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Third Servile War

2007-07-26T00:33:30Z

User1110: /* Aftermath */

{{Infobox Military Conflict
|conflict=Third Servile War
|partof=the [[Servile Wars]]
|image=[[Image:Italy and environs, 218 BC.gif|300px]]
|caption=[[Italia (Roman province)|Italia]] and surrounding territory, 218 BC
|date=73 to 71 BC
|place=[[Italia (Roman province)|Italia]]
|result=Decisive Roman victory
|combatant1=Army of escaped slaves
|combatant2=[[Roman Republic]]
|commander1=[[Crixus]] †,<br />[[Oenomaus (rebel slave)|Oenomaus]] †,<br />[[Spartacus]] † {{hcref|a|Presumed dead, body never found}},<br />Castus †,<br />Gannicus †
|commander2=[[Gaius Claudius Glaber]],<br />[[Publius Varinius]],<br />[[Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus|Gnaeus Clodianus]],<br />[[Lucius Gellius Publicola]],<br />[[Gaius Cassius Longinus (consul 73 BCE)|Gaius Cassius Longinus]],<br />Gnaeus Manlius,<br />[[Marcus Licinius Crassus]],<br />[[Pompey|Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus]],<br />[[Marcus Terentius Varro Lucullus]],<br />Lucius Quinctius,<br />Gnaeus Tremellius Scrofa
|strength1=120,000 escaped slaves and gladiators, including non-combatants; total number of combatants unknown
|strength2=3,000+ [[militia]],<br />8 [[Roman Legion]]s (40,000-50,000 men),<br />12,000+ - organization unknown.
|casualties1=Almost all killed in action or crucified
|casualties2=Unspecified but heavy<br />(50, 1,000, or 4,000 lost through [[Decimation (Roman army)|decimation]])
|notes={{cnote|a|Presumed dead, body never found}}
}}
{{Campaignbox Servile Wars}}
{{Campaignbox Roman Republican Civil Wars}}

The '''Third Servile War''', also called the '''Gladiator War''' and '''The War of Spartacus''' by [[Plutarch]], was the last of a series of unrelated and unsuccessful slave rebellions against the [[Roman Republic]], known collectively as the [[Servile Wars]]. The Third Servile War was the only one to directly threaten the Roman heartland of [[Italia (Roman province)|Italia]] and was doubly alarming to the Roman people due to the repeated successes of the rapidly growing band of rebel slaves against the Roman army between [[73 BC|73]] and [[71 BC]]. The rebellion was finally crushed through the concentrated military effort of a single commander, [[Marcus Licinius Crassus]], although the rebellion continued to have indirect effects on Roman politics for years to come.

Between 73 and 71 BC, a band of escaped slaves — originally a small [[cadre]] of about 70 escaped [[gladiator]]s which grew into a band of over 120,000 men, women and children — wandered throughout and raided Italy with relative impunity under the guidance of several leaders, including the famous gladiator-general [[Spartacus]]. The able-bodied adults of this band were a surprisingly effective armed force that repeatedly showed they could withstand the Roman military, from the local [[Campania]]n patrols, to the Roman [[militia]], and to trained [[Roman legion]]s under [[consul]]ar command. Plutarch described the actions of the slaves as an attempt by Roman slaves to escape their masters and flee through [[Cisalpine Gaul]], while [[Appian]] and [[Florus]] depicted the revolt as a civil war in which the slaves waged a campaign to capture the city of Rome itself.

The [[Roman Senate]]'s growing alarm about the continued military successes of this band, and about their depredations against Roman towns and the countryside, eventually led to Rome's fielding of an army of eight legions under the harsh but effective leadership of [[Marcus Licinius Crassus]]. The war ended in 71 BC when the armies of Spartacus, after long and bitter fighting, retreating before the legions of Crassus, and realizing that the legions of [[Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus]] and [[Marcus Terentius Varro Lucullus]] were moving in to entrap them, launched their full strength against Crassus' legions and were utterly destroyed.

The Third Servile War was significant to the broader history of ancient Rome mostly in its effect on the careers of Pompey and Crassus. The two generals used their success in putting down the rebellion to further their political careers, using their public acclaim and the implied threat of their legions to sway the consular elections of 70 BC in their favor. Their actions as Consuls greatly furthered the [[political subversion|subversion]] of Roman political institutions and contributed to the eventual transition of the Roman Republic into the [[Roman Empire]].

== Slavery in the Roman republic ==
{{see|Slavery in antiquity|First Servile War|Second Servile War}}
Through varying degrees throughout [[Ancient Rome|Roman history]], the existence of a pool of inexpensive labor in the form of [[slaves]] was an important factor in the [[economy]]. Slaves were acquired for the Roman workforce through a variety of means, including purchase from foreign merchants and the enslavement of foreign populations through military conquest.<ref>'''Smith''', ''A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'', [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/1041.html "Servus", p. 1038]; details the legal and military means by which people were enslaved.</ref> With Rome's heavy involvement in wars of conquest in the first and second centuries BC, tens if not hundreds of thousands of slaves at a time were imported into the Roman economy from various European and Mediterranean acquisitions.<ref>'''Smith''', ''Greek and Roman Antiquities'', [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/1047.html "Servus", p. 1040]; '''Caesar''', ''Commentarii de Bello Gallico'', [[Wikisource:Commentaries on the Gallic War/Book 2#33|2:33]]. Smith refers to the purchase of 10,000 slaves from [[Cilician]] pirates, while Caesar provides an example of the enslavement of 53,000 captive [[Aduatuci]] by a Roman army.</ref> While there was limited use for slaves as servants, craftsmen, and personal attendants, vast numbers of slaves worked in mines and on the agricultural lands of [[Sicily]] and southern Italia.<ref>'''Smith''', ''Greek and Roman Antiquities'', [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/1046.html "Servus", p. 1039]; '''Livy''', ''The History of Rome'', [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Liv.+6.12 6:12]</ref>

For the most part, slaves were treated harshly and oppressively during the [[Roman republic]]an period. Under Republican law, a slave was not considered a person, but property. Owners could abuse, injure or even kill their own slaves without legal consequence. While there were many grades and types of slaves, the lowest — and most numerous — grades who worked in the fields and mines were subject to a life of hard physical labor.<ref>'''Smith''', ''Greek and Roman Antiquities'', [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/1029.html "Servus", pp. 1022–39] summarizes the complex body of Roman law pertaining to the legal status of slaves.</ref>

This high concentration and oppressive treatment of the slave population led to rebellions. In 135 BC and 104 BC, the [[First Servile War|First]] and [[Second Servile War|Second]] Servile Wars, respectively, erupted in Sicily, where small bands of rebels found tens of thousands of willing followers wishing to escape the oppressive life of a Roman slave. While these were considered serious [[Civil disorder|civil disturbances]] by the [[Roman Senate]], taking years and direct military intervention to quell, they were never considered a serious threat to the Republic. The Roman heartland of [[Italia (Roman province)|Italia]] had never seen a slave uprising, nor had slaves ever been seen as a potential threat to the city of [[Rome]]. This would all change with the Third Servile War.

