GLADIATOR: THE REAL STORY
IS THE FILM “GLADIATOR” A REAL STORY?
Yes and no.
While it is obvious that an impressive amount of historical and scholarly research was undertaken
by the filmmakers, much of the plot is fiction. The fiction does however, appear to be inspired
by actual historical events, as will be shown in the appropriate sections below. In this sense, the
film is perhaps best seen as a collage, or artistic representation of ancient history, as opposed to
an accurate, chronological, reconstruction of events.
It also appears that Scott attempts to present not just a reconstruction of empirical facts, but
also desires to present to us his vision of the culture of ancient Rome, the spirit of its time, and
the psychological outlook characteristic of its period. In other words, its zeitgeist, and for the
psychology of the characters, their mentalite. On that note, Ridley Scott, much to his credit, has
gone further than any filmmaker before him. Only Fellini, in The Satyricon, has attempted to do
this before, and in so doing, Scott, while historiographically imperfect, avoids many of the
annoying anachronisms of psychology present in such films as Spartacus, Cleopatra, and Ben
Hur.
Clearly, director Scott, and screenwriter David Franzoni, understand that history is more than a
regurgitation of empirical data, and that to understand a society, one must be able to do more than
recite names and dates, one must also attempt to understand the psychology and culture of its
characters. Hence the film emphasizes Maximus's worship of his family and ancestors, his
obsessive compulsion for virtue and duty, and the stoical elements ever present in his character.
WHAT WAS MARCUS AURELIUS REALLY LIKE?
Marcus Aurelius was, as well as emperor from 161 to 180 CE, a stoic philosopher. He really did
wage battles along the frontier as depicted in the film, and is remembered by historians of his time
as a competent ruler, whom they favour. His name in full was Imperator Caesar Marcus Aurelius
Antoninus Augustus, and these are the titles to which he would have been referred, not the
anachronistic "sire" and "my lord" as in the film.
His work The Meditations, although more a compilation of existing stoical thought than a work
of great originality, remains a highly readable classic in philosophy.
An interesting fact omitted in the film, was that his adoptive brother and husband to daughter
Lucilla, Lucius Verus, was made co-emperor with Marcus. In the time of the Republic, Rome was
not ruled by emperors, but rather by two consuls. These consuls, with equal power, were to
guard against dictatorship. So, perhaps Marcus really did have Republican inclinations, as
attested to in the film, or perhaps this was a Machiavellian maneuver undertaken in an attempt to
avoid the fate of the perceived dictator Julius Caesar. This was the first time in history that the
Roman Empire had two joint emperors of formally equal constitutional status and powers,
although in reality, Marcus was clearly the ruler of Rome
WHAT WAS COMMODUS REALLY LIKE?
If the ancient sources can be trusted, Commodus was even more bizarre in real life than he was in
the film.
Commodus, whose full name was Caesar Marcus Aurelius Commodus Antoninus Augustus, was
proclaimed Caesar at age 5 and joint emperor (co-Augustus) at the age of 17, in 177 CE, by his
father, Marcus Aurelius. Reality was very different than the film in this instance. Commodus
was, as depicted in Gladiator, present with his father during the Danubian wars, and yes, this is
where Marcus Aurelius died. As for the actual circumstances of his father's death, see below.
Historians from the time of Commodus have not been kind to him. As aristocratic intellectuals,
they were not amused by his crude antics. Hence, our present day historiography still reflects,
rightly or wrongly, this ancient bias. His father, possessing the virtues seen as noble by the
literate aristocracy, was, and often still is, regarded as a great man, while his son was hated by the
Senate and ridiculed by historians. Yet it is said that the army and the lower classes loved him.
Cassius Dio, a senator and historian who lived during the reign of both Commodus and his father
wrote, in regards to the accession of Commodus, that "our history now descends from a kingdom
of gold to one of iron and rust, as affairs did for the Romans of that day."
Indeed, some historians even question his sanity. Commodus, in his own time, was accused of
being a megalomaniac. He renamed Rome Colonia Commodiana, the "Colony of Commodus", and
renamed the months of the year after titles held in his honour, namely, Lucius, Aelius, Aurelius,
Commodus, Augustus, Herculeus, Romanus, Exsuperatorius, Amazonius, Invictus, Felix, and
Pius. The Senate was renamed the Commodian Fortunate Senate, and the Roman people were
given the name Commodianus.
Historian Aelius Lampridius tells us that "Commodus lived, rioting in the palace amid banquets
and in baths along with 300 concubines, gathered together for their beauty and chosen from both
matrons and harlots... By his orders concubines were debauched before his own eyes, and he was
not free from the disgrace of intimacy with young men, defiling every part of his body in dealings
with persons of either sex."
