Hoplomachus: A Gladiator of a Swiss Army Knife

• Hoplomachus was an ancient Roman gladiator inspired by Greek hoplites.
• They recreated Roman-Greek conflicts in the arena.
• Hoplomachus could fight with various weapons, including spears, a sword, dagger, and shield.

“One who fights like a hoplite,” the Hoplomachus gladiator was a kind of ancient Roman gladiator whose weapons and heavy armor were inspired by those of the Greek hoplites. They were known for recreating Roman-Greek conflicts to make the games even more attractive for the Roman audience. The Hoplomachus was one of the versatile gladiator classes; they were able to fight with at least two types of spears, a short sword, a dagger, and a shield.

Origin of the Hoplomachus Gladiator

The Hoplomachus became widespread for the first time when the Romans invaded the eastern Mediterranean area, where a large proportion of the population spoke Greek. Hoplomachy (from ὁπλομάχος, meaning “duel” or “a fight with heavy weapons“) was the name given to this kind of fighting.

The Hoplomachus gladiators trained in an ancient kind of fighting that was common in Hellenic Greece. As early as the 5th century BC in Athens, specialized instructors conducted exercises of this fighting style, and until the 1st century BC, it was part of the training for ephebes.

The Greek term is closely linked to the Greek shield called “hoplon” since hoplomachi were intended to portray hoplites, the Greek foot soldiers equipped with these shields. They were the opponents of the legionnaires of ancient Rome and the forerunners of this gladiator type.

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Their style was distinct from other kinds of unarmed or light-arms conflict, such as pankration. Book XXI of Homer’s Iliad is where the word “hoplomachy” first appears in writing.

The most common weapons used by these fighters were the dory spear, the xiphos shortsword, the sarissa long spear, and finally the small parma shield, unlike the Hoplites, who had a large and heavy shield.

How Did a Hoplomachus Gladiator Fight?

A Hoplomachus gladiator often fought at a distance with just a medium-sized spear (hasta) as their weapon. On the other hand, the gladius, a short sword, or the dagger (pugio) were their weapons of choice for close combat.

In combat, the parma shield could also be employed to push opponents around; however, the parma was not as effective as the aspis shield (hoplon) for this technique. His artifice was to wound the eye of his adversary with a spear, so as to blind him.

Hoplomachus battled with spears and carried his sword in the hand that was holding the parma. Hoplomachus started the fight with his spear, stinging his opponent from a distance. When he lost his spear or his opponent closed the gap, he would take out his gladius.

The parma used by the Hoplomacus had a hemispherical shape that wrapped around the forearm, which made it challenging to use for striking, unlike the more maneuverable shields of the Murmillo and Thraex gladiators.

The Hoplomachus gladiators wore heavy armor and wielded a shield reminiscent of the Thraex gladiators. This small, round Greek aspis shield they originally used served as the prototype for the later hemispherical Roman parma.

The Armor of a Hoplomachus

In addition to a helmet and arm guards, they wore:

• ocrea (high greaves),
• subligaculum (undergarment),
• fasces (protective leather straps),
• cingulum (belts),
• manica (sleeve).

Latin for “sleeve,” the manica (also lorica manica, armored sleeve) was an arm guard comprised of interlocking metal strips worn on the arm that wielded the weapon, often the right arm. The shield covered the other arm. His cuirass was made of leather or metal.

A Hoplomachus protected his lower leg and knee with metal shin guards called ocrea, which were similar to other high greaves. Hoplomachus was the only kind of gladiator except Thraex to wear greaves on both legs. Some historians, like Polybius in Book VI of his Histories, claim that other types of gladiators wore their greaves solely on the left leg.

His helmet was generally constructed of bronze and modeled after those found in Hellas, in particular those from the Attic and Boeotian areas of Greece (a.k.a ‘Boeotian helmet’). Unlike traditional Thraex helmets, this one didn’t include the protome of a griffin’s head—an ornament resembling the head and upper body of either a human or an animal.

The subligaculum was a kind of armor made from coarse fabric. Between the subligaculum and the greaves, the legs and thighs may be bare save for the fasciae, which were fabric strips that functioned nearly like bandages.

The cingulum was a belt similar to modern ones, although it was not designed to hold weapons. Many hoplomachi would keep the gladius shortsword concealed behind the shield in their left hand while holding the hasta spear in their right, ready to be drawn at a moment’s notice should the spear fail.

Which Gladiators Hoplomachus Often Fought With?

It was usual for hoplomachi, the gladiators costumed as Greeks, to fight Murmillo, the gladiators recognized for wearing shields most comparable to those of Roman soldiers. They fought in mock battles meant to mimic or parody real conflicts between the Romans and the Greeks during the Hellenic campaign beginning in the 3rd century BC.

Hoplomachi fought Thraeces, another kind of gladiator, relatively less often. And the hoplomachus hardly ever used his spear in these situations. These duels were unusual since they included two gladiators protected only by small shields, and they were fought at close quarters featuring the gladius and the sica swords. In these portrayals, Hoplomachus is seldom seen wielding his spear.