Wikipedia:WikiProject Military history/Peer review/Third Servile War

Third Servile War

After much blood, sweat, and tears in researching, editing, writing, and map-creation, I think I've finally got the article on the Third Servile War beat into "acceptable" shape. However, any one writer/editor has blind spots, so I would very much like to hear input, thoughts, criticisms, and suggestions as to how the article might be improved - especially comments/suggestions on how to improve the prose and style.

Thank you in advance for any (constructive) comments made :) - Vedexent 16:10, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

• Question: Is the entry summary too "scrunched up"? I tried to make it concise, but it may be trying to cram too many events into too small a space. Comments? - Vedexent 19:04, 9 September 2006 (UTC)
• Further Question: Would the article lose a great deal by removing the "In popular culture" section? I'm not convinced historical articles require these - even though it seems to be a current wikipedia fad. The effects of the legend of Spartacus might be better incorporated into the the article Spartacus, and removed from Third Servile War completely. - Vedexent 21:47, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

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I've incorporated a number of changes based on suggestions from this review, and others. I would appreciate it if people might re-examine the article after these changes based on your suggestions :) - Vedexent 09:39, 16 September 2006 (UTC)

Kirill Lokshin

This looks to be a very good article; most of my concerns are rather technical points of formatting:

• The maps are set very large and heavily stacked; I would shrink them to 300px and stagger them across both margins to prevent the impression of a continous column of images.
• Some issues with the section headings:
  • It's cleaner, in my opinion, to put the date in parentheses after the title than to start with it.
  • The dates for "Appian" and "Plutarch" are redundant.
  • "The war in popular culture" can be shortened to "In popular culture";
  • The "Bibliography" section should, I assume, be titled "References"?
  • The "Notes & Citations" section can be shortened to "Notes".
• {{RomanCivilWars}} needs to be turned into a normal campaignbox. (Why do people keep creating these non-standard boxes anyways?!)
• A little more material in the popular culture section might be appropriate; at the very least, it might be worthwhile to mention the extent to which the various depictions are historically accurate.

I would also suggest asking oldwindybear and Wandalstouring to take part in this review, as they have a far better knowledge of the period than I do, and may actually be able to comment at greater length on the historical material itself. Kirill Lokshin 19:38, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

Thank you for the swift response. I've incorporated many of your suggestions, as well as some of the organizational changes that those changes seem to prompt. I also managed to remove one map which was really only a "set up" for the map following it, and not really needed.

Unfortunately, I can't expand the "In popular culture" as I've not read/seen most of the listed depictions - only Kubrick's film. Other editors will have to do that, I guess :) - Vedexent 19:59, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

You could probably get away with removing it (and adding the links to Spartacus, if they're not already there). Unless there's something significant to be said about these works from a scholarly standpoint—and this appears not to be the case here—there's little benefit to retaining a mere list. Kirill Lokshin

Agreed. While I'm sure there is something scholarly to be said for the portrayal of Spartacus in modern culture, I think it is probably all literary and sociological rather than historical. Plus the article is over the recommended largest size already. I removed the section. - Vedexent 21:56, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

Comments after changes

Very nice work; all of my concerns appear to have been fixed, and the text has become rather stronger since the last time I looked at this. One point to consider might be expanding the first paragraph of the lead to summarize the next three; ideally, the dates and outcome should be clear after reading it. Other than that, this looks great! Kirill Lokshin 15:36, 16 September 2006 (UTC)

old windy bear

Vedexent This is one of the best organized, best researched, and best sourced articles I have had the pleasure of reviewing on wikipedia. You did an outstanding job. I looked at the earlier versions, and the changes you made with the maps addressed most of Kirill's suggestions. As to the historical accuracy of the article, it is outstanding. You used primary sources, and did so with good solid writing. I am fairly familiar with the period, certainly with how Crassus and Pompey used the threat of the Slave/Gladitor rebellions to manipulate, subvert and weaken the Republic. I agree that you cannot expand the "in popular culture" section because most of what is in "popular culture" about the Third Servile War is a misunderstood myth about Spartacus. Historians don't know whether he was anti-slavery or not; they guess at his intentions. You put it very well that people are guessing at intentions based on events of a failed rebellion. Moreover, in popular myth there are no slave commanders except Spartacus and due to a book by Howard Fast and Kubrick's movie, he has become some sort of mythical romantic hero. (And he may have been such a man - we simply do not know, and this article does an excellent job of retelling what we do know from the primary sources, piercing the myth only one leader existed in the Third Servile War for the slaves/gladiators, and laying out what facts are available, and allowing readers to make their own conclusions) An excellent job. old windy bear 21:16, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

UberCryxic

Phenomenal article. It will easily get to FA status. My suggestions are mostly trivial. The Popular culture section could still be written in summary style even with the material you now have. It might not be a bad idea to give some short descriptions of the artistic works you list (or alternatively you can adopt Kirill's suggestion). You don't necessarily have to be extremely familiar with these works; just do a few google searches to familiarize yourself and then write the descriptions. That should get you at least two paragraphs and obstruct calls for the section's deletion (which will certainly be forthcoming if you take it to FAC like this).

