Member-only story
The Last Fight In the Roman Colosseum
There is the last time for everything
Gladiatorial fights took place in venues all across the Roman Empire and lasted for hundreds of years. But gladiator duels are a thing of the past. Many people believe that arena spectacles fell when Rome fell but that is not quite true. That raises the question when was the last duel in the Colosseum? How did gladiator fights come to an end after hundreds of years?
Saint Telemachus
In the waning years of the 4th century, a curious scene unfolded inside an amphitheater in Rome. As a fight between two armed gladiators was set to break out, a man entered the arena and began to preach. The man’s name was Telemachus and he was raging against gladiatorial fights. Fighting to the death did not honor God. It was barbaric. It was pagan. And it needed to end.
Unsurprisingly, the man’s speech was not taken with good cheer. The people at the amphitheater were there to witness a fight and they wanted blood. This had been a national pastime for Rome since the founding of the empire.
