- Gaius Appuleius Diocles (104-c.146 CE) came from Lusitania and was the most famous Charioteer of the Roman Empire.
- He won 1,462 of his 4,257 chariot races, finished second 861 times, and third 576 times.
Circus Maximus
- Diocles started his career at the Circus Maximus as an unknown, and as he won more and more races, his name became synonymous with the Circus Maximus.
Roman Chariot Races
- Chariot Races were known as ‘Ludi Circenses’ and were held in the Circus Maximus in Rome, or in similar Hippodromes around the Roman Empire.
- In the Roman Circus, usually only 4 teams of Charioteers competed and were known by their colours:
- The Blue Team
- The Red Team
- The Green Team
- The White Team.
- The fans of each team wore their team’s colours.
- The teams were sponsored by wealthy businesses who invested heavily in training drivers, chariots and equipment, horses and stables.
- Each team had two to four horses, occasionally there were races with 3 or 6 horse chariots
Diocles’ Career (122-146 CE)
- He nearly always raced in a four horse chariot, the Quadriga. In one third of his races, he won on the final straight. He started racing the age of 18 in 122 CE and raced until he retired in 146 CE at 42, a total of 24 years.
- In 122 CE he started racing for the Whites where he stayed for 6 years.
- In 128 CE he moved to the Greens for 3 years.
- In 131 CE he spent the rest of his career with the Reds.
Diocles’ Wins
- His first victory was in 124 CE.
- 146 CE a monument was erected in his honour: ‘the most eminent of all charioteers’, ‘he took the lead and won 815 times’, ‘moving up from behind and winning 67 times’, ‘won on the straight 36 times’
- His total winnings amounted to 35,863,120 sesterces even though he was illiterate, making him the richest charioteer:
- 3 wins of 60,000 sesterces.
- 29 wins of 50,000 sesterces.
- 28 wins of 40,000 sesterces.
- 32 wins of 30,000 sesterces
- Nine horses he rode won 100 races and became ‘Centenari’.
- One horse ‘Pompeianus’ won 200 races becoming a ‘Duocentenari’.
The Famous Charioteers
The Charioteers’ legal status was ‘Infama’. The majority were Slaves and the remainder Freedmen, who may have been Slaves who had bought their freedom.
- Gaius Appuleius Diocles: He won a total of 1,462 races.
- Horse: Pompeianus: he won 152 races.
- Horses: Pompeianus and Lucidus he won 100 races.
- Horses: Cotynus and Lucidus he won 99 races.
- Gutta Calpurnianus:
- A Freedman, also had a funerary monument in his honour.
- He drove for all four Factions.
- In the Green Faction:
- Pompeius Musclosus: won the most races: 3,599.
- Flavius Scorpus: winner of 2,048 races.
- Fortunatus: winner of 386 races with his horse Tuscus.
- In the Blue Faction:
- Communis: winner of 1,000 races.
- Venustus: winner of 1,000 races.
- Epaphroditus: winner of 1,000 races.
- In the Red Faction:
- Thallus:
The Horses
- The Horses were as famous as the charioteers.
- The Horses bred for Racing were mostly from Africa or Spain. They started racing once they reached five years of age. Horses younger than this are still considered Colts and Fillies today. The career of the Race Horse could span up to twenty years before being put into a stud for breeding.
Circus Maximus