People played cards in Egypt and China over 1000 years ago, but The French Origins of American Blackjack seem to be the most widely accepted as the ancestor of the current game. Although they didn’t really did write books about it in the 1300s when many people believe card games began, but there are some interesting stories about gambling from that part of the world and legal issues surrounding it.
Gambling in the late 1300s
Surely gamblers today are really happy that the legal issues for gambling have changed from those issued in Paris in 1397. A ruling was made in Paris that forbid ordinary workers from playing any kind of card game during the standard work week – which mean the royals and the elite could play these popular games whenever they desired. With this declaration, it is clear that playing cards was quite popular during this time frame. It’s still a bit of a mystery when the actual game of 21 was invented, but the majority of experts agree that this game started in France and the earliest evidence is sometime during the 1700s.
Vingt-et Un
There is evidence of a game played in France during the 1700s called “Vingt-et Un”, which literally means 21, and may have evolved from the game called “Chemin de Fer” that was also popular during this time. This game used a deck with 52 cards in it, which was originally called a “French Pack” – the same type of deck used with today’s popular game. The rules were very similar – the player, who is the first to reach a total of 21, or at least get closer to 21 than anyone else, simply wins the game.
This was an easy game for the majority of citizens to learn, most were illiterate; not all people could read, but certainly counting was a skill the majority of people had in order to maintain their homes and businesses. Most people could easily count to 21 and it was a popular pastime to get a group together for an evening to play card games that takes little effort to learn.
Popularity in the American West
As the American population pushed westward, the popularity of gambling went right along with the people. Saloons and gambling parlors opened, and many people caught the gambling “bug” – Blackjack became a huge hit in the gambling houses. In fact gambling was legal until 1910 throughout the western U.S. until Nevada declared that it was illegal. (Seems quite the dichotomy today because Las Vegas is one of the most successful gambling cities in the U.S. and it’s in Nevada!)
However, the Nevadans realized how much money a casino could bring to the economy of the area and in 1931, the first Blackjack casino became legal – and later it became an enormous success because of the odds of the payouts offered.
From early beginnings centuries ago, the French Origins of American Blackjack online is still the foundation for the game played today. If the cavemen had cards, it’s certain that they would have invented gambling as a pastime.