A map of the slave army's campaign, from Mount Vesuvius to the River Silarus, showing battles, plundered sites and Roman roads. It accompanies the article on Spartacus in issue 246 of Historia National Geographic.
This map illustrates the feature Spartacus, the rebel gladiator by David Álvarez Jiménez, published in issue 246 of Historia National Geographic (May 2026). The article tells how 74 gladiators rebelled in Capua in 73 BC, and how Spartacus built them into an army of slaves that challenged the power of Rome.
The map traces that army's routes across the Italian peninsula between 73 and 71 BC. Each year has its own route colour, and the key distinguishes Roman roads, battles and plundered sites. Ten numbered boxes follow the campaign in chronological order: the rebels' camp on Vesuvius and the defeat of Glaber, the plundering of the villas and farms of southern Italy, the split in the rebel command, and the march north to cross the Alps.
They go on to the defeat of the army led by the Gaul Crixus, the victories over the consular armies and over Cassius Longinus, and the change of plan that sent the rebels back south. The last boxes mark the failed attempt to cross to Sicily, the break-out from Crassus's siege, the march towards Brundisium and the battle of the River Silarus, where Spartacus died.
Zooming in reveals the place names of Roman Italy, such as Capua, Nola, Rome, Mutina and Brundisium, and lets you follow each route across the Apennines and the south of the peninsula.
Published in Historia National Geographic no. 246, 2026-05
