Among

Ancient Romans The Roman people was the ethnicity and the body of Roman citizenship, Roman citizens (; ) during the Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic, and the Roman Empire. This concept underwent considerable changes throughout the long history of the Roman ...

, ''bestiarii'' (singular ''bestiarius'') were those who went into combat with beasts, or were exposed to them. It is conventionalEntry on Bestiarii
at Chambers, Ephraim, '' Cyclopaedia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences'', c. 1680-1740 to distinguish two categories of ''bestiarii'': the first were those condemned to death via the beasts (see '' damnatio ad bestias'') and the second were those who faced them voluntarily, for pay or glory (see '' venatio'').William Smith
"Bestiarii"
from ''A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities'', John Murray: London, 1875. Public domain. The latter are sometimes erroneously called " gladiators"; to their contemporaries, however, the Latin term ''gladiator'' referred specifically to one who fought other men. The contemporary term for those who made a career out of participating in arena "hunts" was '' venatores''.

As a form of execution

As a means of torturous

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence (law), sentence ordering that an offender b ...

, death by wild beasts was a punishment for enemies of the state, a category which included those taken prisoner and slaves found guilty of a serious crime. These were sent to their deaths naked and unable to defend themselves against the beasts. Even if they succeeded in killing one, fresh animals were continually let loose on them, until the ''bestiarii'' were all dead. It is reported that it was seldom necessary for two beasts to be required to take down one man; on the contrary, one beast frequently dispatched several men.

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

mentions a single lion which alone dispatched 200 ''bestiarii''. Seneca relates that a German prisoner, rather than participate, killed himself by forcing a sponge used in the lavatory down his throat. "What a brave fellow!", said Seneca, "He surely deserved to be allowed to choose his fate! How bravely he would have wielded a sword!". Another nodded as if asleep and, lowering his head, thrust it between the spokes of the cart wheel, breaking his neck. Symmachus writes of twenty-nine Saxon prisoners strangling one another in their cells the night before they were to appear in the arena.

Voluntary combat

''Bestiarii'', as reported by Seneca, consisted of young men who, to become expert in managing their arms, fought sometimes against beasts, and sometimes against one another; and of '' bravos'' who, to show their courage and dexterity, exposed themselves to this dangerous combat.

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

encouraged this practice in young men of the first rank;

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68) was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his ...

exposed himself to it; and it was for killing beasts in the

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (American English, U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meani ...

that

Commodus Commodus (; ; 31 August 161 – 31 December 192) was Roman emperor from 177 to 192, first serving as nominal co-emperor under his father Marcus Aurelius and then ruling alone from 180. Commodus's sole reign is commonly thought to mark the end o ...

acquired the title of the Roman

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

. Vigenère adds two more types of ''bestiarii'': the first were those who made a trade of it, and fought for money. It appears that there were schools in Rome, in which people were trained to fight wild beasts (''scholae bestiarum'', or ''bestiariorum'').

Tertullian Tertullian (; ; 155 – 220 AD) was a prolific Early Christianity, early Christian author from Roman Carthage, Carthage in the Africa (Roman province), Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive co ...

's '' Apologeticus''
chapter 35
cited in Smith 1875. The second type was where several armed ''bestiarii'' were let loose at once against a number of beasts.

References

{{Capital punishment Execution methods Ancient Roman occupations Violence in sports Gladiator types Latin words and phrases

As a form of execution

Voluntary combat

See also

References