Horse racing is no more an English invention than playing cards are Italian. But there can be little doubt that the sport was elevated to a lofty level in Britain. On April 6, 1680, the household of King Charles II traveled by carriage and saddle horse to Newmarket Downs, about 60 miles northeast of London. [...]
- Posted in 05. Gambling & Casino History
The British contribution to gambling history is considerably less than that of the French or Italians, or even the Americans, at least in terms of the number of inventions played today. The very term “gambling” (from the French gamen, “to play”) did not enter the English vocabulary until the mid-1600s. Gambling houses would close almost [...]
- Posted in 05. Gambling & Casino History
Gambling was legal in the western U.S. throughout the 19th century. In addition to roulette, the most popular table game on the frontier in the 1830s was Faro, the same game that fascinated Venetians at the Ridotto. In fact, Faro was so widespread that newspapers took to calling it “The Game that Won the West.” [...]
- Posted in 05. Gambling & Casino History
The Ridotto closed in 1774, and less than two dozen years later, the entire city of Venice would fall to Napoleon. By the turn of the 19th century, Italy was no longer the center of gambling sophistication. That honor would eventually fall to France, although the French did not pick up that mantle easily. Between [...]
- Posted in 05. Gambling & Casino History
The Venetian authourities stepped in, initially to bring order to the lottery craze, and then to conduct their own drawings. They raffled off everything from cash and real estate to official jobs and commissions, while stifling the competition. Bringing lotteries under government control was done for the good of the people, of course. A percentage [...]
- Posted in 05. Gambling & Casino History