{"id":150,"date":"2019-10-07T15:30:55","date_gmt":"2019-10-07T19:30:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=150"},"modified":"2020-06-26T17:22:43","modified_gmt":"2020-06-26T21:22:43","slug":"the-charioteers-the-teams-and-the-horses","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/chapter\/the-charioteers-the-teams-and-the-horses\/","title":{"raw":"The Charioteers, the Teams and the Horses","rendered":"The Charioteers, the Teams and the Horses"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox textbox--learning-objectives\"><header class=\"textbox__header\">\r\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">In this section you will learn<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>the organization of chariot racing into four factions<\/li>\r\n \t<li>the importance of the factions to fans of chariot racing<\/li>\r\n \t<li>some of the famous chariot horses<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_970\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"400\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-scaled.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-970\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-300x286.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"381\" \/><\/a> From top left to bottom right, the Roman parties: the \"Greens\", \"Reds\", \"Whites\" and \"Blue\"[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThere were four racing factions in Rome: the Reds; the Greens; the Blues; and the Whites. Domitian added two more (Purple and Gold) but they did not have last long. Unlike supporting gladiators, supporting factions brought <strong>very, very <\/strong>strong passions to the fore. Fans were incredibly devoted to their factions, which were run as private enterprises owned by those of equestrian status until quite late, only being taken over the emperors in the 300s CE. Most races involved all four factions racing against each other either in two or four horse chariots (there could be chariot teams that had up to 10 horses, but those were not used regularly). Sometimes the factions raced pairs of chariots or teamed up against each other, racing two against two. In addition to horses there were more exotic forms of chariot racing, with animals like elephants and camels. Once, when the charioteers refused to race until they were paid more money, one [pb_glossary id=\"57\"]aedile[\/pb_glossary] threatened to race dogs; two crumbled but the Blues and Greens held out. Charioteers were the superstars of the ancient sporting world \u2013 far more so than gladiators \u2013 and some earned immense sums (see, for example, Diocles\u2019 inscription below), although they risked life and limb to do so. We are not sure when the factions started, but our first mention of them is from the 70s BCE when one of the supporters of the Reds threw himself in the funeral pyre of the charioteer Felix:\r\n<blockquote>We find it stated in the <em>Annals<\/em>, that when Felix, a charioteer of the Reds, was placed on the funeral pile, one of his admirers threw himself upon the pile; a very stupid way to behave. In case, however, that this event might not be attributed to the great excellence of the dead man in his art, and so add to his glory, the other parties all declared that he had been overpowered by the strength of the perfumes.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#PlinyElder\">Pliny the Elder<\/a>,\u00a0<em>Natural History<\/em> 7.54<\/blockquote>\r\nLike sports, factions were the sort of subject you\u2019d talk about over dinner, as the poet <a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#Martial\">Martial<\/a> mentions in this invitation to a dinner party:\r\n<blockquote>Everything will be seasoned with pleasantry free from bitterness; there shall be no unchecked conversation that brings regret the next day, and nothing said that we should wish unsaid. But my guests may speak of the rival factions in the circus, and my drink shall make no man guilty.\r\n\r\nMartius, <em>Epigrams <\/em>10.48<\/blockquote>\r\n<a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#Ovid\">Ovid<\/a>\u2019s poem about supporting his mistress\u2019s teams show a little of the enthusiasm for the various factions\r\n<blockquote><a id=\"OvidPassage\"><\/a>I\u2019m not sitting here studying the horses\u2019 form: though I still hope that the one you like wins. I come to speak to you, and sit with you, in case you don\u2019t notice how my love\u2019s on fire. You watch the track, and I watch you: we\u2019ll both see what delights us, and both feast our eyes. Happy the charioteer you like! What\u2019s he got, to make him dear to you? Let it be me, flung from the starting gate, I\u2019d be the brave driver urging the horses on, now I\u2019d give them their heads, now touch their backs with the whip, now scrape the turning post with my inside wheel. If I caught sight of you as I rushed by, I\u2019d falter, and the slack reins would fall from my hands. As when the Pisan\u2019s spear nearly killed Pelops, when he glanced at your face, Hippodamia! Of course he still won because of his girl\u2019s favour. May each of us win through the favour of his lady! Why move away, in vain? The rows force us together. The circus rules give something useful at least \u2013 but you on the right though, whoever you are, be careful of my girl: the poking of your elbow\u2019s hurting her. You too, sitting behind us, if you\u2019ve any shame, draw your legs up, don\u2019t press our backs with your bony knees! But your dress is trailing on the ground too much. Gather it up \u2013 or I\u2019ll lift it with my fingers! You\u2019re a jealous dress to hide such lovely legs: the more you look \u2013 you are a jealous dress! Just like the legs of swift-footed Atalanta,[footnote]A mythical huntress and follower of the goddess Diana.