They were defeated armies drafted as slaves to the Roman Empire.
The gladiators fought wild animals,criminals,and other fighters to entertain the people of the city.
They are chosen by people voting every 2 years.
A government chosen by the people is a democracy. It is supposed to represent "By the people, for the people."
People without ability or experience became officials.
It was the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act that said government jobs should be given to people based on merit. The act became law in 1883.
people became Gladiators from either being slaves or volunteering.
They were around when the Egyptians were.
Of course they had friends. Gladiators were people and most people have a few friends. Gladiators were the celebrities of their time and many of them had followings, especially among the ladies.
The Gladiators were men and women who were trained warriors. However most of them were slaves. If these slaves won many times or became legendary they may be granted freedom.
The gladiators fought wild animals,criminals,and other fighters to entertain the people of the city.
Gladiators fought eachother, or animals for the entertainment of the Roman people.
Surviving gladiators could retire. The successful gladiators could make quite a lot of money. Gladiators were allowed to keep the prize money of the contests and famous gladiators received substantial donations from rich people and, sometimes, emperors. Successful gladiators were very popular and were treated like heroes. It is thought that some retired gladiators worked as teachers at the gladiatorial schools.
Slaves were forced to become gladiators, and were released if they won enough
People became gladiators by either being a slave sold to a gladiatorial school, or by volunteering to undertake the training. Prisoners of war were sometimes also sold to gladiatorial schools, or sometimes they fought for the amusement of the soldiers on the frontiers, with the promise of freedom if they were victorious.
The pre-fight rituals were more than likely unique to the individual gladiator, just as our baseball players have rituals that they perform before stepping into the batter's box. However some of them can be stated. If he were smart, he would warm up and loosen up. He would be certain that his armor and weapons were bright and shiny, as the entrance parade was one of music and glitz. He would check his weapons to be sure that they were usable and had no problem. He would sacrifice or pray to his favorite god.
Gladiators fighting gladiators, gladiators fighting animals, animals killing prisoners, animals killing animals, chariot races
The people who gave up their freedom to become gladiators were Roman citizens, not freedmen. It is thought that they might have been poor people who were after being housed and fed in the gladiatorial schools, the earnings (successful gladiators received prize money and donations from rich people) and fame (successful gladiators were revered).