Commodus went so far as to declare himself the new founder of Rome, a "new Romulus". In
attempting to boast a new "Golden Age" of Rome, he was clearly emulating his father. But the
effect was to make him the laughing stock of the aristocratic class.
DID COMMODUS REALLY KILL HIS FATHER?
Maybe.
Some sources suspect that he did. The fact that he was present at the time, made a hasty peace
with the enemy, and a quick retreat back to Rome in a victory triumph, has fueled speculation.
The official story is that Marcus Aurelius died of plague.
DID COMMODUS REALLY FIGHT AS A GLADIATOR?
Yes!
In this case, the truth is even stranger than the fiction. Commodus claimed to be descended from
the God Hercules, and even began to dress like him, wearing lion skins and carrying a club.
The historian Herodian wrote that "in his gladiatorial combats, he defeated his opponents with
ease, and he did no more than wound them, since they all submitted to him, but only because
they knew he was the emperor, not because he was truly a gladiator."
He also fought wild beasts. Dio Cassius wrote that Commodus killed five hippopotami at one
time. He also killed two elephants, several rhinoceroses, and a giraffe "with the greatest of ease".
Herodian tells us further that Commodus had a special platform constructed which encircled the
arena, from which he would display his skills as a hunter. He is recorded to have killed one
hundred leopards with one hundred javelins. As a theatrical treat, he would slice the heads off of
ostriches with crescent-headed arrows, which would then run around the amphitheater headless.
Dio Cassius reveals that Senators were made to attend these spectacles, and that on one occasion
Commodus killed an ostrich and displayed the severed head in one hand, his sword dripping with
blood in the other, thus implying that he could treat them the same way.
DID COMMODUS REALLY DIE IN THE ARENA?
No.
However he was assassinated, and, by an athlete. There were numerous plots and attempts upon
his life, but the one which finally succeeded was carried out by a wrestler named Narcissus, while
Commodus was in his bath. The plot was orchestrated by his closest advisors, and apparently
even included his mistress, Marcia.
It occurred on the last day of the year 192. It was believed that Commodus planned to kill the
consuls-elect, and be sworn in as consul himself. This he reportedly was going to do dressed as a
gladiator, in his lion skins. This was the final outrage. His fate was sealed.
Commodus ruled for 12 years, a much longer period than alluded to in the film. Dio Cassius
wrote that Commodus was "a greater curse to the Romans than any pestilence or any crime."
WAS THE REPUBLIC REALLY RESTORED AFTER THE DEATH OF COMMODUS?
No.
The film is wrong on this count. A republic is a system of government which does not have a
hereditary monarch. An emperor is a monarch. The United States is a republic, and England is
not.
Rome was not founded as a republic, as was stated by a senator (who should have known better)
in the film. Legend has it that Rome was originally ruled by Etruscan kings. The first king was
Romulus. The kings were overthrown in a revolution, which was sparked by the rape of Lucretia,
in 509 BCE, by Sextus Tarquin, the son of the seventh and last king, Tarquinius Superbus.
Dictators and kings were thereafter despised by Romans, hence, the ideological adulation of a
republican system of government, which was a central theme of both Roman history and the
movie.
After Commodus was murdered, the Senate met before daybreak, and declared sixty-six year old
Pertinax, who was the son of a former slave, emperor. Pertinax thus became emperor on January
1st, but he was murdered by a group of soldiers the following March, after less than three
months in power.
WHAT WAS MAXIMUS REALLY LIKE?
Maximus Decimus Meridius (his full name is stated only once in the film) is a fictitious
character!
Although he did not exist, he seems to be a composite of actual historical figures. In the film,
Maximus was Marcus Aurelius' general. There was in fact a general by the name of Avidius
Cassius, who was involved in the military campaign shown in the film, and, upon hearing a rumor
of Marcus Aurelius' death, declared himself emperor. He however, was assassinated by his own
soldiers. It is true that there was, in the later Empire, a General by the name of Maximus who
appears to have had revolutionary intentions. He is most likely an inspiration as well.
Maximus also reminds one of the emperor Diocletian. Remember that in the film, Marcus
Aurelius names Maximus as his heir. Diocletian, who ruled Rome from 284 to 305 CE, was born
in the lower classes, like Maximus. He eventually became his emperor's trusted favourite and
bodyguard, and later became a general. Finally he was named heir, and thus became emperor.