[\/footnote] that Milanion longed to hold in his hands. Just like the legs of Diana, her dress tucked-up, chasing the wild beasts, wilder still herself. I blazed when I couldn\u2019t see them: what shall I do now? You add fire to the fire, water to the sea. I suspect from these that the rest might please, what\u2019s well hidden, concealed by your thin dress. Would you like a quick breeze stirred while you wait? I can make one with the programme in my hand. Or is the heat more in my mind than in the air, my captive heart scorched by love of a girl? While I spoke, a speck of dust settled on your white dress. Vile dust, away from her snowy body! But now the procession comes \u2013 silence minds and tongues! Time for applause \u2013 the golden procession comes. Victory\u2019s in the lead, with outstretched wings \u2013 approach Goddess, and make my love conquer! Cheer for Neptune, you who trust the waves too much! No sea for me: my country captivates me. Soldiers, cheer for Mars! I hate all warfare: I delight in peace, and to find love in its midst. Phoebus for the augurs, Phoebe for huntsmen![footnote]Phoebus = Apollo, god of prophecy; Phoebe = Diana, goddess of the hunt. They were twins.[\/footnote] Let craftsmen turn their hands to you, Minerva! Let farmers honour Ceres[footnote]The goddess of grain.[\/footnote] and tender Bacchus! Boxers please Pollux: horsemen please Castor! I cheer for you, charming Venus, and the boy with the powerful bow:[footnote]Cupid.[\/footnote] goddess help this venture and change my new girl\u2019s mind! Let her agree to be loved! She nodded, and gave me a favourable sign. What the goddess promised, I ask you to promise: don\u2019t talk of Venus, you\u2019ll be a greater goddess. I swear to you, by the crowd and the gods\u2019 procession, I want you to be my girl for all time! But your legs are dangling. Perhaps it would help to stick your toes on the rail in front. Now the track is clear for the main event, the [pb_glossary id=\"100\"]praetor[\/pb_glossary]\u2019s started the four-horse chariots. I can see yours. Let the one you fancy, win. The horses themselves seem to know what you want. Oh dear, he\u2019s taking the turning post too wide! What are you doing? The next chariot\u2019s overtaking. What are you doing, fool? You\u2019ll lose the girl\u2019s best hopes. Curses, pull hard on the left rein with your hand! We\u2019ve backed a nobody \u2013 call them back, Roman, everyone give the signal by waving your togas! Yes, they\u2019re recalled! \u2013 But don\u2019t let those togas ruin your hair, hide deep in my cloak, that\u2019s fine. Now the starting gates are open again: the horses fly out, a multi-coloured crowd. Now take the lead, and fly into empty space! Make my hopes, and my girl\u2019s, a sure bet! My girl\u2019s hopes are certain, mine are unsure. He wins the palm: my palm\u2019s still to win. She smiled, and promised something with those bright eyes. That\u2019s enough now, pay me the rest elsewhere!\u2019[footnote]Translation adapted from that of AS Kline.[\/footnote]<\/blockquote>\r\nThe top two factions seem to have been the Blues and the Greens. Caligula was a devoted supporter of the Greens, a devotion that extended even to one of the horses in the Green stable.[footnote]See also the section Imperial Fans.[\/footnote]\r\n<blockquote>Caligula was so passionately devoted to the Greens that he constantly dined and spent the night in their stable, and in one of his parties with them he gave the driver Eutychus two million sesterces in gifts. He used to send his soldiers on the day before the games and order silence in the neighbourhood, to prevent the horse Incitatus from being disturbed. Besides a stall of marble, a manger of ivory, purple blankets and a collar of precious stones, he even gave this horse a house, a household of slaves and furniture, so he could entertain the guests invited in his name more elegantly - it is also said that he planned to make him [pb_glossary id=\"106\"]consul[\/pb_glossary].