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Public Spectacles
| The famous public spectacles of the Roman World were
inspired by Greek competitions, mainly the Olympics. The original
public spectacles started in 100 B.C. and were held several times
a year as religious festivals to honor the pagan gods; these spectacles
eventually expanded and evolved into numerous festivals provided
for entertainment. This entertainment was called ludi (games),
and was provided mainly through public funding since the Roman World
had accumulated tremendous wealth. |
| The Senate would allot money on a yearly
basis for the public spectacles, and politicians seeking to win
support of voters would privately finance parts of the games. Politics
played a large role in the public spectacles, and since admission
was free, the masses would come for entertainment and free grain.
Politicians would finance and organize parts of the competitions
in attempts to |
Gladiators from Ephesus Museum
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| win voter support. In 100 A.D., however, the start
of the imperial period meant that the emperor did not have to win
the votes of the people. They did have to keep the support of the
masses to stay in power, and the lavish entertainments were used
precisely for this purpose. Emperors in the first century expanded
public spectacles immensely to keep the support of the people; likewise,
they limited the opportunities for other individuals to gain support
via the spectacles. Many of these entertainments were famous for
the vivid violence and bloodshed that much of the Roman culture
loved. Nero,
one such emperor, increased the spectacles and disbursed numerous
gifts to the Roman people gathered to watch. Suetonius,
in his account of Nero in The
Lives of the Caesars, describes in great detail the forms
of entertainment provided by the emperor. Fronto,
a famous Roman orator, felt that some emperors were ignoring serious
problems in the Roman World to host such entertainments because
they kept the support of the people. Along this same line, Tacitus,
a Roman author and historian, felt that the entertainments were
causing a decline in Roman character and an increase in corruption
and debauchery. During the late first and early second centuries,
several educated men began to show resistance to the violent spectacles;
however, the power of the spectacles was great and controlled the
majority of the people. |
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View from tunnel (Stadium at Aphrodisias)
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Most ludi held during the first and second centuries had
two different types of events--circus
events and arena events.
The major form of athleltics in the circus events was the chariot
race. The arena events included gladiatorial games and wild hunts.
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