== The rebellion begins (73 BC) ==
=== The Capuan revolt ===
[[Image:Borghese gladiator 1 mosaic dn r2 c2.jpg|thumb|right|''The Gladiator Mosaic'' at the [[Galleria Borghese]]]]
In the Roman Republic of the [[first century BC]], [[gladiator]]ial games were one of the more popular forms of entertainment. In order to supply gladiators for the contests, several training schools, or ''ludi'', were established throughout [[Italia (Roman province)|Italia]].<ref>'''Smith''', ''Greek and Roman Antiquities'', [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/0581.html "Gladiatores", p. 574].</ref> In these schools, prisoners of war and condemned criminals — who were considered [[Slavery in antiquity|slaves]] — were taught the skills required to fight to the death in gladiatorial games.<ref>'''Mommsen''', ''The History of Rome'', 3233-3238.</ref> In 72 BC, a group of some 200 [[gladiator]]s in the [[Capua]]n school owned by [[Lentulus Batiatus]] plotted an escape. When their plot was betrayed, a force of about 70 men seized implements from the kitchen ("choppers and spits"), fought their way free from the school, and seized several wagons of gladiatorial weapons and armor.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#8 8:1-2]; '''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116]; '''Livy''', ''Periochae'', [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae091.html#95 95:2]; '''Florus''', ''Epitome'', [[Wikisource:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]]. Plutarch claims 78 escaped, Livy claims 74, Appian "about seventy", and Florus says "thirty or rather more men". "Choppers and spits" is from ''Life of Crassus''.</ref>

Once free, the escaped gladiators chose leaders from their number, selecting two Gallic slaves — [[Crixus]] and [[Oenomaus (rebel slave)|Oenomaus]] — and [[Spartacus]], who was said either to be a [[Thracian]] [[Auxiliaries (Roman military)|auxiliary]] from the [[Roman legion]]s later condemned to slavery, or a captive taken by the legions.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116]; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#8.2 8:2]. Note: Spartacus' status as an [[Auxiliaries (Roman military)|auxilia]] is taken from the Loeb edition of Appian translated by Horace White, which states "...who had once served as a soldier with the Romans...". However, the translation by John Carter in the Penguin Classics version reads: "...who had once fought against the Romans and after being taken prisoner and sold...".</ref> There is some question as to Spartacus's nationality, however, as a ''Thraex'' (plural ''Thraces'' or ''Threses'') was a type of gladiator in Rome, so that the title "Thracian" may simply refer to the style of gladatorial combat in which he was trained.<ref>'''Smith''', ''Greek and Roman Antiquities'', [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/0583.html "Gladiatores", p. 576].</ref>

These escaped slaves were able to defeat a small force of troops sent after them from [[Capua]], and equip themselves with captured military equipment as well as their gladiatorial weapons.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9 9:1].</ref> Sources are somewhat contradictory on the order of events immediately following the escape, but they generally agree that this band of escaped gladiators plundered the region surrounding Capua, recruited many other slaves into their ranks, and eventually retired to a more defensible position on [[Mount Vesuvius]].<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116]; '''Florus''', ''Epitome'', [[Wikisource:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]]; - Florus and Appian make the claim that the slaves withdrew to Vesuvius, while Plutarch only mentions "a hill" in the later account of Glaber's siege of the slave's encampment.</ref>

=== Defeat of the praetorian armies ===
[[Image:3rd_Servile_initial.gif|thumb|left|Initial movements of Roman and Slave forces from the Capuan revolt up to and including the winter of 73 BC.]]
As the revolt and raids were occurring in [[Campania]] — which was a vacation region of the rich and influential in Rome, and the location of many estates — the revolt quickly came to the attention of Roman authorities. It took Rome some time to realize the scale of the problem, viewing the slave revolt as more of a major [[crime wave]] than as an armed rebellion.

However, in 73 BC, Rome dispatched military force under [[praetor]]ian authority to put down the rebellion.<ref>'''Note:''' while there seems to be consensus as to the general history of the praetorian expeditions, the names of the commanders and subordinates of these forces varies ''widely'' based on the historical account.</ref> A Roman [[praetor]], [[Gaius Claudius Glaber]], gathered a force of 3,000 men, not as [[Roman legion|legion]]s, but as a [[militia]] "picked up in haste and at random, for the Romans did not consider this a war yet, but a raid, something like an attack of robbery."<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116].</ref> Glaber's forces besieged the slaves on [[Mount Vesuvius]], blocking the only known way down the mountain. With the slaves thus contained, Glaber was content to wait until starvation forced the slaves to surrender.

While the slaves lacked military training, Spartacus' forces displayed ingenuity in their use of available local materials, and in their use of clever, unorthodox tactics when facing the disciplined Roman armies.<ref>'''Frontinus''', ''Stratagems'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Frontinus/Strategemata/1*.html#5.20 Book I, 5:20-22] and [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Frontinus/Strategemata/1*.html#7.6 Book VII:6].</ref> In response to Glaber's siege, Spartacus' men made ropes and ladders from vines and trees growing on the slopes of Vesuvius and used them to [[rappel]] down the cliffs on the side of the mountain opposite Glaber's forces. They moved around the base of Vesuvius, outflanked the army, and annihilated Glaber's men.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9 9:1-3]; '''Frontinus''', ''Stratagems'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Frontinus/Strategemata/1*.html#5.21 Book I, 5:20-22]; '''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116]; '''Broughton''', ''Magistrates of the Roman Republic'', p. 109. Note: Plutarch and Frontinus write of expeditions under the command of "Clodius the praetor" and "Publius Varinus", while Appian writes of "Varinius Glaber" and "Publius Valerius".</ref>

A second expedition, under the [[praetor]] [[Publius Varinius]], was then dispatched against Spartacus. For some reason, Varinius seems to have split his forces under the command of his subordinates Furius and Cossinius. Plutarch mentions that Furius commanded some 2,000 men, but neither the strength of the remaining forces, nor whether the expedition was composed of militia or legions, appears to be known. These forces were also defeated by the army of escaped slaves: Cossinius was killed, Varinius was nearly captured, and the equipment of the armies was seized by the slaves.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.4 9:4-5]; '''Livy''', ''Periochae '', [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae091.html#95 95]; '''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116]; '''Sallust''', ''Histories'', 3:64-67.</ref> With these successes, more and more slaves flocked to the Spartacan forces, as did "many of the [[herder|herdsmen]] and [[shepherd]]s of the region", swelling their ranks to some 70,000.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.3 9:3]; '''Appian''', ''Civil War'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116]. Livy identifies the second commander as "Publius Varenus" with the subordinate "Claudius Pulcher".</ref> The rebel slaves spent the winter of 73 BC arming and equipping their new recruits, and expanding their raiding territory to include the towns of [[Nola]], [[Nocera Inferiore|Nuceria]], [[Thurii]] and [[Metapontum]].<ref name="florus_2_8">'''Florus''', ''Epitome'', [[Wikisource:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]].</ref>

The victories of the rebel slaves did not come without a cost. At some time during these events, or possibly during one of the winter raids in late 72 BC, their leader [[Oenomaus (rebel slave)|Oenomaus]] was lost — presumably in battle — and is not mentioned further in the histories.<ref>'''Orosius''', ''Histories'' 5.24.2; '''Bradley''', ''Slavery and Rebellion'', p.96.</ref>

== Motivation and leadership of the escaped slaves ==
[[Image:Spartacus1.jpg|thumb|right|''Spartacus'', by [[Denis Foyatier]], c. 1830, displayed at the [[Louvre]]. An example of a modern heroic depiction of Spartacus.]]
By the end of 73 BC, Spartacus and Crixus were in command of a large group of armed men with a proven ability to withstand Roman armies. What they intended to do with this force is somewhat difficult for modern readers to determine. Since the Third Servile War was ultimately an unsuccessful rebellion, no firsthand account of the slaves' motives and goals exists, and historians writing about the war propose contradictory theories.

