Roulette
(A brief history of 'The Game')
HISTORY OF ROULETTE:
This website is not intended to be a definitive reference on the 'History of Roulette' . . . rather, a detailed description of how to play the game. However, a summary of how the game originated & developed would not be amiss.
There is a school of thought that claims the origin of the game lay with trading monks who travelled to & from china; who brought the game back with them from the far east. There is, however, no finite proof of this concept.
A different school of thought claims a Franciscan monk created the game . . . & committed suicide once he realized the 'devil' nature of his creation. Again, no finite evidence supports this idea.
In France, in the early 1600's, there lived a gentleman named Blaise Pascal. He was a mathematics & scientific research expert. He contributed the 'Pascal Triangle' to modern schooling. In honour of his work on the subject, his name is used as the unit of measurement of atmospheric pressure - 'Pascal'. The modern-day computer programming language - 'PASCAL' - is named after him.
One of his main passions was the pursuit of a 'perpetual motion' device. The main line of study involved wheels that would acquire constant rotation.
In 1655, a spin-off from this study was the proto-type roulette wheel. This early version had only the numbers 1-36. This unit lasted approximately 180 years.
1765 (+-) saw the arrival of the first 'gaming' set-ups in Paris - France.
In 1842, Francois & Louis Blanc modified the wheel by adding the single '0' thereby increasing the odds in favour of the 'gaming' house. This would become known as the 'European Wheel' as we know it today. As 'gaming' was against the law in France at this time, they set up business in Hamburg - Germany. In 1861 'gaming' was banned throughout Europe. Louis Blanc took the game to the principality of Monte Carlo & set up the first casino. Monte Carlo became the capital of 'gaming' activities.
In the late 1800's Roulette was taken to U.S.A. where the controllers added the '00' slot to further enhance the odds of the house. The actual lay-out of the numbers on the wheel was also completely revised. This gave rise to the 'American Wheel', as it is known today.
WHEEL LAYOUT:
Author's Opinion: The wheel layout does not affect the progress of any gaming session.
The wheel belongs to 'The Dealer'. An expert dealer is capable of 'placing' the ball in a given 20% area of the wheel - 7-8 numbers - from any starting point . . . certainly not for every spin . . . but with reasonable consistency . . . say, 85% of times spun.
To place a bet based on the wheel layout . . . or against the dealer's skill level . . . is seriously short-sighted and dangerous. An experienced dealer will always beat any player . . . unless the player picks up his money & walks away after a win . . . and 'that' almost never happens!!
There are two distinct, separate wheel layouts in use in the majority of casinos.
These are:
- 'European' - numbers 1 - 36 plus 'single zero' model.
- 'American' - additional 'double zero' model.
On the 'American' table-layout, '00' adjoins '0' on the table layout . . . shown in the section 'How-To-Play'. On the wheel, the '0' & '00' are directly opposite each other.
On the two different wheels, the numbers '1 - 36' are in totally different positions - relative to one another.
* * * NOTE: In 'The Document', each 'bet method' to be discussed will state 'European' / 'American' / 'Common' as applicable. * * *
SUPERSTITIONS:
The author is essentially not a superstitious person. However, there is one aspect of life which must be seriously 'thought about'.
In the world of 'live theatre', it is considered to be a significant case of 'chancing one's arm' to mention the name of a certain Shakespeare play - set in Scotland - during the production of any show. (Macbeth!!)
In precisely the same light, the author believes it is extremely 'silly' to refer to a certain 'LADY' whilst sitting at a 'gaming' table.
'St Cajetan of Naples' is the accredited 'patron saint of gamblers'. The better option is always to refer to 'St Cajetan' and ask his intervention or influence on proceedings.
NEVER REFER TO, OR ASK, 'LADY L**K' FOR HER ASSISTANCE!