Gladiator: From Germania to the Colosseum

In 180 AD Maximus leads the Roman army against Germanic tribes near Vindobona, and this Surrey woodland is where that opening battle was shot. The film used three main locations between January and May 1999, and Scott obtained permission to burn down a section of the forest for the scene. The filming clearing lies south of Dene Lane, off Tilford Road, south-east of Farnham, and the rise above it gives views over the surrounding woodland.

Location precision: The pin marks Bourne Wood; the filming clearing lies south of Dene Lane, off Tilford Road.

Visitor guidance: The clearing is south of Dene Lane, off Tilford Road, south-east of Farnham; the rise above it looks over the woodland.

Commodus proclaims himself the new emperor, and Maximus refuses him loyalty; wounded, he rides for his home near Turgalium, only to find his wife and son murdered. The farm scenes were filmed in the Val d'Orcia, the valley that stretches from the hills south of Siena to Monte Amiata. The valley joined the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2004.

Location precision: The production names only the Val d'Orcia valley, not the farmstead; the pin marks the valley between Siena and Monte Amiata.

Visitor guidance: Driving country between the hills south of Siena and Monte Amiata; the valley is a UNESCO-listed landscape.

Found by slave traders, Maximus is taken to Zuccabar and sold to the gladiator trainer Proximo. The slavery, desert-travel and training-school scenes were shot in Ouarzazate, and the town where he is sold into slavery is Ait Ben Haddou, near Ouarzazate in Morocco. A provincial arena was added to the existing village for the film. The ksar is a historic fortified village on the former caravan route, and a great example of Moroccan earthen clay architecture.

Visitor guidance: The ksar stands just west of Ouarzazate, and a footbridge links it with the modern village.

For Rome, the crew built on Malta: a replica of about one-third of the Colosseum, 52 feet high, with the rest added digitally. The vast Roman sets were constructed on the massive remains of Fort Ricasoli, and in Gladiator the fort stands in for Rome. Disguised in a masked helmet, Maximus debuts here as a Carthaginian in a re-enactment of the Battle of Zama. The fort was built by the Order of Saint John between 1670 and 1698.

Commodus challenges Maximus to a duel in the Colosseum to win back public approval; when he draws a hidden knife, Maximus overpowers and kills him. The real arena was built by emperors: construction began under Vespasian in 72 and was completed under Titus in AD 80. It was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles, with an estimated 50,000 to 80,000 spectators. Just east of the Roman Forum, it is one of Rome's most popular tourist attractions.

Visitor guidance: One of Rome's most popular tourist attractions, just east of the Roman Forum; booking ahead is wise.