Unlike many other gambling games, there is not much controversy or confusion surrounding the history of roulette. It is clear how this casino game originated as well as how it spread and grew to be the popular game it is today.
The history of roulette began in 1655 in France. Ironically enough, the game of Roulette did not start out as a gambling game, or even a game at all. The French mathematician Blaise Pascal was attempting to create a perpetual motion device-a wheel that would spin forever. His attempt was unsuccessful. However, it did lead to the invention of the roulette wheel and, in turn, to one of the world’s most popular gambling games. Over the years the design of Pascal’s roulette wheel has changed very little.
When the roulette wheel was first invented, and with it the game of roulette, it contained 36 numbered slots, numbered from 1 through 36. It was not until 1842 that the number 0 was added to the wheel, to provide a higher house edge. It was two brothers, Francois and Louis Blanc, who added the 0, making the game more appealing to casinos. Legend has it that the Blanc brothers sold their souls to the devil in order to learn the secrets of roulette. The root of this legend comes from the fact that when all the numbers on a roulette wheel are added together they total 666, which is known as the devil’s number or the number of the beast.
It may have been due to this legend of evil, or to other reasons, that the game of roulette was outlawed in France around this time. However, Francois and Louis Blanc didn’t let that stop them. They moved to Monte Carlo where they opened one of the first casinos. Roulette became one of the most popular games there and quickly spread across Europe.
In the 1800s the game spread to the United States as well. The game took root with French settlers in New Orleans and spread up the Mississippi River on riverboats and then to the rest of the country. Americans added an additional number to the wheel-a double 00, for a total of 38 slots and an even higher house edge. However, despite the higher house edge Roulette has grown to be one of the most popular casino games in the United States, along with Europe and the rest of the world.