Many popular modern accounts of the war claim that there was a factional split in the escaped slaves between those under Spartacus, who wished to escape over the Alps to freedom, and those under Crixus, who wished to stay in southern Italia to continue raiding and plundering. This appears to be an interpretation of events based on the following: the regions that [[Florus]] lists as being raided by the slaves include [[Thurii]] and [[Metapontum]], which are geographically distant from [[Nola]] and [[Nocera Inferiore|Nuceria]]. This indicates the existence of two groups: [[Lucius Gellius Publicola]] eventually attacked Crixus and a group of some 30,000 followers who are described as being separate from the main group under Spartacus;<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.7 9:7]; '''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#117 1:117].</ref> [[Plutarch]] describes the desire of some of the escaped slaves to plunder Italia, rather than escape over the Alps.<ref name="plutc_9_5_6">'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.5 9:5-6].</ref> While this factional split is not contradicted by classical sources, there does not seem to be any direct evidence to support it.

Fictional accounts — such as [[Stanley Kubrick]]'s 1960 film [[Spartacus (film)|''Spartacus'']] — sometimes portray Spartacus as an ancient Roman [[freedom fighter]], struggling to change a corrupt Roman society and to end the Roman institution of slavery. Although this is not contradicted by classical historians, no historical account mentions that the goal of the rebel slaves was to end slavery in the Republic, nor do any of Spartacus' actions seem specifically aimed at ending slavery.

Even classical historians, who were writing only years after the events themselves, seem to be divided as to what the motives of Spartacus were. [[Appian]] and [[Florus]] write that he intended to march on Rome itself<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#117 1:117]; '''Florus''', ''Epitome'', [[Wikisource:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]].</ref> — although this may have been no more than a reflection of Roman fears. If Spartacus did intend to march on Rome, it was a goal he must have later abandoned. [[Plutarch]] writes that Spartacus merely wished to escape northwards into [[Cisalpine Gaul]] and disperse his men back to their homes.<ref name="plutc_9_5_6" />

It is not certain that the slaves were a homogeneous group under the leadership of Spartacus. While this is the unspoken assumption of the Roman historians, this may be the Romans projecting their own hierarchical view of military power and responsibility on the ''[[ad hoc]]'' organization of the slaves. Certainly other slave leaders are mentioned — Crixus, Oenomaus, Gannicus, and Castus — and we cannot tell from the historical evidence whether they were aides, subordinates, or even equals leading groups of their own and traveling in convoy with Spartacus' people.

== Defeat of the consular armies (72 BC) ==
In the spring of 72 BC, the escaped slaves left their winter encampments and began to move northwards towards [[Cisalpine Gaul]].

The Senate, alarmed by the size of the revolt and the defeat of the [[praetor]]ian armies of [[Gaius Claudius Glaber|Glaber]] and [[Publius Varinius|Varinius]], dispatched a pair of [[consul]]ar [[Roman legion|legions]] under the command of [[Lucius Gellius Publicola]] and [[Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus]].<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116-117]; Plutarch, ''Crassus'' [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.6 9:6]; Sallust, ''Histories'', 3:64-67.</ref> Initially, the consular armies were successful. [[Lucius Gellius Publicola|Gellius]] engaged a group of about 30,000 slaves, under command of [[Crixus]], near Mount Garganus and killed two -thirds of the rebels, including Crixus himself.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#117 1:117]; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'' [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.7 9:7]; '''Livy''', ''Periochae'' [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae096.html#96 96]. Livy reports that troops under the (former) praetor Quintus Arrius killed Crixus and 20,000 of his followers.</ref>

At this point in the history, there is a divergence in the classical sources as to the course of events which cannot be reconciled until the entry of [[Marcus Licinius Crassus]] into the war. The two most comprehensive (extant) histories of the war by [[Appian]] and [[Plutarch]] detail very different events. However, neither accounts directly ''contradicts'' the other, but simply reports different events, ignoring some events in the other account, and reporting events that are unique to that account.

=== Appian's history ===
[[Image:3rd_servile_72_appian.gif|left|thumb|The events of 72 BC, according to [[Appian]]'s version of events.]]
According to Appian, the battle between Gellius' legions and Crixus' men near Mount Garganus was the beginning of a long and complex series of military maneuvers that almost resulted in the Spartacan forces directly assaulting the city of [[Rome]] itself.

After his victory over Crixus, Gellius moved northwards, following the main group of slaves under [[Spartacus]] who were heading for [[Cisalpine Gaul]]. The army of [[Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus|Lentulus]] was deployed to bar [[Spartacus]]' path, and the consuls hoped to trap the rebel slaves between them. Spartacus' army met Lentulus' legion, defeated it, turned, and destroyed Gellius' army, forcing the Roman legions to retreat in disarray.<ref name="app_1_117">'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#117 1:117].</ref> Appian claims that Spartacus executed some 300 captured Roman soldiers to avenge the death of [[Crixus]], forcing them to fight each other to the death as gladiators.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil war'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#117 1.117]; '''Florus''', ''Epitome'', [[Wikisource:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]]; '''Bradley''', ''Slavery and Rebellion'', p.121; '''Smith''', ''Greek and Roman Antiquities'', [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/0581.html "Gladiatores", p.574]. - Note that gladiator contests as part of some funeral rituals in the Roman Republic were a high honor, according to Smith. This accords with Florus' passage ''"He also celebrated the obsequies of his officers who had fallen in battle with funerals like those of Roman generals, and ordered his captives to fight at their pyres"''.</ref> Following this victory, Spartacus pushed northwards with his followers (some 120,000) as fast as he could travel, "having burned all his useless material, killed all his prisoners, and butchered his pack-animals in order to expedite his movement".<ref name="app_1_117" />

The defeated consular armies fell back to Rome to regroup while Spartacus' followers moved northward. The consuls again engaged Spartacus somewhere in the [[Picenum]] region, and once again were defeated.<ref name="app_1_117" />

Appian claims that at this point Spartacus ''changed'' his intention of marching on Rome — implying this was Spartacus' goal following the confrontation in Picenum<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil war'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#117 1.117]; '''Florus''', ''Epitome'', [[Wikisource:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]]. Florus does not detail when and how Spartacus intended to march on Rome, but agrees this was Spartacus' ultimate goal.</ref> — as "he did not consider himself ready as yet for that kind of a fight, as his whole force was not suitably armed, for no city had joined him, but only slaves, deserters, and riff-raff", and decided to withdraw into southern Italia once again. They seized the town of [[Thurii]] and the surrounding countryside, arming themselves, raiding the surrounding territories, trading plunder with merchants for bronze and iron (with which to manufacture more arms), and clashing occasionally with Roman forces which were invariably defeated.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#117 1:117].</ref>

=== Plutarch's history ===
[[Image:3rd_servile_72_plutarch.gif|thumb|The events of 72 BC, according to [[Plutarch]]'s version of events.]]
Plutarch's description of events differs significantly from that of Appian's.

According to Plutarch, after the battle between Gellius' legion and Crixus men (whom Plutarch describes as "Germans"<ref name="plutc_9_7">'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.7 9:7].</ref>) near Mount Garganus, Spartacus' men engaged the legion commanded by Lentulus, defeated them, seized their supplies and equipment, and pushed directly into northern Italia. After this defeat, both consuls were relieved of command of their armies by the [[Roman Senate]] and recalled to Rome.<ref name="plutc_10_1">'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'' [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#10 10:1];.</ref> Plutarch does not mention Spartacus engaging Gellius' legion at all, nor of Spartacus facing the combined consular legions in Picenum.<ref name="plutc_9_7" />

Plutarch then goes on to detail a conflict not mentioned in Appian's history. According to Plutarch, Spartacus' army continued northwards to the region around Mutina (modern [[Modena]]). There, a Roman army of some 10,000 soldiers, led by the governor of [[Cisalpine Gaul]], [[Gaius Cassius Longinus 2|Gaius Cassius Longinus]] attempted to bar Spartacus' progress and were also defeated.<ref>'''Bradley''', ''Slavery and Rebellion'', p. 96; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'' [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.7 9:7]; '''Livy''', ''Periochae '', [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae096.html#96 96:6]. - Bradley identifies Gaius Cassius Longinus as the governor of Cisalpine Gaul at the time. Livy also identifies "Caius Cassius" and mentions his co-commander (or sub-commander?) "Cnaeus Manlius".</ref>

Plutarch makes no further mention of events until the initial confrontation between [[Marcus Licinius Crassus]] and Spartacus in the spring of 71 BC, omitting the march on Rome and the retreat to Thurii described by Appian.<ref name="plutc_10_1"/> However, as Plutarch describes Crassus forcing Spartacus' followers to retreat ''southwards'' from Picenum, one might infer that the rebel slaves approached Picenum from the south in early 71 BC, implying that they withdrew southwards from Mutina to winter in southern or central Italia.