It may be a matter of stylistic preference, but perhaps the first three sections (ending with the Motives of the escaped slaves) could all be grouped under a 'Background' or 'Prelude' mother section. For someone unfamiliar with the history, the current state of the article might give the impression that those sections were actually part of the war. But again, that's not a big deal and shouldn't affect anyone's votes in FAC. Terrific article overall.UberCryxic 21:21, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

Thank you very much for your kind words :) As you can see from the discussion above, I removed "In popular culture" section as less relevant to the history. As for your grouping suggestion, I'm somewhat torn. I consider the Capuan revolt and the initial clashes with the praetorian armis as part of the war. The section discussing the motives of the slaves is an aside of a type, and not really part of the narrative. Yet, it doesn't really make sense until after the slaves have apparent "free reign" to do as they please. Would it make sense to make this a sub-section of the "Defeat of the praetorian armies (73 BC)" section? - Vedexent 22:00, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

Or how about this? - Vedexent 22:08, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

Not that it matters, but I think every classical military history I have read considers the Capuan revolt and the early battles with the Praetorian armis as part of the war. Speaking personally, I would say that would have to be true because they were the opening acts of what the Romans initially foolishly thought was merely a minor slave problem, but quite obviously ended up in a war that ended up requiring most of the Republic's resources to subdue. old windy bear 22:14, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

I've grouped the Capuan revolt and the defeat of the Praetorian armies under their own section, and left the section on motives a "top level" section. Hopefully this adds a little clarity. - Vedexent 22:21, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

Vedexent Again, an outstanding article. Historically accurate, from primary sources, well written, and very well structured.

old windy bear 23:30, 9 September 2006 (UTC)

Wandalstouring

There are some points which seem strange and others that could do with a link to other articles or an explanation.

"During the conflict, an army of escaped slaves eventually numbering around 120,000, under command of the famous gladiator-general Spartacus, raided the Italian countryside; defeated several Roman armies sent out to capture or destroy them; and — according to some historical accounts — attempted to escape northwards to freedom over the Alps in Cisalpine Gaul but for reasons that are unclear turned back southwards to occupy parts of southern Italy."

The numbers of captured slaves are too small for such an army. 5,000 or 6,000 are mentioned. So they can not all have been fighters, but in a military sense these number also included camp followers. Traditionally army strength is listed without mentioning their numbers, sometimes they are estimated. This way, the number under Spartacus command makes more sense, for they needed supplies.

"an event in which up to 4,000 legionaries would have been executed" Is known about the decimation. OK, I know that in a decimation every tenth man is killed, so the total number must have been 40,000 before this event. But information on the Roman troopstrength is really missing.

While other reports from the Classic state how it was possible to recruit slaves to help their former owners in military conflicts (Battle of Marathon, Third Punic War) there have been many crushed servile revolts. What was the reason for these revolts? What did change after these revolts? This is important to understand how 70 escaped gladiators could create such a storm and it is important to understand the initial Roman view.

It is very good, that you worked out the military background of Spartacus. I can tell you in some hours the source, Spartacus used a trick, his soldiers had a tactical advantage towards other enemys of the Romans. They used leather shields. These could be penetrated by a pilum, but were not rendered useless, nor is a pilum construction likely to break or bend if sticking in such a shield, so it is useable, contrary to hitting a Roman scutum. Wandalstouring 14:41, 10 September 2006 (UTC)

Thank you for your feedback :) Let me rebut :)

Firstly

Admittedly the figure 120,000, taken from Appian's history says in the 1913 Loeb classical library edition (I'm not sure who the translator is in this case)

and marched on Rome with 120,000 foot, having burned all his useless material, killed all his prisoners...

While the John Carter translation says:

made for Rome with 120,000 foot soldiers after burning the useless equipment and putting all the prisoners to death and slaughtering the draught animals to free himself of all encumbrances....

However, I would concur that perhaps calling this the "army size" is misleading, as I agree that this is more than likely the size of the entire band. I'll edit the intro to reflect this "soldiers and followers" perhaps?

Secondly,

Again, the figures are not mine, but Appians. Still, the troop stretngth is given. In the text it is stated as 8 legions, and in the infobox estimated at 40,000-50,000. This would fit nicely with the "1 in 10" rule for decimating the entire army. Perhaps the 40,000 - 50,000 should be added to the text. I don't have a reference at hand which states the standard size of the Roman legion at this time in history (I know the "standard legion size" varied historically). I believe it was around 4,000 - 5,000 - but I don't have a reference. Would you happen to know of one?

