Roulette History
There isn't one account of Roulette history that gives a complete picture of its origin.The best account I could find comes from Jerry Patterson's 1982 book, CCasino Gambling. "There's ample evidence that men have gambled by spinning wheels for centuries."According to Patterson, soldier's shields may have been spun, or chariot wheels may have been spun on their axles.The invention has also been attributed to the Chinese, French Monks, or mathematician Blaise Pascal in 1655.
There is more agreement regarding the origin of modern Roulette. Gabriel de Sartine, in 1765 introduced it into Paris. He was a police official who wanted a game to thwart cheats. An early description of a modern Roulette wheel and table layout is found in the French novel, La Roulette ou le Jouer, published in 1801.It had both 0 and 00 pockets and numbers 1-36.The 0 was red and when the ball landed there, the red bets were barred.The 00 was black, and when the ball landed there, the black bets were barred.
In 1842 or 1843, the first single 0 wheel was introduced in Hamburg, Germany (Bavaria).Francois and Louis Blanc left France after gambling became illegal.They went to Hamburg to operate a casino, and to attract business from other casinos, they introduced the single 0 wheel.Because of the drop in casino edge from 5.26% to 2.7%, the competition was decimated.
About 20 years later, after Louis Blanc had died, Francois was invited to purchase a casino franchise in Monaco by Prince Charles III.The casino in Monte Carlo was apparently rebuilt and reorganized, and the single 0 wheels were installed.They were instantly successful and the popularity of Roulette spread throughout Europe.The single 0 wheel became the standard and to compete, casinos were forced to change.
In the early to mid 1800's, wheels with 28 numbered pockets, 0, 00, and an Eagle pocket made their way to New Orleans.The casinos paid 26 to one, giving them a whopping 12.9% advantage.Because of this, the game was unpopular.Later, double 0 French wheels with 1-36 pockets appeared.These may have been left over from the French wheel's takeover years before.Because the casino advantage was lower, 5.26%, it became favored by the Americans.The French terms were replaced by English, and the modern American wheel was born.
Roulette is the most popular casino game in Europe.With it's elegant atmosphere and well dressed patrons, it is truly an elite game.With it's lower casino advantage and rules like en prison, it is understandable. Players want to play a game that is potentially winnable.Roulette isn't popular in America because of the double 00 wheels and the high 5.26% casino advantage.We can only hope that some day the American casinos will adopt the European or hybrid wheel and see a rise in Roulette's popularity. Perhaps Roulette history is still being made Back to Roulette home
