In the autumn of 55 B.C., the Roman general and statesman, Pompey the Great, celebrated one of his many triumphs with the killing of 20 elephants and exhibiting 600 lions and 400 other big cats whose ultimate fate would be determined in the gladiator ring. Julius Caesar celebrated his triumph over Pompey in 46 B.C. by being escorted to and from the capitol by 40 elephants and exhibiting over 400 lions. Emperor Augustus, during his 41 year reign, is said to have imported 3500 animals for various celebrations. These included nearly 300 lions.
In the last few hundred years, human destruction of the North African habitat, the spreading of the desert and continual hunting of the Barbary Lion forced the remaining population to shift north, leading to confrontation with European guns and the lion's ultimate extinction.
The Barbary Lion, along with the European Lion, was also used as an entertaining way to reduce the Christian population. Ironically it seems that the Christians won the final battle for survival. If their aim was to impress, the Romans had chosen well. The Barbary Lion was most certainly more of a match for a gladiator.
Remarkably the Romans managed to destroy themselves before annihilating the Barbary Lion. They were however, responsible for severely denting their population.
(The Barbary Lion's more recent range had covered an area from Tripoli through to Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia; the populations were wiped out in Tripoli in 1700 and Algeria and Tunisia in 1891)
