitheater dominated the city of Rome. It was one of the most innovative and complex structures during that time period. The vastness of this impressive building displayed the wealth and power of the Roman Empire to other empires and enemies of the Romans. The Colosseum was created for public entertainment purposes. Gladiator fights with prisoners of war and slaves, wild animal hunts, professional fights, and public executions all took place at the Colosseum. Sea battles, rarely performed at the Colosseum, involved flooding the arena with water and releasing sharks for gladiators to fight. The excitement and thrill of each event kept spectators coming back.
The Roman Colosseum, also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, is perhaps the most famous ancient landmark in the world. The Colosseum was the host to thousands of gladiatorial shows, mock naval battles, executions, and animal hunts. Today, the Colosseum still stands in the center of Rome, Italy, however, not quite as it used to be. Still, today, the Roman Colosseum is a large tourist attraction, thousands of tourists from all over the world still come to view this marveled arena. The Roman Colosseum has a rich history, and remains a prized possession of the Roman citizens.
Starting with the Roman Colosseum, which is located in the center of Rome. It is a ginormous amphitheater of huge 80 arched entrance and seating arrangements for 55,000 spectators. The Colosseum was built over 2000 years ago, which was commissioned by Emperor Vespasian and completed by his son Titus. Originally it was known as Flavian Amphitheatre. The designs of sport stadiums all over the world are still influenced by the Roman Colosseum to this very day!