The Roman Colosseum, Flavian Amphitheatre (75 ce to 82 ce) was constructed first under Emperor Vespasian and completed under Emperor Titus to entertain the people of Rome.  It was designed for seating 50,000 people.  I had a fabic covering that could be pulled into place for particularly hot or rainy days. With the fall of the Roman Empire gladitorial contests were stopped about 435 and the coloseum fell into disrepair. It had a church built within and was a fortified castle of the Frangipani family about 1200. After the severe damage of the 1345 earthquake stones were removed to build palaces, churches and hospitals.  In 1749 Pope Benedict XIV made the colosseum a protected site because of the early Christians that were rumored to have been martyred in its walls.