Were gladiators gay

Everything You Need To Understand About Homosexuality In Ancient Rome

Since we’re heading to Rome on a swanky, culture-rich tour of Italy, you may be wondering about homosexuality in ancient Rome and how male lover the Empire really was? As it turns out, super gay. But it’s complicated.

You Weren’t Gay or Straight. But Top or Bottom. With Consequence.

The biggest thing about sexuality in ancient Rome was that they didn’t concern themselves with who, but rather how, you boinked. They didn’t even have a word for homosexuality, but the empire was obsessed with conquest, and that mindset pervaded everything including sex. All that mattered was who’s on foremost. Alas, if you were a man, to be penetrated was to be conquered, thus weak and less worthy.

Furthermore, sexual partners weren’t chosen by gender, but class. Married men would continue to cavort with other fellows, so long as that loved one was beneath them both sexually and societally. This could entail prostitutes, the enslaved, and the infamia (those disgraced by community such as gladiators, actors, dancers and anybody else who ‘gave up’ their body for public display).

Gay Marriage was a Thing.

Even without a word fo

The Secret Lives of Gay Roman Gladiators

The Secret Lives of Male lover Roman Gladiators

Introduction
Roman Gladiators: A Brief Overview
Homosexuality in Ancient Rome: A Historical Perspective
1. Roman Views on Homosexuality
2. Homosexuality among Roman Gladiators
The Affectionate Story of Priscus and Varys
Punishment for Homosexuality in Ancient Rome
The Impact of Roman Homosexuality on Society
The Legacy of Roman Gladiators and Homosexuality
Conclusion

In ancient Rome, gladiators were not only known for their fierce combat skills but also for their unexpected relationships with one another. While the image of gladiators engaging in physical fights dominates popular Perception, evidence suggests that they also fell in love with each other. It was a common practice for slaves, including gladiators, to participate in combat for the amusement of the Romans. However, behind the scenes, these warriors formed deep emotional and sexual connections, defying the conventional gender roles of the time.

Roman society placed upper value on strength, influence, and masculinity, yet there are records of a significant number of lgbtq+ gladiators who en

Queer Romans

Queer lives have always been part of history! For the last day of Pride Month 2021, Victoria Vening-Richards who is one of our Amgueddfa Cymru Producers has written an investigation of queer lives in ancient Rome. With thanks to Mark Lewis at the National Roman Legion Museum in Carleon for sharing his knowledge.

Queer Romans

Homosexuality within the Roman world is a much debated topic. Over the years scholars have come to varying conclusions; some suggest gay relations were freely practiced in the Roman nature, others argue they were both legally and socially condemned. However, neither argument has been able to reach a definitive decision. This blog will argue the use of the label homosexual, the social attitude towards same-sex relationships, and same-sex relationships within a military context.

1. The use of the label 'homosexual'

Recent studies on Roman society have argued that the term 'homosexual', essence someone who has a sexual orientation towards someone of the same gender, did not exist linguistically, within the Latin language, and socially, within Roman society. This is because male Roman citizens are assumed to h were gladiators gay

Harry F. Rey

Harry
Sep 20, 2022
25 min read

Updated: Nov 17, 2024

I grew up north of Hadrian’s Wall, but just south of the more short-lived Antonine Wall that bisects modern Glasgow and Edinburgh. Our institution trips were couched in the rise and drop of the Roman Empire. Our historical sense of time and place moulded by Hadrian, who managed the Empire from the era of its greatest extent, and left a rocky ruin across the Scottish lowlands. But on our doorstep too were the ghosts of the Fall. Viking settlements that spurred the Celtic Gaels and warring Picts to unite and form latest Scotland. The battlefields of Bannockburn and Stirling Bridge, monuments to a nation which longed for recognition from the Pontifex Maximus down in Rome. These memories were our morning trips and family outings.

Growing up Scottish is to live between two walls of history. The glorious past and the crumbling present. Growing up gay is similar, but the other way around. The ‘gay’ past haunts us like a spectre, shadows of persecution and disease run sharp but invisible nails up our spine, so we dependency to the ‘it gets better’ we hope will come to pass.