Commodus, in reality, was not murdered in the arena by Maximus. He was however murdered by
a wrestler. So the character Maximus, while fictitious, is not that far-fetched. He appears to be
collage of other, real, historical figures.
As for his personality, he was definitely a stoic, as evidenced by his sense of obligation to the
state, and concern for duty and virtue. This makes sense, given his admiration for Marcus
Aurelius, who was a stoic philosopher. One difficulty is, even though many Romans (and not
just Christians) believed in an afterlife, stoics usually did not. So this is problematic with regards
to his character in the film.
DID SENATOR GRACCHUS REALLY EXIST?
No.
The ideology which he represents is however, somewhat authentic. Senator Gracchus appears to
be based upon Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus. During the Republic, these two brothers, were, one
after the other, plebeian tribunes (not senators). They were champions of the common people,
and paid the cost with their lives.
Tiberius Gracchus was elected tribune of the people in 133 BCE, and fought for reforms of
benefit to the plebeians. He was murdered by opponents. His brother Gaius was elected tribune
of the people in 123 BCE, and attempted the continuation of popular reforms. He was also
murdered. It is problematic that in the film Gracchus was a senator, in the sense that it was the
senatorial class which opposed Gauis and Tiberius, and even participated in their murder.
The political infrastructure of ancient Rome evolved over time, and was actually more complex
than portrayed in the film. Other important political entities, along with the Senate, were the
Plebeian Tribunate, as well as the Comitia Centuriata. These, along with two Consuls who would
rule jointly, are the basic Republican institutions so cherished by Romans, and which emperors
would claim to restore.
DID LUCILLA REALLY PLOT AGAINST HER BROTHER?
Yes.
Commodus really did have a sister Lucilla, and she hated her brother. Lucilla was at one time
married to Lucius Verus, as her son tells Maximus in the film. What is not said is that Verus was
co-emperor with Marcus Aurelius. Lucilla conspired against Commodus, and attempted to have
him assassinated in 182 CE. Commodus banished Lucilla to the island of Capreae as punishment,
and ordered her execution shortly after. So, unlike the film portrayal, Commodus actually
outlived Lucilla.
Incidentally, it was his other sisters, not Lucilla, that he reputedly had sexual relations with.
DID WOMEN REALLY FIGHT IN THE ARENA?
Yes.
Some criticism has been levied towards Scott for having a female gladiator. However, the ancient
sources are clear; they did in fact exist. Tacitus, for instance, wrote that Nero staged "a number of
gladiatorial shows, equal in magnificence to their predecessors, though more women of rank and
senators disgraced themselves in the arena". Petronius, in The Satyricon, wrote of female
charioteers. Dio Cassius explained how some women performed as venatores, that is gladiators
who fought wild beasts. The Emperor Domitian staged games in which women battled pygmies.
Women were forbidden from gladiatorial performances shortly after the time of Commodus, by
the emperor Alexander Severus, in 200 CE.
WHAT’S WITH THE TATTOO WORN BY MAXIMUS?
S.P.Q.R., the letters of the tattoo worn by Maximus, was an abbreviation for an oft used Latin
phrase whose English translation is "the Senate and People of Rome".
The Latin word for "tattoo" was stigma, and our modern meaning of stigmatize, as a pejorative,
has clearly evolved from the Latin. It was slaves, gladiators, criminals, and later, soldiers, who
were tattooed, as an identifying mark.
Upper class Romans did not partake in tattooing, which they associated with either marginal
groups, or foreigners, such as Thracians, who were known to tattoo extensively. The emperor
Caligula is said to have forced individuals of rank to become tattooed as an embarrassment.
In late antiquity, the Roman army consisted largely of mercenaries, they were tattooed in order
that deserters could be identified.
The sixth century Roman physician, Aetius, wrote that:
"Stigmates are the marks which are made on the face and other parts of the body. We see such
marks on the hands of soldiers. To perform the operation they use ink made according to this
formula: Egyptian pine wood (acacia) and especially the bark, one pound; corroded bronze, two
ounces; gall, two ounces; vitriol, one ounce. Mix well and sift... First wash the place to be
tattooed with leek juice and then prick in the design with pointed needles until blood is drawn.
Then rub in the ink."
The Christian emperor Constantine, ca. 325 AD, decreed that individuals condemned to fight as
gladiators or to work in the mines could be tattooed on the legs or the hands, but not on the face,
because "the face, which has been formed in the image of the divine beauty, should be defiled as
little as possible."
In 787, Pope Hadrian the First prohibited tattooing altogether, due to its association with
superstition, paganism, and the marginal classes.