\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#Suetonius\">Suetonius<\/a>, <em>Caligula <\/em>55.2<\/blockquote>\r\nThe Emperor Domitian added two extra (and short lived) teams to the four factions:\r\n<blockquote>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_973\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"225\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-scaled.jpg\"><img class=\"size-medium wp-image-973\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" \/><\/a> Statue of the Roman Emperor Domitian[\/caption]\r\n\r\nHowever, being still more inflated in his self-importance by his folly, Domitian was elected consul for ten years in succession and [pb_glossary id=\"152\"]censor[\/pb_glossary] for life, being the first and only man, whether private citizen or emperor, to be given the latter honour; he also received the privilege of twenty-four lictors and wearing the triumphal regalia whenever he entered the Senate. He changed the name of October to Domitianus because he had been born in that month. He created two more factions among the charioteers, calling one Gold and the other Purple. He used to make many presents to the spectators by means of the little balls; and once he gave them a banquet while they remained in their seats and at night provided for them wine that flowed freely in many different places. All this naturally gave pleasure to the populace, but it was a cause of ruin to the powerful. For, as he had no funds from which to make his expenditures, he murdered many men, hauling some of them before the Senate, and bringing charges against others when they were not even present in Rome. He even went so far as to put some out of the way treacherously using secretly administered drugs.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#CassiusDio\">Cassius Dio<\/a>. <em>Epitome of<\/em> <em>Roman History <\/em>67.3-5<\/blockquote>\r\nSome people thought they were above such petty concerns as the factions. Pliny the Younger wrote rather smugly to his friend Calvisius about how superior he was to the regular, faction mad members of the Circus Maximus\u2019 audience:\r\n<blockquote>I have spent the past few days among my papers with the most pleasing serenity you could dream of. You will ask how that can be possible in the middle of Rome? Why, the <em>[pb_glossary id=\"151\"]Ludi Circenses[\/pb_glossary]<\/em> were taking place, a form of entertainment which does not appeal to me at all. The games have no novelty, no variety, nothing, in short, anyone would want to see again. This makes me even more astonished that so many thousands of grown men should be repeatedly possessed with a childish passion to look at galloping horses and men standing upright in their chariots. If, indeed, they were attracted by the swiftness of the horses or the skill of the men, we could account for such passions. But it is actually a scrap of cloth they favour, a scrap of cloth that captivates them. And if during the running the racers were to exchange colours, their supporters would change sides, and instantly abandon the very drivers and horses whom they were just before recognizing from afar, and loudly cheering by name. And that is the level of favour, of weighty influence, that one cheap tunic has with not only the common crowd who are more worthless than the tunics they wear, but with certain important people! When I observe such men so insatiably fond of so silly, so low, so uninteresting, so common an entertainment, I congratulate myself that I am insensible to these pleasures and am glad to devote the leisure of this season, which others throw away upon the most idle employment, to literature. Farewell.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#PlinyYounger\">Pliny the Younger<\/a>, <em>Letters <\/em>9.6<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n<hr \/>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<hr \/>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--readings\"><header class=\"textbox__header\">\r\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">Bibliography and Further Reading<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li class=\"textbox__content\">Cameron, Alan (1976) <em>Circus Factions: Blues and Greens at Rome and Byzantium. <\/em>Oxford.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n<hr \/>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox textbox--learning-objectives\">\n<header class=\"textbox__header\">\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">In this section you will learn<\/p>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"textbox__content\">\n<ul>\n<li>the organization of chariot racing into four factions<\/li>\n<li>the importance of the factions to fans of chariot racing<\/li>\n<li>some of the famous chariot horses<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure id=\"attachment_970\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-970\" style=\"width: 400px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-970\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-300x286.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"381\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-300x286.jpg 300w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-1024x975.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-768x731.jpg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-1536x1462.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-2048x1950.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-65x62.jpg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-225x214.jpg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02-350x333.