Why they might do so, when there was apparently no reason for them not to escape over the Alps — Spartacus' goal according to Plutarch<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#9.5 9:5].</ref> — is not explained.

== The war under Crassus (71 BC) ==
[[Image:Crassus_turns_tide.gif|left|thumb|The events of early 71 BC. [[Marcus Licinius Crassus]] takes command of the Roman legions, confronts Spartacus, and forces the rebel slaves to retreat through [[Lucania]] to the straits near [[Messina]]. Plutarch claims this occurred in the Picenum region, while Appian places the initial battles between Crassus and Spartacus in the Samnium region.]]

Despite the contradictions in the classical sources regarding the events of 72 BC, there seems to be general agreement that Spartacus and his followers were in the south of Italia in early 71 BC.

=== Crassus takes command of the legions ===
The Senate, now alarmed at the apparently unstoppable rebellion occurring within [[Italia (Roman province)|Italia]], gave the task of putting down the rebellion to [[Marcus Licinius Crassus]]. Crassus had been a [[praetor]] in 73 BC, and had gained a reputation as an able military commander during the Civil War between the Sulla and Marius.<ref name="plutc_10_1" />

He was assigned six new legions in addition to the two formerly consular legions of [[Lucius Gellius Publicola|Gellius ]] and [[Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus|Lentulus]], giving him an army of some 40,000-50,000 trained Roman soldiers.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#118 1:118]; '''Smith''', ''A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'', [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/0501.html "Exercitus", p.494]; Appian details the number of legions, while Smith discusses the size of the legions throughout the Roman civilization, stating that late republican legions varied from 5,000-6,200 men per legion.</ref> Crassus treated his legions with harsh, even brutal, discipline, reviving the punishment of unit [[Decimation (Roman Army)|decimation]] within his army. Appian is uncertain whether he decimated the two consular legions for cowardice when he was appointed their [[dux|commander]], or whether he had his ''entire'' army decimated for a later defeat (an event in which up to 4,000 [[legionaries]] would have been executed).<ref name="app_1_118">'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#118 1:118].</ref> Plutarch only mentions the decimation of 50 legionaries of one cohort as punishment after Mummius' defeat in the first confrontation between Crassus and Spartacus.<ref name="plutc_10_1_3">'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#10 10:1-3].</ref> Regardless of what actually occurred, Crassus' treatment of his legions proved that "he was more dangerous to them than the enemy", and spurred them on to victory rather than running the risk of displeasing their commander. <ref name="app_1_118" />

=== Crassus and Spartacus ===
When the forces of Spartacus moved northwards once again, Crassus deployed six of his legions on the borders of the region (Plutarch claims the initial battle between Crassus' legions and Spartacus' followers occurred near the [[Picenum]] region<ref name="plutc_10_1" />, Appian claims it occurred near the [[Samnium]] region<ref name="app_1_119">'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#119 1:119].</ref>), and detached two legions under his [[legatus|legate]], Mummius, to maneuver behind Spartacus, but gave them orders not to engage the rebels. When an opportunity presented itself, Mummius disobeyed, attacked the Spartacan forces, and was subsequently routed.<ref name="plutc_10_1_3" /> Despite this initial loss, Crassus' engaged Spartacus and defeated him, killing some 6,000 of the rebels.<ref name="app_1_119" />

The tide seemed to have turned in the war. Crassus' legions were victorious in several engagements, killing thousands of the rebel slaves, and forcing Spartacus to retreat south through [[Lucania]] to the straits near [[Messina]]. According to [[Plutarch]], Spartacus made a bargain with [[Cilicia]]n pirates to transport him and some 2,000 of his men to [[Sicily]], where he intended to incite a slave revolt there and gather reinforcements. However, he was betrayed by the pirates, who took payment and then abandoned the rebel slaves.<ref name="plutc_10_1_3" /> Minor sources mention that there were some attempts at raft and shipbuilding by the rebels as a means to escape, but that Crassus took unspecified measures to ensure the rebels could not cross to Sicily, and their efforts were abandoned.<ref>'''Florus''', ''Epitome'', [http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Epitome_of_Roman_History/Book_2#8 2.8]; '''Cicero''', ''Orations'', "For Quintius, Sextus Roscius...", [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0018;query=chapter%3D%23448;layout=;loc=Ver.%205.7 5.2]</ref>

Spartacus' forces then retreated towards [[Rhegium]]. Crassus' legions followed and upon arrival built fortifications across the isthmus at Rhegium, despite harassing raids from the rebel slaves. The rebels were under siege and cut off from their supplies.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#10.4 10:4-5].</ref>

=== Reinforcement legions arrive; the end of the war ===

[[Image:Last_battle.gif|thumb|The last events of the war in 71 BC, where the army of [[Spartacus]] broke the siege by [[Marcus Licinius Crassus|Crassus']] [[Roman legion|legions]] and retreated toward the mountains near Petelia. Shows the initial skirmishes between elements of the two sides, the turn-about of the Spartacan forces for the final confrontation. Note the legions of [[Pompey]] moving in from the north to capture survivors.]]

At this time, the legions of [[Pompey]] were returning to [[Italia (Roman province)|Italia]], having put down the rebellion of [[Quintus Sertorius]] in [[Hispania]].

Sources disagree on whether Crassus had requested reinforcements, or whether the Senate simply took advantage of Pompey's return to Italia, but Pompey was ordered to bypass Rome and head south to aid Crassus.<ref>Contrast '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.2 11:2] with '''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#119 1:119].</ref> The Senate also sent reinforcements under the command of "Lucullus", mistakenly thought by [[Appian]] to be [[Lucullus|Lucius Licinius Lucullus]], commander of the forces engaged in the [[Third Mithridatic War]] at the time, but who appears to have been the [[proconsul]] of [[Macedonia (Roman province)|Macedonia]], [[Marcus Terentius Varro Lucullus]], the former's younger brother.<ref>'''Strachan-Davidson''' on Appian. 1.120; '''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#120 1:120]; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.2 11:2].</ref> With Pompey's legions marching out of the north, and Lucullus' troops landing in [[Brundisium]], Crassus realized that if he did not put down the slave revolt quickly, credit for the war would go to the general who arrived with reinforcements, and thus he spurred his legions on to end the conflict quickly.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#120 1:120]; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.2 11:2].</ref>

