Gannicus was a Celtic slave, who together with the

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied ...

Spartacus Spartacus ( el, Σπάρτακος '; la, Spartacus; c. 103–71 BC) was a Thracian gladiator who, along with Crixus, Gannicus, Castus, and Oenomaus, was one of the escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprisin ...

Crixus Crixus was a Gallic gladiator and military leader in the Third Servile War between the Roman Republic and rebel slaves. Born in Gaul, he was enslaved by the Romans under unknown circumstances and trained as a gladiator in Capua. His name means " ...

Castus Castus is a Latin word meaning clean and pure. *Lucius Artorius Castus, Roman general *Castus and Emilius, Roman martyrs and saints *Castus (rebel) Castus was an enslaved Gallic man who, together with the Thracian Spartacus, the fellow Gaul Crix ...

and

Oenomaus In Greek mythology, King Oenomaus (also Oenamaus; grc-gre, Οἰνόμαος, ''Oἱnómaos'') of Pisa, was the father of Hippodamia and the son of Ares. His name ''Oinomaos'' denotes a wine man. Family Oenomaeus' mother was either naiad Har ...

, became one of the leaders of rebel slaves during the

Third Servile War The Third Servile War, also called the Gladiator War and the War of Spartacus by Plutarch, was the last in a series of slave rebellions against the Roman Republic known as the Servile Wars. This third rebellion was the only one that directl ...

(73–71 BC). In the winter of 71 BC, Gannicus, along with Castus, broke off from Spartacus, taking a large number of Celts and Germans with them, marking the second detachment of the rebellion. Gannicus and Castus met their end at the Battle of Cantenna in Lucania near Mount Soprano (Mount Camalatrum), where

Marcus Licinius Crassus Marcus Licinius Crassus (; 115 – 53 BC) was a Roman general and statesman who played a key role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire. He is often called "the richest man in Rome." Wallechinsky, David & Wallace, ...

, Lucius Pomptinus and Quintus Marcius Rufus entrenched their forces in battle and defeated them.

In popular culture

*Gannicus was portrayed in a minor role by

Paul Lambert Paul Lambert (born 7 August 1969) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player, who was most recently the manager of Ipswich Town. Lambert played as a midfielder and won the Scottish Cup in 1987 with St Mirren as a 17-year- ...

in the 1960 film ''

'', directed by

Stanley Kubrick Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...

. *Gannicus is portrayed by

Dustin Clare Dustin Clare is an Australian actor. He is known for his starring role as Gannicus in the Starz series '' Spartacus: Gods of the Arena'', '' Spartacus: Vengeance'' and '' Spartacus: War of the Damned'', and as Riley Ward on the series '' McLe ...

in the

Starz Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consis ...

television series '' Spartacus: Gods of the Arena'' and sequels '' Spartacus: Vengeance'' and '' Spartacus: War of the Damned''. He is depicted as a freed former gladiator, from the House of Batiatus, who agrees to join Spartacus' cause to honor his friend

after he falls in the rebellion. *Gannicus was portrayed by Paul Telfer in the 2004 miniseries ''

'' – He commands the rebel cavalry. In the miniseries, he is portrayed as a Thracian.

References

Ancient sources

Titus Livius Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

, ''Periochae'' zu Buch 97. *

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ...

, ''Crassus'' 11, 2–3. * Frontin 2, 4, 7; 2, 5, 34.

Secondary literature

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gannicus 1st-century BC Romans Celtic warriors Gaulish people Rebel slaves in ancient Rome Roman gladiators Third Servile War 71 BC deaths Year of birth unknown Spartacus