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-970\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">From top left to bottom right, the Roman parties: the &#8220;Greens&#8221;, &#8220;Reds&#8221;, &#8220;Whites&#8221; and &#8220;Blue&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>There were four racing factions in Rome: the Reds; the Greens; the Blues; and the Whites. Domitian added two more (Purple and Gold) but they did not have last long. Unlike supporting gladiators, supporting factions brought <strong>very, very <\/strong>strong passions to the fore. Fans were incredibly devoted to their factions, which were run as private enterprises owned by those of equestrian status until quite late, only being taken over the emperors in the 300s CE. Most races involved all four factions racing against each other either in two or four horse chariots (there could be chariot teams that had up to 10 horses, but those were not used regularly). Sometimes the factions raced pairs of chariots or teamed up against each other, racing two against two. In addition to horses there were more exotic forms of chariot racing, with animals like elephants and camels. Once, when the charioteers refused to race until they were paid more money, one <a class=\"glossary-term\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-describedby=\"definition\" href=\"#term_150_57\">aedile<\/a> threatened to race dogs; two crumbled but the Blues and Greens held out. Charioteers were the superstars of the ancient sporting world \u2013 far more so than gladiators \u2013 and some earned immense sums (see, for example, Diocles\u2019 inscription below), although they risked life and limb to do so. We are not sure when the factions started, but our first mention of them is from the 70s BCE when one of the supporters of the Reds threw himself in the funeral pyre of the charioteer Felix:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>We find it stated in the <em>Annals<\/em>, that when Felix, a charioteer of the Reds, was placed on the funeral pile, one of his admirers threw himself upon the pile; a very stupid way to behave. In case, however, that this event might not be attributed to the great excellence of the dead man in his art, and so add to his glory, the other parties all declared that he had been overpowered by the strength of the perfumes.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#PlinyElder\">Pliny the Elder<\/a>,\u00a0<em>Natural History<\/em> 7.54<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Like sports, factions were the sort of subject you\u2019d talk about over dinner, as the poet <a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#Martial\">Martial<\/a> mentions in this invitation to a dinner party:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Everything will be seasoned with pleasantry free from bitterness; there shall be no unchecked conversation that brings regret the next day, and nothing said that we should wish unsaid. But my guests may speak of the rival factions in the circus, and my drink shall make no man guilty.<\/p>\n<p>Martius, <em>Epigrams <\/em>10.48<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#Ovid\">Ovid<\/a>\u2019s poem about supporting his mistress\u2019s teams show a little of the enthusiasm for the various factions<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><a id=\"OvidPassage\"><\/a>I\u2019m not sitting here studying the horses\u2019 form: though I still hope that the one you like wins. I come to speak to you, and sit with you, in case you don\u2019t notice how my love\u2019s on fire. You watch the track, and I watch you: we\u2019ll both see what delights us, and both feast our eyes. Happy the charioteer you like! What\u2019s he got, to make him dear to you? Let it be me, flung from the starting gate, I\u2019d be the brave driver urging the horses on, now I\u2019d give them their heads, now touch their backs with the whip, now scrape the turning post with my inside wheel. If I caught sight of you as I rushed by, I\u2019d falter, and the slack reins would fall from my hands. As when the Pisan\u2019s spear nearly killed Pelops, when he glanced at your face, Hippodamia! Of course he still won because of his girl\u2019s favour. May each of us win through the favour of his lady! Why move away, in vain? The rows force us together. The circus rules give something useful at least \u2013 but you on the right though, whoever you are, be careful of my girl: the poking of your elbow\u2019s hurting her. You too, sitting behind us, if you\u2019ve any shame, draw your legs up, don\u2019t press our backs with your bony knees! But your dress is trailing on the ground too much. Gather it up \u2013 or I\u2019ll lift it with my fingers! You\u2019re a jealous dress to hide such lovely legs: the more you look \u2013 you are a jealous dress! Just like the legs of swift-footed Atalanta,<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"A mythical huntress and follower of the goddess Diana.\" id=\"return-footnote-150-1\" href=\"#footnote-150-1\" aria-label=\"Footnote 1\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[1]<\/sup><\/a> that Milanion longed to hold in his hands. Just like the legs of Diana, her dress tucked-up, chasing the wild beasts, wilder still herself. I blazed when I couldn\u2019t see them: what shall I do now? You add fire to the fire, water to the sea. I suspect from these that the rest might please, what\u2019s well hidden, concealed by your thin dress. Would you like a quick breeze stirred while you wait? I can make one with the programme in my hand. Or is the heat more in my mind than in the air, my captive heart scorched by love of a girl? While I spoke, a speck of dust settled on your white dress. Vile dust, away from her snowy body! But now the procession comes \u2013 silence minds and tongues! Time for applause \u2013 the golden procession comes. Victory\u2019s in the lead, with outstretched wings \u2013 approach Goddess, and make my love conquer! Cheer for Neptune, you who trust the waves too much! No sea for me: my country captivates me. Soldiers, cheer for Mars! I hate all warfare: I delight in peace, and to find love in its midst. Phoebus for the augurs, Phoebe for huntsmen!