Online Roulette. Roulette history

Roulette history

Roulette is a French word, meaning "small wheel". It has generally been agreed upon that the first Roulette Wheel was invented as a perpetual motion machine in 1655, by the French scientist Blaise Pascal, who has also been known for his work in the field of probability. The game was first played in a monastery to ease the boredom, it soon found its way into a rudimentary casino in Paris, where it was regarded as a game for the glamorous and intelligent. In 1842, Francois and Luis Blanc established the first casinos in Monte Carlo. According to `legend`, it is said that in exchange for their souls, the devil shared with them the secret of roulette.

Continuing along this sinister historical interpretation, the two men chose to use the numbers 0 to 36, whose sum when added together totals 666 - the number of the beast! Difficult to prove, but the game has always had an aura of the supernatural associated with it.

The first modern roulette wheel, with its alternating colors and odd/even numbers, was also used in France - in a Paris casino. Years later the Game arrived in the US - sometime in the early 1800s. Western miners and gold speculators embraced the game and it became very popular in the United States, particularly in the west and during the historical Gold Rush period especially with those who thrived on luck and fortune.

However, the single "0" modification was rejected in the United States and roulette history was altered forever. American roulette wheels were now made standard with the two zeros "00". The American casinos introduced the 31-pocket wheel because they were not happy with the minimal house edge they had with these European wheels. The extra pocket favours the house and ofcourse increases the house edge considerably. Should you have a choice, always choose to play on an European wheel.

Although both the double zero and single zero wheels originated in France, the double zero became known as the "American Wheel," because it was accepted with open arms and survived in the states. The popularity of the single zero wheel had out favoured the double zero wheels in Europe and was thereafter designated the "French Wheel." Now, every casino in the world has a roulette wheel. The Game is popular because it is easy to play and suspenseful as the ball spins to a stop on a number which might have a big 35:1 payoff.