A group of gladiators broke out of the ludus (training school) of Lentulus Batiatus at Capua, arming themselves with improvised weapons and then captured gladiatorial arms. Spartacus, Crixus, and Oenomaus emerged as leading figures, and the revolt quickly expanded beyond a local disturbance.
After initial successes in Campania, Spartacus’ band moved to a defensible position on Mount Vesuvius, attracting additional runaway slaves and others to their growing force and signaling that Rome faced an escalating insurgency rather than simple banditry.
Rome dispatched a praetorian force under Gaius Claudius Glaber to contain the rebels on Vesuvius. Spartacus’ men famously descended by an unexpected route and routed Glaber’s militia, a turning point that encouraged rapid rebel recruitment.
A subsequent praetorian campaign under Publius Varinius (with subordinates including Furius and Cossinius in surviving accounts) also failed: rebel forces defeated Roman detachments, killed Cossinius, and nearly captured Varinius, further undermining Roman authority in southern Italy.
By late 73 BCE the rebellion had swelled dramatically (ancient sources cite tens of thousands), and the rebels spent the winter training and equipping new recruits while raiding widely in southern Italy—evidence of increasing organization and staying power.
In spring 72 BCE consular armies took the field. Lucius Gellius Publicola defeated a rebel contingent under Crixus near Mount Garganus, killing Crixus and a large portion of his followers—an early Roman success that did not end the war.
After the setback to Crixus’ detachment, Spartacus continued maneuvering and defeated Roman forces in a series of engagements during 72 BCE, including a major victory in the Picenum region against combined consular armies (as presented in some reconstructions of the campaign).
As Spartacus moved toward northern Italy, Gaius Cassius Longinus (proconsul of Cisalpine Gaul) attempted to block him near Mutina (modern Modena) but was defeated and narrowly escaped. The loss underscored Rome’s difficulty in stopping the rebel army in open operations.
With previous commanders failing to end the rebellion, the Senate entrusted the campaign to Marcus Licinius Crassus, who raised and took command of multiple legions and imposed harsh discipline (including the revival of decimation in later tradition) to restore Roman effectiveness.
Crassus trapped Spartacus’ forces in Bruttium (modern Calabria) by constructing a substantial ditch-and-rampart system across the isthmus near Rhegium, aiming to cut off supplies and limit movement—one of the most notable engineering measures of the war.
Seeking to widen the conflict and gain resources, Spartacus attempted to secure transport to Sicily with Cilician pirates, reportedly intending to spark further unrest there; the pirates took payment but did not carry out the crossing, leaving the rebels confined in southern Italy.
A large rebel detachment under Gannicus and Castus was annihilated by Crassus’ forces near Cantenna in 71 BCE, reducing Spartacus’ manpower and narrowing his operational options as Roman pressure intensified.
In the decisive final battle (often placed near the Silarius/Sele River), Crassus’ legions defeated Spartacus’ main force. Spartacus was believed killed in the fighting (his body was reportedly not recovered), effectively ending organized resistance.
After the final defeat, thousands of prisoners (commonly given as about 6,000 in surviving accounts) were crucified along the Via Appia between Capua and Rome, a large-scale public punishment meant to deter future slave uprisings and reassert state authority.
Pompey, returning from Hispania, intercepted and killed a number of fugitives from the final battles. His claim that he had “ended” the war aggravated Crassus’ rivalry with him and became part of the political fallout of the conflict.
Spartacus and the Third Servile War (73–71 BCE)