<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Phoebus = Apollo, god of prophecy; Phoebe = Diana, goddess of the hunt. They were twins.\" id=\"return-footnote-150-2\" href=\"#footnote-150-2\" aria-label=\"Footnote 2\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[2]<\/sup><\/a> Let craftsmen turn their hands to you, Minerva! Let farmers honour Ceres<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"The goddess of grain.\" id=\"return-footnote-150-3\" href=\"#footnote-150-3\" aria-label=\"Footnote 3\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[3]<\/sup><\/a> and tender Bacchus! Boxers please Pollux: horsemen please Castor! I cheer for you, charming Venus, and the boy with the powerful bow:<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Cupid.\" id=\"return-footnote-150-4\" href=\"#footnote-150-4\" aria-label=\"Footnote 4\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[4]<\/sup><\/a> goddess help this venture and change my new girl\u2019s mind! Let her agree to be loved! She nodded, and gave me a favourable sign. What the goddess promised, I ask you to promise: don\u2019t talk of Venus, you\u2019ll be a greater goddess. I swear to you, by the crowd and the gods\u2019 procession, I want you to be my girl for all time! But your legs are dangling. Perhaps it would help to stick your toes on the rail in front. Now the track is clear for the main event, the <a class=\"glossary-term\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-describedby=\"definition\" href=\"#term_150_100\">praetor<\/a>\u2019s started the four-horse chariots. I can see yours. Let the one you fancy, win. The horses themselves seem to know what you want. Oh dear, he\u2019s taking the turning post too wide! What are you doing? The next chariot\u2019s overtaking. What are you doing, fool? You\u2019ll lose the girl\u2019s best hopes. Curses, pull hard on the left rein with your hand! We\u2019ve backed a nobody \u2013 call them back, Roman, everyone give the signal by waving your togas! Yes, they\u2019re recalled! \u2013 But don\u2019t let those togas ruin your hair, hide deep in my cloak, that\u2019s fine. Now the starting gates are open again: the horses fly out, a multi-coloured crowd. Now take the lead, and fly into empty space! Make my hopes, and my girl\u2019s, a sure bet! My girl\u2019s hopes are certain, mine are unsure. He wins the palm: my palm\u2019s still to win. She smiled, and promised something with those bright eyes. That\u2019s enough now, pay me the rest elsewhere!\u2019<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Translation adapted from that of AS Kline.\" id=\"return-footnote-150-5\" href=\"#footnote-150-5\" aria-label=\"Footnote 5\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[5]<\/sup><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The top two factions seem to have been the Blues and the Greens. Caligula was a devoted supporter of the Greens, a devotion that extended even to one of the horses in the Green stable.<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"See also the section Imperial Fans.\" id=\"return-footnote-150-6\" href=\"#footnote-150-6\" aria-label=\"Footnote 6\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[6]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Caligula was so passionately devoted to the Greens that he constantly dined and spent the night in their stable, and in one of his parties with them he gave the driver Eutychus two million sesterces in gifts. He used to send his soldiers on the day before the games and order silence in the neighbourhood, to prevent the horse Incitatus from being disturbed. Besides a stall of marble, a manger of ivory, purple blankets and a collar of precious stones, he even gave this horse a house, a household of slaves and furniture, so he could entertain the guests invited in his name more elegantly &#8211; it is also said that he planned to make him <a class=\"glossary-term\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-describedby=\"definition\" href=\"#term_150_106\">consul<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#Suetonius\">Suetonius<\/a>, <em>Caligula <\/em>55.2<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The Emperor Domitian added two extra (and short lived) teams to the four factions:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<figure id=\"attachment_973\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-973\" style=\"width: 225px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-973\" src=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-65x87.jpg 65w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-350x467.jpg 350w, https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/848\/2020\/06\/Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-973\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Statue