Spartacus Funeral Games.
Spartacus' Gladiator Games were gladiatorial fights created to honor the death of Crixus and the rebels who had fallen. Spartacus, Naevia, Saxa, Nasir, Rabanus, Pollux, Lugo and Gannicus fought as gladiators against Tiberius and his men.
The Games[]
Spartacus addressed the crowd, and then the first Roman prisoner: Mettius, Tiberius' bodyguard, was brought out. Mettius refuses to fight 'for their entertainment', and Spartacus promptly kills him. He issued a threat to the remaining romans on how they will fight or die where they stand. Two others were then brought out to fight him. After brawling with the soldiers for a while, Spartacus crossed his swords into the ground, facing them again without his weapons. Spartacus takes one of the men and makes him land between the two crossed swords, splitting his neck. He then faces the other soldier and knocks him to his knees. Spartacus pushes the man forward and finally
Spartacus, just about to put his swords in the Roman's eye sockets.
drives his swords through the back of his head through his eye sockets.
Feeling competitive and eager to be a gladiator again, Gannicus faces three of the captives to honor Crixus. At first, it seems they are going to be victorious until Gannicus throws himself over one of them and push's them to the edge, pushing on of them over to their death. Gannicus then overpowers the two and beheads the last one. The games continue with Rabanus, Pollux, Lugo and Saxa and another gladiator taking their turns killing Tiberius' men. Nasir takes his turn after to avenge Agron. While Nasir is fighting his opponent, Caesar arrives with an offer to exchange 500 captures rebels for the life of Tiberius, to which Spartacus agrees. Finally, Naevia fights Tiberius, eventually gaining the upper hand and severely wounding him with the sword he used to kill Crixus. Before she can deal the final blow, Spartacus returns and tell her and crowd about Crassus' exchange.
Reluctantly, Naevia only punches Tiberius in the face, telling him than soon she would finally take his life. Later, the "arena" is used to lite Crixus' funeral pyre.
Historical Context[]
Historically, after Crixus fell to the Consul Gellius Publicola in the Apulia region, Spartacus engaged both consuls in battle, defeating their combined legions in the Picenum region. After the defeat, the rebels were able to capture around 600 or more Roman Legionaries.
To both honour Crixus and humiliate the Romans, he made the prisoners fight each other to the death in Gladiatorial combat. As such, his games could have lasted at least a few days. When word of these games reached the ears of Rome, it would have caused outrage, hearing that rebel slaves were forcing Roman citizens to fight in a slave sport.
It is possible that the Roman citizen that Spartacus had crucified in front of Crassus and his army in 71 BC in Bruttium, could have been one of these surviving captives.