Republic · Roman Empire Daily
A gladiator named Spartacus led a slave army that defeated Roman forces repeatedly from 73 to 71 BC.
Deep dive
Escaping a gladiatorial school in Capua, Spartacus gathered tens of thousands of followers and won several battles before being defeated by Crassus. The revolt, known as the Third Servile War, shook Rome and became one of antiquity's most famous uprisings.
Source: Plutarch, 'Life of Crassus,' 8–11; Appian, 'Civil Wars,' 1.116–120.
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