of the Roman Emperor Domitian<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>However, being still more inflated in his self-importance by his folly, Domitian was elected consul for ten years in succession and <a class=\"glossary-term\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-describedby=\"definition\" href=\"#term_150_152\">censor<\/a> for life, being the first and only man, whether private citizen or emperor, to be given the latter honour; he also received the privilege of twenty-four lictors and wearing the triumphal regalia whenever he entered the Senate. He changed the name of October to Domitianus because he had been born in that month. He created two more factions among the charioteers, calling one Gold and the other Purple. He used to make many presents to the spectators by means of the little balls; and once he gave them a banquet while they remained in their seats and at night provided for them wine that flowed freely in many different places. All this naturally gave pleasure to the populace, but it was a cause of ruin to the powerful. For, as he had no funds from which to make his expenditures, he murdered many men, hauling some of them before the Senate, and bringing charges against others when they were not even present in Rome. He even went so far as to put some out of the way treacherously using secretly administered drugs.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#CassiusDio\">Cassius Dio<\/a>. <em>Epitome of<\/em> <em>Roman History <\/em>67.3-5<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Some people thought they were above such petty concerns as the factions. Pliny the Younger wrote rather smugly to his friend Calvisius about how superior he was to the regular, faction mad members of the Circus Maximus\u2019 audience:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>I have spent the past few days among my papers with the most pleasing serenity you could dream of. You will ask how that can be possible in the middle of Rome? Why, the <em><a class=\"glossary-term\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-describedby=\"definition\" href=\"#term_150_151\">Ludi Circenses<\/a><\/em> were taking place, a form of entertainment which does not appeal to me at all. The games have no novelty, no variety, nothing, in short, anyone would want to see again. This makes me even more astonished that so many thousands of grown men should be repeatedly possessed with a childish passion to look at galloping horses and men standing upright in their chariots. If, indeed, they were attracted by the swiftness of the horses or the skill of the men, we could account for such passions. But it is actually a scrap of cloth they favour, a scrap of cloth that captivates them. And if during the running the racers were to exchange colours, their supporters would change sides, and instantly abandon the very drivers and horses whom they were just before recognizing from afar, and loudly cheering by name. And that is the level of favour, of weighty influence, that one cheap tunic has with not only the common crowd who are more worthless than the tunics they wear, but with certain important people! When I observe such men so insatiably fond of so silly, so low, so uninteresting, so common an entertainment, I congratulate myself that I am insensible to these pleasures and am glad to devote the leisure of this season, which others throw away upon the most idle employment, to literature. Farewell.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/back-matter\/aii-author-biographies\/#PlinyYounger\">Pliny the Younger<\/a>, <em>Letters <\/em>9.6<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<hr \/>\n<hr \/>\n<div class=\"textbox textbox--readings\">\n<header class=\"textbox__header\">\n<p class=\"textbox__title\">Bibliography and Further Reading<\/p>\n<\/header>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"textbox__content\">Cameron, Alan (1976) <em>Circus Factions: Blues and Greens at Rome and Byzantium. <\/em>Oxford.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"media-attributions clear\" prefix:cc=\"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/ns#\" prefix:dc=\"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/\"><h2>Media Attributions<\/h2><ul><li about=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02.JPG\"><a rel=\"cc:attributionURL\" href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Mosaico_Palazzo_Massimo_02.JPG\" property=\"dc:title\">Mosaico Palazzo Massimo<\/a>  &copy;  <a rel=\"dc:creator\" href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/User:MiguelHermoso\" property=\"cc:attributionName\">Photo by MIguel Hermoso Cuesta<\/a>    is licensed under a  <a rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-SA (Attribution ShareAlike)<\/a> license<\/li><li about=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine.jpg\"><a rel=\"cc:attributionURL\" href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Domitian_Vaison-la-Romaine.jpg\" property=\"dc:title\">Domitian<\/a>  &copy;  <a rel=\"dc:creator\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/people\/maarjaara\/\" property=\"cc:attributionName\">Photo by maargaara<\/a>    is licensed