History of Roulette

This article covers the history of roulette, from its beginnings in 1655 to its introduction in the United States. Also included is the role of computers in the game.

Roulette's beginnings can be traced to 1655, when it was created in France. The roulette wheel was invented by a mathematician named Blaise Pascal, who was also notable for his many contributions to the science of mathematics. Pascal is in fact one the most revered figures in mathematics, responsible for Pascal's triangle, which is still used in high schools all over the world to this day.

The roulette wheel was actually borne out of Pascal's efforts to create a perpetual motion device. While the aforementioned device never saw the light of day, the roulette wheel continues to exist to this very day.

For almost two hundred years, Pascal's basic roulette wheel design was virtually unchanged. It was only in 1842 that Francois and Louis Blanc added a 0 to the existing numbers on the wheel, bringing it to the current total of 37 numbers from 0 to 36. it was this addition of the 0 that increased the house odds of winning.

During the time when the Blancs added the 0 to the roulette wheel, gambling was actually illegal in France. Nevertheless, the game spread quickly all over Europe, and the first casinos were established by Francois Blanc in Monte Carlo. It was there that roulette became known as the "King of Casino Games."

In the 1800's, roulette crossed the Atlantic Ocean and made its way to the United States. The game went through yet another transformation, this time with the addition of a double 0, bringing the total to 38 numbers. In some places, an American Eagle is used in place of the double 0.

With the growing popularity of the game, players then began to find ways to unlock its secrets. In 1873, a famous roulette player named Joseph Jagger hired six clerks to record the results of the roulette wheels at a casino in Monte Carlo. The team of clerks found out that a certain number had a greater chance of coming up than any other number, and Jagger managed to win $450,000 before being caught by the casino management.

In 1891, Charles Wells also managed to beat the game at Monte Carlo. Over the course of two visits to the Monte Carlo casinos, Wells managed to win more than two million Francs, managing to win 23 out of 30 spins at one point.

With the development of computers in the 20th century, players turned to these devices to find a way to win at roulette. The efforts of Edward O. Thorp and Claude Shannon at M.I.T. in 1955 were early noteworthy attempts to predict roulette outcomes, although more significant was the work of a group of students from the University of California Santa Cruz in developing a device that would increase their chances of winning at roulette. Their efforts bore fruits in a device that earned them as much as $10,000.

Roulette has currently been around for more than 350 years, and its popularity shows no sign of waning.