Addendum: found one in William Smith, D.C.L., LL.D.: A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, John Murray, London, 1875.. - Vedexent 17:50, 10 September 2006 (UTC)

Thirdly,

I'm not sure what you mean by "5,000 or 6,000 are mentioned". In Appian and others, there are several mentions of the size of Spartacus's followers, and the estimates grow - 10,000, 70,000 and finally 120,000 (as stated above probably not the total number of effective fighters).

If you mean mentioned per engagement, then this varies: 30,000 at mount Garganus, 60,000 in the final conflct, 35,000 in one of the later skirmishes. It is true that there are a number of smaller battles during the retreat to Messana (which I kind of "glossed over") in which the numbers involved are smaller - but this is also explained in Appian. I can add this point in, and explain it, if you think expanding this point is worthwhile.

You mention engagements and state such small numbers as captured while there are only much bigger numbers of participants mentioned. I estimated, that this is more likely the result of smaller engagements, but you give no numbers for this. Wandalstouring 22:52, 10 September 2006 (UTC)

Fourthly,

If I understand you correctly, I like the idea of explaining the sociological setup that made the servile wars possible: Large numbers of slaves in Italia (up to 1/3 the general population according to some estimates), the general hard life of an agricultural slave, etc. Again, I lack references specific to the state of slaves in Republican Rome. Can anyone help with this?

Will try, a system of pocket money was introduced afterwards and no slave was forced to fight as gladiator any more. Wandalstouring 22:52, 10 September 2006 (UTC)

Fifthly,

As far as the tactical advantages (leather shields, etc) that Spartacus had over the Roman troops, I have not seen anything to this effect (other than the mention of some of Spartacus' more inspired moves in Frontinus' Stratagems). Again - do you have any sources that might aid in fleshing this out?

Yes, leather shields and their construction is mentioned [1], it is very flexible. The rest comes from reading the description of what a pilum needs to work -> a wooden shield, where it is not possible to pull out. I will try a formulation that fits better and make some more research. Wandalstouring 22:52, 10 September 2006 (UTC)

All in all some good criticism, and a good handle of some aventues for improving the article. Thank you :) - Vedexent 17:21, 10 September 2006 (UTC)

Vedexent In reviewing my Plutarch on this war, one suggestion I would make as to the article is that Plutarch gave a fairly detailed and interesting description of Spartacus, which I believe should be in the article. Plutarch said that Spartacus was:

"a man not only of high spirit and bravery, but also in understanding and gentleness superior to his condition."

The article does detail that Plutarch credited Spartacus with wanting to lead his men to freedom, but the majority evidently preferred looting Italy. And given that Spartacus allowed 300 prisoners to battle to the death for the amusement of their captors, one has to question somewhat Plutarch's description of his character. Nonetheless, I would suggest it might be included. old windy bear 01:30, 11 September 2006 (UTC)

That is something I did wrestle with. I'm not sure at what point details about Spartacus should be left to the article on Spartacus. While most historical depictions of the war focus on Spartacus, he was one of several leaders - even though he may have been the main leader behind the rebellion. If details on Spartacus are included, should there be a discussion on how the leadership of the rebellion was structured - or at least as much as we know?

The episode about forcing 300 captives to fight to the death is mentioned in Appian's version - as is the comment about "putting all the prisoners to death and slaughtering the draught animals". Again, a contrast between Appian and Plutarch.

The point about wanting to escape over the Alps while his men prefered to stay and loot is referenced indirectly in two places, but I think you're right in that it needs to be more clearly spelled out. - Vedexent 02:07, 11 September 2006 (UTC)

Vedexent In considering your thoughts, I see your point and I am uncertain to what extent you should focus on Spartacus - he has become the symbol for the rebellion even though he was only part of the leadership (another suggestion for your consideration - should this be mentioned, in discussing what we do know of the leadership versus the popular perception that Spartacus led his followers in a quasi traditional command/control structure, has become remembered as "the leader" of a slave army fighting for it's freedom, when according to Plutarch he wanted to do just that, and his followers balked evidently so they could continue to raid and loot. Anyway, the popular perception is of course wrong from what we know, and can guess) - I think you will have to make the decision on whether or not to include the strong commendation of his character by Plutarch, and then try to explain historically in more detail what we know of the leadership. I think you are right on the issue of the captives fighting to the death - several writers have dismissed those claims as Roman propaganda to diminish Spartacus after the end of the War. Even if it was true, could Spartacus have prevented it, had he wanted to? That also is unknown. Plutarch strongly believed Spartacus wanted to lead his followers to freedom, but was evidently was unable to persude them, and would not abandon them. But I do think you are right that the issue of his wanting to lead his men to freedom over the Alps might be a topic more clearly spelled out. I still think you have done such an outstanding job that you should make these decisions. old windy bear 03:09, 11 September 2006 (UTC)