under a  <a rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY (Attribution)<\/a> license<\/li><\/ul><\/div><hr class=\"before-footnotes clear\" \/><div class=\"footnotes\"><ol><li id=\"footnote-150-1\">A mythical huntress and follower of the goddess Diana. <a href=\"#return-footnote-150-1\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 1\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-150-2\">Phoebus = Apollo, god of prophecy; Phoebe = Diana, goddess of the hunt. They were twins. <a href=\"#return-footnote-150-2\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 2\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-150-3\">The goddess of grain. <a href=\"#return-footnote-150-3\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 3\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-150-4\">Cupid. <a href=\"#return-footnote-150-4\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 4\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-150-5\">Translation adapted from that of AS Kline. <a href=\"#return-footnote-150-5\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 5\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-150-6\">See also the section Imperial Fans. <a href=\"#return-footnote-150-6\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 6\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div><div class=\"glossary\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\" id=\"definition\">definition<\/span><template id=\"term_150_57\"><div class=\"glossary__definition\" role=\"dialog\" data-id=\"term_150_57\"><div tabindex=\"-1\"><p>The first rank on the cursus honorum, the course of public offices, these magistrates were in charge of maintaining public buildings and space and supervised and organized the public festivals. There were two types of aedile, curule, and plebeian.<\/p>\n<\/div><button><span aria-hidden=\"true\">&times;<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Close definition<\/span><\/button><\/div><\/template><template id=\"term_150_100\"><div class=\"glossary__definition\" role=\"dialog\" data-id=\"term_150_100\"><div tabindex=\"-1\"><p>The second most senior position in the cursus honorum, there was originally only one, but the number expanded to 8 and then 16 as the needs of the administration demanded more and more magistrates.<\/p>\n<\/div><button><span aria-hidden=\"true\">&times;<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Close definition<\/span><\/button><\/div><\/template><template id=\"term_150_106\"><div class=\"glossary__definition\" role=\"dialog\" data-id=\"term_150_106\"><div tabindex=\"-1\"><p>The chief military and civilian commander of Rome. Two were elected each year and competition to become consul was incredibly intense as it represented the apex of a political career. After their term in office consuls could go on to be governors of provinces, where, under the Republic, they were wont to rob the provincials blind in order to recoup the costs of their political campaigns.<\/p>\n<\/div><button><span aria-hidden=\"true\">&times;<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Close definition<\/span><\/button><\/div><\/template><template id=\"term_150_152\"><div class=\"glossary__definition\" role=\"dialog\" data-id=\"term_150_152\"><div tabindex=\"-1\"><p>A very senior magistracy in Rome. The position could only be held by ex-consuls, and two were elected for a five year term (every other magistracy was only for a one year term). Their job was to keep the census of the Roman people and oversee public morality \u2013 the main part of which was expelling people from the Senate for various moral reasons, or from their tribe or status for the same. They also oversaw some of the finances of the state.<\/p>\n<\/div><button><span aria-hidden=\"true\">&times;<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Close definition<\/span><\/button><\/div><\/template><template id=\"term_150_151\"><div class=\"glossary__definition\" role=\"dialog\" data-id=\"term_150_151\"><div tabindex=\"-1\"><p>Circus games. This covers any chariot racing; the Ludi circenses were held in conjunction with other annual, religious festivals.<\/p>\n<\/div><button><span aria-hidden=\"true\">&times;<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Close definition<\/span><\/button><\/div><\/template><\/div>","protected":false},"author":801,"menu_order":3,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-150","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":38,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/150","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/801"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/150\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":974,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/150\/revisions\/974"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/38"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/150\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=150"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=150"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=150"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/spectaclesintheromanworldsourcebook\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=150"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}