Hearing of the approach of Pompey, Spartacus attempted to negotiate with Crassus to bring the conflict to a close before Roman reinforcements arrived.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#120 1:120];.</ref> When Crassus refused, a portion of Spartacus' forces broke out of confinement and fled toward the mountains west of Petelia (modern [[Strongoli]]) in [[Bruttium]], with Crassus' legions in pursuit.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#120 1:120]; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#10.6 10:6]. No mention of the fate of the forces who did ''not'' break out of the siege is mentioned, although it is possible that these were the slaves under command of Gannicus and Castus mentioned later.</ref> The legions managed to catch a portion of the rebels – under the command of Gannicus and Castus – separated from the main army, killing 12,300.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.3 11:3]; '''Livy''', ''Periochae'', [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae096.html#97 97:1]. Plutarch gives the figure 12,300 rebels killed. Livy claims 35,000.</ref> However, Crassus' legions also suffered losses, as some of the army of escaping slaves turned to meet the Roman forces under the command of a cavalry officer named [[Lucius Quinctius]] and the [[quaestor]] [[Gnaeus Tremellius Scrofa]], routing them.<ref>'''Bradley''', ''Slavery and Rebellion''. p. 97; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.4 11:4].</ref> The rebel slaves were not, however, a professional army, and had reached their limit. They were unwilling to flee any farther, and groups of men were breaking away from the main force to independently attack the oncoming legions of Crassus.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.5 11:5];.</ref> With discipline breaking down, Spartacus turned his forces around and brought his entire strength to bear on the oncoming legions. In this last stand, Spartacus' forces were finally routed completely, with the vast majority of them being killed on the battlefield.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#120 1:120]; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.6 11:6-7]; '''Livy''', ''Periochae'', [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae096.html#97 97.1]. Livy claims some 60,000 rebel slaves killed in this final action.</ref> The eventual fate of Spartacus himself is unknown, as his body was never found, but he is accounted by historians to have perished in battle along with his men.<ref>Appian, ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#120 1:120]; '''Florus''', ''Epitome'', [[Wikisource:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]].</ref>

== Aftermath ==
[[Image:Spartacus IIi.JPG|thumb|left|The Fall of Spartacus.]]
The rebellion of the Third Servile War had been annihilated by Crassus.

Pompey's forces did not directly engage Spartacus' forces at any time, but his legions moving in from the north were able to capture some 5,000 rebels fleeing the battle, "all of whom he slew".<ref>'''Matyszak''', ''The Enemies of Rome'' p.133; '''Plutarch''', ''Pompey'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Pompey*.html#21.2 21:2], ''Crassus'' [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.7 11.7].</ref> Because of this, Pompey sent a dispatch to the Senate, saying that while Crassus certainly had conquered the slaves in open battle, he himself had ended the war, thus claiming a large portion of the credit and earning the enmity of Crassus.<ref>'''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#11.7 11.7].</ref>

While most of the rebel slaves had been killed on the battlefield, some 6,000 survivors had been captured by the legions of Crassus. All 6,000 were [[Crucifixion|crucified]] along the road between [[Rome]] and [[Capua]].<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#120 1.120].</ref>

Pompey and Crassus reaped political benefit for having put down the rebellion. Both Crassus and Pompey returned to Rome with their legions and refused to disband them, instead encamping them outside Rome.<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116].</ref> Both men stood for the [[consul]]ship of 70 BC, even though Pompey was ineligible because of his youth, and lack of service as [[praetor]] or [[quaestor]].<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#121 1:121].</ref> Nonetheless, both men were elected [[consul]] for 70 BC,<ref>'''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#121 1:121]; '''Plutarch''', ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#12.2 12:2].</ref> partly due to the implied threat of their armed legions encamped outside the city.<ref>'''Fagan''', ''The History of Ancient Rome''; '''Appian''', ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#121 1:121].</ref>

The effects of the Third Servile War on the Roman attitudes towards slavery, and the institution of slavery in Rome, are harder to determine. Certainly the revolt had shaken the Roman people, who "out of sheer fear seem to have begun to treat their slaves less harshly than before."<ref>'''Davis''', ''Readings in Ancient History'', p.90</ref> The wealthy owners of the [[latifundia]] began to reduce the number of agricultural slaves, opting to employ the large pool of formerly dispossessed freemen in [[sharecropping]] arrangements.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.fsmitha.com/h1/ch18.htm| title= From a Republic to Emperor Augustus: Spartacus and Declining Slavery| year=2006| accessdate=2006-09-23| first='''Frank E.''' | last='''Smitha'''}}</ref> With the end of [[Julius Caesar]]'s [[Gallic Wars]] in 52 BC, the major Roman wars of conquest would cease until the reign of emperor [[Trajan]] (reigned 98-117 AD), and with them the supply of plentiful and inexpensive slaves through military conquest, further promoting the use of freemen laborers in agricultural estates.

The legal status and rights of the Roman slave also began to change. During the time of [[Roman Emperor|emperor]] [[Claudius]] (reigned 41-54 AD), a constitution was enacted which made the killing of an old or infirm slave an act of murder, and decreed that if such slaves were abandoned by their owners, they became freedmen.<ref>'''Suetonius''', ''Life of Claudius'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Suetonius/12Caesars/Claudius*.html#25 25.2]</ref> Under [[Antoninus Pius]] (reigned 138-161 AD), the legal rights of slaves were further extended, holding owners responsible for the killing of slaves, forcing the sale of slaves when it could be shown that they were being mistreated, and providing a (theoretically) neutral third party authority to which a slave could appeal.<ref>'''Gaius''', ''Institvtionvm Commentarivs'', [http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/gaius1.html#52 I:52]; '''Seneca''', ''De Beneficiis'', [http://agoraclass.fltr.ucl.ac.be/concordances/sen_bienfaitsIII/texte.htm III:22]. Gaius details the changes in the right of the owner to inflict whatever treatment they wished upon the slave, while Seneca details the slave's right to proper treatment and the creation of a "slave [[ombudsman]]".</ref> While these legal changes occurred much too late to be ''direct'' results of the Third Servile War, they represent the legal codification of changes in the Roman attitude toward slaves which would have been evolving for decades.

It is difficult to determine the extent to which the events of this war contributed to the changes in the use and legal rights of Roman slaves. It seems that the end of the Servile Wars coincided with the end of the period of most prominent use of slaves in Rome, and the beginning of a new perception of the slave within Roman society and law. The Third Servile War was the last of the Servile Wars, and Rome would not see another slave uprising of this type again.

== References ==
;Classical works
* [[Appian]], ''Civil wars'', Penguin Classics; New Ed edition, 1996. ISBN 0-14-044509-9.
* [[Julius Caesar|Caesar, Julius]], ''[[Commentarii de Bello Gallico]]''.
* [[Cicero|Cicero, M. Tullius]]. [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0018&layout=&loc=Ver.+5.1 ''The Orations of Marcus Tullius Cicero, literally translated by C. D. Yonge'', "for Quintius, Sextus Roscius, Quintus Roscius, against Quintus Caecilius, and against Verres"]. London. George Bell & Sons. 1903. OCLC: 4709897
* [[Publius Annius Florus|Florus, Publius Annius]], ''Epitome of Roman History''. Harvard University Press, 1984. ISBN 0-674-99254-7
* [[Sextus Julius Frontinus|Frontinus, Sextus Julius]], ''Stratagems'', Loeb edition, 1925 by Charles E. Bennett. ISBN 0-674-99192-3
* [[Gaius (jurist)|Gaius the Jurist]], ''Gai Institvtionvm Commentarivs Primvs''
* [[Livy|Livius,Titus]], ''This History of Rome''
* [[Livy|Livius,Titus]], ''Periochae'', K.G. Saur Verlag, 1981. ISBN 3-519-01489-0
* [[Orosius]], ''Histories''.
* [[Plutarch]]us, Mestrius , ''Plutarch's Lives'', "The Life of Crassus" and "The Life of Pompey". Modern Library, 2001. ISBN 0-375-75677-9.
* [[Sallust]], ''Histories'', P.McGUSHIN (Oxford,1992/1994) ISBN 0-19-872140-4
* [[Seneca the Elder|Seneca]], ''De Beneficiis''
* [[Suetonius]], ''[[Lives of the Twelve Caesars]]: [[Lives of the Twelve Caesars#Life of Claudius|The Life of Claudius]]''.

