• Home

The Complete Pilgrim - Religious Travel Sites

Howard Kramer's, The Complete Pilgrim, Religious Travel Site

  • AMERICAN RELIGIOUS SITES
  • CHRISTIAN SITES
  • JEWISH SITES
  • CATHOLIC SITES
  • ISLAMIC SITES
  • INDIAN/HINDU SITES
  • HOLIDAY SITES
  • CASTLES
  • BATTLEFIELDS
  • MOUNTAINS
  • NATURE
  • WILDLIFE SITES
  • PHOTO GALLERIES
  • ARCHIVES
  • ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

BATTLE OF SILER RIVER (SILER RIVER BATTLEFIELD)

December 7, 2015 By Howard Kramer Leave a Comment

Quaglietta, Italy (71 BC)

The Battle of Siler River was the final engagement of the Third Servile War, and most famous for being the site where the slave leader Spartacus and his followers met their final defeat at the hands of the Roman legions of Crassus and Pompey.  The Servile Wars helped to propel these two leaders to new heights of fame and power, but also led to the increased militarization of the Italian Peninsula and ultimately the replacement of the republic by the empire.  A highly romanticized version of the battle was immortaziled in the 1960 film “Spartacus”.

History

The Servile Wars were a series of slave uprising that took place in Sicily and Southern Italy between 135 and 71 BC.  The last and most famous, the Third Servile War, began in 73 BC, when a handful of gladiators broke out of a training camp near Capua.  These slaves, about seventy in all, escaped with their gladiatorial arms and armor, wiped out the local guards and fought off a relief force.  As their leader they chose the gladiator Spartacus.

Because Rome’s armies were largely engaged elsewhere in the empire, the slaves had time to get organized.  They began to raid throughout southern Italy, gathering arms and supplies as well as freeing many other slaves to swell their ranks.  The Romans sent an expedition to stamp out the rebellion, but they greatly underestimated Spartacus and the slaves.  The expedition was surprised and anhilated near Mount Vesuvius.  A larger army of thirty thousand men was also soundly defeated.

In 71 BC Rome sent a massive army under Crassus to wipe out the revolt.  After winning a major victory, the Romans steadily drove the slave army towards the souther tip of Italy, where they hoped to escape to Sicily, but Crassus prevented this.  Spartacus and some of slaves attempted to escape the trap, but were ultimately caught near the Siler River in the province of Lucania east of Neapolis.  There they turned and made their last stand.

According to some sources, Spartacus and his men made a good accounting of themselves; but the superior equipment, discipline and leadership of the Romans was simply too much for the slaves.  Almost all of the slaves were killed during the battle.  About six thousand survived and were taken prisoner, but were subsequently crucified along the Appian Way.  While the body of Spartacus was never identified, it is believed that he was among the crucified.  The battle ended the Third Servile War, the last major slave uprising to threaten Rome.

Visiting

The Siler Battlefield is located along the modern Sele River.  Although the location of the field is known, it is not well documented.  Perhaps the more popular, and interesting, site related to the battle is the Appian Way, which runs from Capua to Rome.  Thousands of captured rebel slaves were crucified along this route, including in all likelihood Spartacus himself.

The Battle of Siler took place just outside the modern day town of Quaglietta, approximately fifty miles east of Naples and 170 miles southeast of Rome.  The battlefield is an open site.  There is no cost of admission.  Web: www.italytourism.it (official tourism website of Italy).

Filed Under: Battlefield Tagged With: Italy/Malta

Where would you like to go?

