Upon entering gladiator school (those who had not been condemned to it as punishment for a crime), gladiators would sign a contract stipulating the type of combatant they would become, how many times a year they would fight, and signing themselves over into the property of their master. In school, gladiators would likely train under a master who was an expert in their particular style of combat, and all the different groups were kept separate from each other, possibly so as to avoid conflicts between combatants who would meet in the arena. Gladiatorial schools were incredibly strict, and the training they provided was harsh, with some archaeological evidence suggesting that gladiators could be killed as punishment for misbehavior. Gladiators belonged to the infame class, infamous, and as such their lives were forfeit and belonged to their masters. There were female gladiators, although they were a very small minority and according to writings from the times, they were apparently viewed as an oddity and a peculiar entertainment, more than as simply a regular type of gladiator. Hoplomachus, which translates to ‘armed fighter’ in greek, were gladiators who carried a throwing spear, a short sword, a small, round shield, and who sported a plumed helmet.Ī retiarius fighting against a secutor, the referees monitor the duel.There is little information on them beyond that they fought mounted on chariots. Essedarius, which were mounted gladiators.They wore lighter armor and had no shield, and fought by attempting to trap their opponents under their net and stabbing at them with their three-pronged spear. Retiarius, the famous gladiators wielding a large net and a trident.Their helmet also covered the entire head, but was decorated with a griffin instead of a fish. Thraxes, which wore similar armor to the Murmillo, but who used a smaller, rectangular shield and a curved thracian sword.Their most distinctive trait was the full-cover helmet decorated with a fish-shaped crest. Murmillo, heavily armored gladiators that used a large, oblong shield and a sword called a gladius.Below you will find a list of the most recognizable ones: There were over two dozen different types of gladiators, distinguished from each other by the weapons they used, the armor they wore, the fighting styles they employed, and the events at which they fought. Some managed to overcome these circumstances and became celebrities, but they were a very small minority.
They led violent, dangerous lives and were subject to the whims of their superiors. For every epic story of a gladiator becoming a legend of the arena and winning fame and freedom, thousands of others died anonymously on the sand.
Most Roman gladiators were de-facto slaves, and as such had no rights in Roman society and were scarcely considered people.
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