;Modern books
* Bradley, Keith. ''Slavery and Rebellion in the Roman World''. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1989. ISBN 0-7134-6561-1.
*Broughton, T. Robert S. ''Magistrates of the Roman Republic,'' vol. 2. Cleveland: Case Western University Press, 1968.
*Davis,William Stearns ed., ''Readings in Ancient History: Illustrative Extracts from the Sources, 2 Vols, Vol. II: Rome and the West''. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1912-13.
* Matyszak, Philip, ''The enemies of Rome'', Thames & Hudson, 2004. ISBN 0-500-25124-X.
* Strachan-Davidson, J. L. (ed.), ''Appian, Civil Wars: Book I'', Oxford University Press, 1902 (repr. 1969).
* [[Theodor Mommsen|Mommsen, Theodor]], ''[http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/10706 The History of Rome, Books I-V]'', [[project Gutenburg]] electronic edition, 2004. ISBN 0-415-14953-3.
* William Smith, D.C.L., LL.D., ''A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'', John Murray, London, 1875.

;Multimedia
* [http://php.scripts.psu.edu/dept/history/faculty/faganGarrett.php Fagan, Garret G.], "[http://www.teach12.com/ttc/assets/coursedescriptions/340.asp The History of Ancient Rome]: Lecture 23, Sulla's Reforms Undone", [[The Teaching Company]]. [sound recording:CD].

== Notes ==
*References to the Mommsen text is based on the [[Project Gutenburg]] [[e-text]] edition of the books. References are therefore given in terms of [[line number]]s within the text file, and not page numbers as would be the case with physical books.
*References to "classical works" (Livy, Plutarch, Appian, etc.) are given in the traditional "Book:verse" format, rather than edition-specific page numbers.
<div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count:2;">
<references /></div>

== External links ==
;Classical historical works
Works at [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/home.html LacusCurtius].

*[[Appian]]'s [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html ''The Civil Wars''].
*[[Frontinus]]'s [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Frontinus/Strategemata/home.html ''The Strategemata''].
*[[Plutarch]]'s, [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html ''Life of Crassus'']
*Plutarch's, [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Pompey*.html ''Life of Pompey'']

Works at [http://www.livius.org Livius.org].

*[http://www.livius.org/so-st/spartacus/spartacus_t02.html Appian on Spartacus] (excerpts from ''The Civil Wars'').
*[http://www.livius.org/so-st/spartacus/spartacus_t03.html Florus on Spartacus] (excerpts from the ''Epitome of Roman History'').
*[[Livy]]'s [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae091.html#95 ''Periochae''. 95:2].
*Livy's [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae096.html ''Periochae''. 96:1 and 97:1].
*[http://www.livius.org/so-st/spartacus/spartacus_t01.html Plutarch on Spartacus] (excerpts from the ''Life of Crassus'').

Works at [http://classics.mit.edu/index.html The Internet Classics Archive].

*Livy's [http://classics.mit.edu/Livy/liv.html ''Histories'']

;Modern works
* William Smith's, [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/SMIGRA/home.html A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities] at [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/home.html LacusCurtius]. A [http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/index.html scanned page version] is also available at [http://www.ancientlibrary.com The Ancient Library].

{{featured article}}
[[Category:Roman Servile Wars|Servile War 3]]

[[es:Tercera Guerra Servil]]
[[fr:Troisième Guerre servile]]
[[ko:스파르타쿠스 전쟁]]
[[he:מלחמת העבדים השלישית]]
[[hr:Treći robovski rat]]
[[nn:Spartakusopprøret]]
[[pl:Powstanie Spartakusa]]
[[ru:Восстание Спартака]]
[[simple:Third Servile War]]
[[sk:Spartakovo povstanie]]
[[sv:Spartacusupproret]]
[[zh:斯巴达克起义]]

Spartacus

2007-07-26T00:32:32Z

User1110: /* Military success continues */

{{otheruses1|the historical character}}

[[Image:Spartacus1.jpg|thumbnail|''Spartacus'' by [[Denis Foyatier]], 1830]]

'''Spartacus''' ([[ca.]] 120 BC<ref>{{ru icon}} Валентин Лесков. ''Спартак''. М.: Молодая гвардия, 1987</ref> – ca. 70 BC), according to [[ancient Rome|Roman]] historians, was a gladiator-slave who became the leader (or possibly one of several) in the unsuccessful slave uprising against the [[Roman Republic]] known as the [[Third Servile War]]. Little is known about Spartacus beyond the events of the war, and the surviving historical accounts are sketchy and often contradictory. Spartacus' struggle, often perceived as the struggle of an oppressed people fighting for their freedom against a slave-owning aristocracy, has found new meaning for modern writers since the 19th century. The figure of Spartacus, and his rebellion, has become an inspiration to many modern literary and political writers, who have made the character of Spartacus an ancient/modern folk hero.

== Ancient depictions of Spartacus ==
=== Spartacus' origins ===
The ancient sources agree that Spartacus was a native [[Thracians|Thracian]] who had served as an [[Auxiliaries (Roman military)|auxiliary]] in the [[Roman army]]. [[Plutarch]] describes him as "a Thracian of nomadic stock" (however, editor Konrad Ziegler argues that the Greek ''nomadikou'' should be amended to ''Maidikou'' referring to the Thracian tribe of the Maidi), and says his wife, a prophetess of the same tribe, was enslaved with him;<ref>[[Plutarch]], ''Crassus'' [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#8 8]</ref> [[Appian]] says he was "a Thracian by birth, who had once served as a soldier with the Romans, but had since been a prisoner and sold for a gladiator";<ref>[[Appian]], ''Civil Wars'' [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1.116]</ref> and [[Florus]] says he was "a mercenary Thracian [who] had become a Roman soldier, of a soldier a deserter and robber, and afterwards, from consideration of his strength, a gladiator";<ref>[[Florus]], ''Epitome of Roman History'' [[s:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]]</ref> However, "Thracian" was a style of gladiatorial combat in which the gladiator fought with a round shield and a short sword or dagger,<ref>[[William Smith (lexicographer)|William Smith]], ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'': [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/SMIGRA*/Gladiatores.html "''Gladiatores''"]</ref> and it has been argued that this may have confused the sources about his geographical origins, although no alternative origin is attested.

The name "Spartacus" is otherwise attested in the [[Black Sea]] region: kings of [[Bosporan Kingdom|Cimmerian Bosporus]]<ref>[[Diodorus Siculus]], ''Historical Library'' [http://www.google.co.uk/books?vid=OCLC04803633&id=agd-eLVNRMMC&pg=PR1&lpg=PR1&dq=diodorus+sicilian&as_brr=1#PPA452,M1 Book 12]</ref> and [[Pontus]]<ref>Diodorus Siculus, ''Historical Library'' [http://www.google.co.uk/books?vid=OCLC04803633&id=E1UDAAAAMAAJ&pg=RA7-PA447&lpg=RA7-PA447&dq=diodorus+sicily&as_brr=1#PRA6-PA124,M1 Book 16]</ref> are known to have borne it, and a Thracian "Spardacus"<ref>[[Theucidides]], ''History of the Peloponnesian War'' [[s:History of the Peloponnesian War/Book 2#2:101|2.101]]</ref> or "Sparadokos",<ref>[http://www.jannis.tu-berlin.de/20_Odrysian_Kings_of_Thrace/a_Sparadokos.html Tribes, Dynasts and Kingdoms of Northern Greece: History and Numismatics]</ref> father of [[Seuthes I]] of the [[Odrysian kingdom|Odrysae]], is also known.
''

===Third Servile War===
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==== Capuan revolt ====
Spartacus was trained at the gladiatorial school (ludo) near [[Capua]], belonging to [[Lentulus Batiatus]]. In [[73 BC]], Spartacus and some 70<ref>Plutarch, ''Crassus'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Crassus*.html#8 8:1–2]; Appian, ''Civil Wars'', [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Appian/Civil_Wars/1*.html#116 1:116]; [[Livy]], ''Periochae'', [http://www.livius.org/li-ln/livy/periochae/periochae091.html#95 95:2]; Florus, ''Epitome of Roman History'', [[s:Epitome of Roman History/Book 2#8|2.8]]; Plutarch claims 78 escaped, Livy claims 74, Appian "about seventy", and Florus says "thirty or rather more men".</ref> followers escaped from the gladiator school of Lentulus Batiatus. Seizing the knives in the cook's shop and a wagon full of weapons, the slaves fled to the [[caldera]] of [[Mount Vesuvius]], near modern day [[Naples]]. There they were joined by other rural slaves.

