Gannicus vs Spartacus

Gannicus was among the gladiators who escaped from the school of Lentulus Batiatus in Capua. He became a commander in the slave revolt.

Gannicus commanded a contingent of rebels at the final battle against Crassus at the Siler River. He was killed in the fighting alongside Spartacus and other rebel leaders.

Spartacus's forces defeated the Roman praetor Gaius Claudius Glaber, who had besieged them on Mount Vesuvius. The rebels descended using vines and attacked the Roman camp from the rear, capturing supplies and weapons.

Spartacus and about 70-78 gladiators escaped from the gladiatorial school of Lentulus Batiatus in Capua. They seized weapons and fled to Mount Vesuvius, initiating the Third Servile War against the Roman Republic.

Spartacus defeated the Roman consuls Gellius Publicola and Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus in separate engagements in Picenum. Later that year, he defeated the proconsul Gaius Cassius Longinus near Mutina, opening the route to the Alps.

After victories in the north, Spartacus turned south and marched on Rome with an army of about 120,000. He bypassed the city and retreated to the Bruttium peninsula in southern Italy, possibly to cross to Sicily.

Marcus Licinius Crassus's Roman legions defeated Spartacus's army at the Siler River in Lucania. Spartacus was killed in the battle. His body was never identified. The surviving rebels were crucified along the Appian Way.