Africa (North) Africa (Sub-Sahara) Arabia Armenia/Azerbaijan/Georgia Australia/Pacific Austria/Switzerland Balkans Belgium/Netherlands British Isles Canada Caribbean Central Asia China Czech Republic Egypt France Germany Greece Hungary/Romania/Bulgaria India (NE)/Nepal India (NW) India (South)/Sri Lanka Iran/Iraq Israel Italy/Malta Japan/Korea Latin America Mexico Palestine Poland/Lithuania Russia Scandinavia Southeast Asia Spain/Portugal Syria/Jordan/Lebanon Turkey/Cyprus Ukraine US-California US-Mid Atlantic US-Midwest US-New England US-New York US-Pacific Northwest US-South US-Southwest

About Howard Kramer

Howard Kramer is the creator and author of The Complete Pilgrim. He first took an interest in religious sites in his early twenties when traveling through Italy after college. In the two decades since he has traveled to more than two dozen countries and almost every state, visiting and photographing hundreds of the world’s greatest churches, synagogues and other places of religious interest. Howard has been writing about religious sites for the better part of the last decade, and The Complete Pilgrim is a culmination of years of his work and passion.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

THE COMPLETE AMERICAN PILGRIM – NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON

THE COMPLETE PILGRIM

Welcome to The Complete Pilgrim(TM)! This site, created by Howard Kramer, is a combination travel blog and online guide to the world's greatest sites of religious interest (with some historic and recreational places thrown in for good measure). All written content has been originally researched and produced and is provided free for public research and enjoyment. Thank you for visiting!

Site of the Week

WITTENBERG CASTLE CHURCH

WITTENBERG CASTLE CHURCH

Wittenberg, Germany The … [Read More...]

Friends of TCP Spotlight

5 PLACES TO VISIT IN HISTORIC PHILADELPHIA – MUSLIM TRAVEL ROCKS

5 PLACES TO VISIT IN HISTORIC PHILADELPHIA – MUSLIM TRAVEL ROCKS

by Glory Ali The City of Brotherly Love offers tons to see and do and get this, it’s FREE. That’s right you heard it right it’s FREE. Click here for complete article  

MOVING THE U.S. EMBASSY TO JERUSALEM – FAITH IN FAITHS

MOVING THE U.S. EMBASSY TO JERUSALEM – FAITH IN FAITHS

by Mary Neuhauser President Trump recently announced his intentions to move the United States Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, thereby recognizing Jerusalem as the official capital of Israel. The purpose of this article is to give you a brief overview of what this decision means and why it matters. Click here for […]

Photo of the Week

BASILICA OF ST. DENIS

Last month, I visited one of the most fascinating churches I have ever been to, the almost completely ignored Basilica of St. Denis in the northern suburbs of Paris.  Almost every French monarch is buried here, and almost nobody goes here.  Here are some pics I took:

Basilica of St. Denis

Tomb of Clovis

Tomb of Clovis

Tombs of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette

Tombs of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette

Tomb of Louis XIV The Sun King

Tomb of Louis XIV The Sun King

Royal Tombs

Royal Tombs

The Crypt

The Crypt

 

 

 

 

Follow us!

Where would you like to go?

Africa (North) Africa (Sub-Sahara) Arabia Armenia/Azerbaijan/Georgia Australia/Pacific Austria/Switzerland Balkans Belgium/Netherlands British Isles Canada Caribbean Central Asia China Czech Republic Egypt France Germany Greece Hungary/Romania/Bulgaria India (NE)/Nepal India (NW) India (South)/Sri Lanka Iran/Iraq Israel Italy/Malta Japan/Korea Latin America Mexico Palestine Poland/Lithuania Russia Scandinavia Southeast Asia Spain/Portugal Syria/Jordan/Lebanon Turkey/Cyprus Ukraine US-California US-Mid Atlantic US-Midwest US-New England US-New York US-Pacific Northwest US-South US-Southwest

Contact Us

Have a comment, a great photo or a religious site you'd like to nominate for the weekly spotlight? We would love to hear from you. Email us at hkramer@thecompletepilgrim.com.

About the Author

Howard Kramer is the creator and author of The Complete Pilgrim. He first took an interest in religious sites in his early twenties when traveling through Italy after college. In the two decades since he has traveled to more than two dozen countries and almost every state, visiting and photographing hundreds of the world’s greatest churches, synagogues and other places of religious interest. Howard has been writing about religious sites for the better part of the last decade, and The Complete Pilgrim is the culmination of years of his work and passion.

Return to top of page
Copyright © 2023 The Complete Pilgrim, LLC || Marietta, GA 30068 || Legal Disclaimers

Website by: Kristina McInerny, Notes From Kris, Inc.