The group overran the region, plundering and pillaging, although Spartacus apparently tried to restrain them as his main intention was to leave Italy and return home.{{fact|date=July 2007}}  His chief aides were gladiators from [[Gaul]], named [[Crixus]], [[Castus]], [[Gannicus]] and [[Oenomaus (rebel slave)|Oenomaus]]. Other runaway slaves joined, increasing the numbers to several hundred.

The slave-to-Roman citizen ratio at that time was very high, making this slave rebellion a very serious threat to Rome. However Rome did not believe slaves could defeat their legions so failed to take adequate action. All of Rome's experienced legions were away {{fact|date=July 2007}}  so the Senate sent an inexperienced {{fact}}  praetor, Claudius Glaber (his [[nomen]] may have been Clodius; his [[praenomen]] is unknown), against the rebels, with a militia of about 3,000. They besieged the rebels on Vesuvius blocking their escape, but Spartacus had ropes made from vines and with his men climbed down a cliff on the other side of the mountain, to the rear of the Roman soldiers, and staged a surprise attack. Not expecting trouble from a handful of slaves the Romans had not fortified their camp or posted adequate sentries. {{fact|date=July 2007}}  As a result, most of the Roman soldiers were still sleeping and killed in this attack, including [[Claudius Glaber]]. {{Fact|date=February 2007}} After this success many runaway slaves joined Spartacus until the group grew into an army of allegedly 120,000 escaped slaves.

==== Military success continues ====
[[Image:Spartacus IIi.JPG|thumb|right|The Fall of Spartacus.]]
Spartacus is credited as a brilliant military [[tactician]] and his experience as a former auxiliary soldier made him a formidable enemy but his men were mostly former slave labourers who lacked military training. Due to the short time expected before needing to face battle, Spartacus delegated training to the Gladiators who trained small groups who then trained other small groups themselves and so on leading to a basically trained army in only a few weeks. {{fact|date=July 2007}}  Spartacus' forces then defeated two more [[Roman legions]] sent to crush them, then settled down for the winter on the south coast, making weapons. By now, Spartacus' many followers included women, children, and elderly men who tagged along. By spring they marched north towards [[Gaul]].



The Senate, alarmed, sent two consuls, [[Lucius Gellius Publicola|Gellius Publicola]] and [[Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus]], each with a legion, against the rebels. [[Crixus]] wanted to stay in Italy and plunder but Spartacus wanted to continue North {{fact|date=July 2007}}  so, along with around 30,000 Gaul and Germanic{{fact|date=July 2007}}  supporters Crixus separated from Spartacus and was later defeated by Publicola with Crixus being killed. Spartacus first defeated Lentulus, and then Publicola. At Picenum in central Italy, Spartacus defeated the consular armies, then pushed north. At Mutina (now [[Modena]]) they defeated yet another legion under Gaius Cassius Longinus, the [[Governor]] of [[Cisalpine Gaul]] ("Gaul this side of the Alps"). 

==== Choice to remain in Italy ====

Apparently, Spartacus had intended to march his army out of Italy and into [[Gaul]] (now [[Belgium]], [[Switzerland]] and [[France]]) or maybe even to [[Hispania]] to join the rebellion of [[Quintus Sertorius]]. {{fact|date=July 2007}}   There are theories that some of the non-fighting followers (some 10,000 or so) did, in fact, cross the [[Alps]] and return to their homelands. {{fact|date=July 2007}} 

The rest marched back south, and defeated two more legions under [[Marcus Licinius Crassus]], who at that time was the wealthiest man in Rome. At the end of [[72 BC]], Spartacus was encamped in Rhegium ([[Reggio Calabria]]), near the [[Strait of Messina]] (the "toe of the Italian boot").



Spartacus' deal with [[Cilician]] [[piracy|pirates]] to get them to [[Sicily]] fell through. In the beginning of [[71 BC]], eight legions of Crassus isolated Spartacus's army in [[Calabria]]. With the assassination of [[Quintus Sertorius]], the [[Roman Senate]] also recalled{{fact|date=July 2007}}  [[Pompey]] from [[Roman Iberia|Hispania]]; and [[Marcus Terentius Varro Lucullus]] from [[Macedonia (Roman province)|Macedonia]].

Spartacus managed to break through Crassus's lines, and escaped towards [[Brundisium]] (now Brindisi), but Pompey's forces intercepted them in [[Lucania]], and the slaves were routed in a subsequent battle at the river [[Silarus]]. Spartacus is believed to have fallen at Silarus, but his body was never identified.
After the battle, legionaries found and rescued 3,000 unharmed Roman prisoners in their camp.

6,600 of Spartacus's followers were [[Crucifixion|crucified]] along the [[via Appia]] (or the Appian Way) from [[Brundisium]] to [[Rome]]. Crassus never gave orders for the bodies to be taken down, thus travelers were forced to see the bodies for years, perhaps decades, after the final battle.



Around 5,000 slaves, however, escaped the capture. They fled north and were later destroyed by [[Pompey]], who was coming back from [[Hispania|Roman Iberia]]. This enabled him also to claim credit for ending this war. Pompey was greeted as a hero in Rome while Crassus received little credit or celebration.

== Modern depictions of Spartacus ==

{{Trivia|date=July 2007}}
=== Politics ===
* [[Toussaint L'Ouverture]] and his successor [[Jean-Jacques Dessalines]] led the [[slave rebellion]] of the [[Haitian Revolution]] ([[1791]]—[[1804]]), where the armies of Spain, Britain and [[Napoleon Bonaparte]]'s France were defeated. Toussaint was called the "Black Spartacus" by one of his defeated opponents, the [http://thelouvertureproject.org/index.php?title=%C3%89tienne_Maynaud_Bizefranc%2C_comte_de_Laveaux Comte de Lavaux].
* Spartacus has been a great inspiration to [[revolutionaries]] in modern times, most notably the [[Spartacist League]] of [[Weimar Republic|Weimar Germany]].
* The [[Spartakiad]] was a competition similar to the [[Olympic games]] for countries of the [[Soviet bloc]].
* [[Karl Marx]] said Spartacus was his hero, citing him as the 'finest fellow' antiquity had to offer.
*Noted [[Latin America]]n [[Marxist]] revolutionary [[Che Guevara]] was also a strong admirer of Spartacus.

=== Artistic ===
==== Film ====
* Most famously, [[Stanley Kubrick]]'s adaptation of [[Howard Fast]]'s [[Spartacus (Fast novel)|novel]], as ''[[Spartacus (film)|Spartacus]]'', in 1960. The catchphrase "[[I'm Spartacus!]]" from this film has been referenced in a number of other films, television programs, and commercials.
*Just before the band is about to play the biggest show of their career during one of the final scenes of [[Tom Hanks]]' 1996 film, ''[[That Thing You Do]]'', The Wonders' lead guitarist Lenny Haise asks, "Skitch, how did we get here?" Drummer Guy Patterson replies, "I led you here, sir, for I am Spartacus."
* In [[2004]], Fast's novel was adapted as ''Spartacus'', a made-for-TV movie or miniseries by the [[USA Network]], with [[Goran Višnjić]] in the main role.

==== Literature ====
* [[Howard Fast]] wrote the historical novel ''[[Spartacus (Fast novel)|Spartacus]]''.
* [[Arthur Koestler]] wrote a novel about Spartacus called ''[[The Gladiators (book)|The Gladiators]]''.
* There is a novel ''[[Spartacus (Gibbon's novel)|Spartacus]]'' by the [[Scotland|Scottish]] writer [[Lewis Grassic Gibbon]].
* Spartacus is a prominent character in the novel [[Masters of Rome|''Fortune's Favorites'']] by [[Colleen McCullough]]. McCullough subscribes to the theory that Spartacus was a renegade Roman soldier, but sticks to the historical account that his body was never found.
* The Italian writer [[Rafaello Giovagnoli]] wrote his historical novel, ''Spartacus'', in 1874. His novel has been subsequently translated and published in many European countries.
* There is also a novel ''[[The students of Spartacus (Uczniowie Spartakusa)]]'' by the [[Poland|Polish]] writer [[Halina Rudnicka]].
* The Reverend Elijah Kellogg's ''Spartacus to the Gladiators at Capua'' has been used effectively by schoolboys to practise their oratory skills for ages.
* Spartacus also appears in [[Conn Iggulden]]'s Emperor Series in the book ''[[The Death of Kings]]''.
* ''Spartacus and His Glorious Gladiators'', by Toby Brown, is part of the [[Dead Famous (series)]] of children's history books
* In the Bolo novel ''Bolo Rising'' by [[William H. Keith]], the character HCT "Hector" is based on Spartacus.

==== Music ====
* ''[[Spartacus (ballet)|Spartacus]]'' is a ballet, with a score by composer [[Aram Khachaturian]].
* The German group [[Triumvirat]] released the album ''[[Spartacus (Triumvirat album)|Spartacus]]'' in [[1975]].
* [[The Farm]]'s debut LP in 1991 was titled ''Spartacus''.
* [[Jeff Wayne]] released his musical retelling, ''[[Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of Spartacus]]'' in 1992.
* The anti-fascist punk/rock band [[Angelic Upstarts]] released an album in 2004 named ''Sons of Spartacus''.
* "Spartacus" is the name of the second song on [[The Fall of Troy]]'s debut album.

=== Videogames ===
* The player-controlled spaceship in the [[space simulation]] game ''[[I-War (Independence War)|Independence War: Defiance]]'' was dubbed the ''Spartacus'', with a [[gladiator]] emblazoned across its hull.
* Spartacus was featured in the game ''[[Heroscape]]'' in the wave known as Thora's Vengeance.
* In the popular [[real-time strategy]] game ''[[Rome: Total War]]'', Spartacus can be unlocked and fought against. If a player builds a [[colosseum]] or [[arena]] in a conquered city, then let the city [[revolt]] Spartacus will be the general of the revolted city. Apparently, the rebel army led by Spartacus is extremely difficult and the player will have to use superior tactics to defeat it and reclaim the city.

=== Other ===
* In the [[Soviet Union]], a nation-wide Olympic-like event was organized in honour of Spartacus. This event was called the [[Spartakiad]].
* Sport clubs in [[Eastern Europe]] were named Spartak (Slavic pronunciation) after Spartacus. The most famous is [[Spartak Moscow]].
* [[Adam Weishaupt]], [[Freemason]] and supposed founder of the [[Illuminati]], used "Spartacus" as a ''[[nom de plume]]''.
* In the [[2003]] movie, ''[[The Recruit]]'', James Clayton (played by [[Colin Farrell]]), creates a [[webcast]] [[software program]] called "''Spartacus''", that can gain control of all webcast devices in a particular area. The students who created the program in the film say it was named for "the slave revolt."
* The title character of the cartoon series ''[[Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea]]'' is loosely based on Spartacus.
* In the table-top strategy game Warhammer 40000, the primarch Angron has many similiraties to Spartacus.
* The [[Ottawa Senators]] mascot is a lion named "Spartacat", a play on Spartacus since the team logo is a Roman Senator.
* The name of the character [[Sportacus]] in the children's television program ''[[LazyTown]]'' is a pun on Spartacus.
* Spartacus 7s is the name of an international [[rugby sevens]] team created in 2006.
* In "The Histories of [[Pliny the Elder]]" - a 1958 episode of the British radio comedy ''[[The Goon Show]]'' parodying epic films - Spartacus is used as a pseudonym for [[Bloodnock]] after he has an affair with Caesar's wife and has to escape from Caesar.
* Spartacus is a character in the collectible miniatures game, ''[[Heroscape]]'', released in Wave 5, Thora's Vengeance.
* ''Spartacus Books,'' founded in 1973, is an [[anarchist]] bookstore and resource center collectively run by volunteers on the lower East side of [[Vancouver]], B.C., Canada.
<div class="references-small"><references/></div>

==References==
=== Classical authors ===
* [[Appian]]. ''Civil Wars''. Translated by J. Carter. (Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1996)
* [[Florus]]. ''Epitome of Roman History''. (London: W. Heinemann, 1947)
* [[Orosius]]. ''The Seven Books of History Against the Pagans''. Translated by Roy J. Deferrari. (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1964).
* [[Plutarch]]. ''Fall of the Roman Republic''. Translated by R. Warner. (London: Penguin Books, 1972), with special emphasis placed on "The Life of Crassus" and "The Life of Pompey".
* [[Sallust]]. ''Conspiracy of Catiline and the War of Jugurtha''. (London: Constable, 1924)

=== Modern historiography ===
* Bradley, Keith R. ''Slavery and Rebellion in the Roman World, 140 B.C.–70 B.C.'' Bloomington; Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1989 (hardcover, ISBN 0-253-31259-0); 1998 (paperback, ISBN 0-253-21169-7). [Chapter V] The Slave War of Spartacus, pp. 83–101.
* Rubinsohn, Wolfgang Zeev. ''Spartacus' Uprising and Soviet Historical Writing''. Oxford: Oxbow Books, 1987 (paperback, ISBN 0-9511243-1-5).
* ''Spartacus: Film and History'', edited by Martin M. Winkler. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, 2007 (hardcover, ISBN 1405131802; paperback, ISBN 1405131810).
* Trow, M.J. ''Spartacus: The Myth and the Man''. Stroud, United Kingdom: Sutton Publishing, 2006 (hardcover, ISBN 0-7509-3907-9).
* Genner, Michael. "Spartakus. Eine Gegengeschichte des Altertums nach den Legenden der Zigeuner". Two volumes. Paperback. Trikont Verlag, Munchen 1979/1980. Vol 1 ISBN 3-88167-053-X Vol 2 ISBN 3-88167-060-2

== Honours ==
[[Spartacus Peak]] on [[Livingston Island]] in the [[South Shetland Islands]], [[Antarctica]] is named for Spartacus.

==External links==
{{commons|Spartacus|Spartacus}}
* [http://www.livius.org/so-st/spartacus/spartacus.html Spartacus] Article and full text of the Roman and Greek sources.
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054331/ "Spartacus"—Movie starring Kirk Douglas and Sir Peter Ustinov]
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361240/ "Spartacus"—TV-Mini-series starring Goran Višnjić and Alan Bates] l
[[Category:71 BC deaths]]
[[Category:Rebel slaves in Ancient Rome]]
[[Category:Roman gladiators]]
[[Category:Thracians]]

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