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Pontoon (card game)
Pontoon, formerly called vingt-un, is a card game of the banking family for three to ten players and the "British domestic version of Twenty-One," a game first recorded in 17th-century Spain, but which spread to France, Germany and Britain in the late 18th century, and America during the early 19th century. It is neither a variant of nor derived from Blackjack. Both are descended from the early British version of vingt-un. In Britain, it first became known as pontoon during the First World War, the name apparently being a soldier's corruption of its former French name. The game has no official rules and varies widely from place to place. It is a popular family game, but also widely played by children, students, and members of the armed forces. In 1981, pontoon was the third most popular card game in Britain after rummy and whist. It has been described as "an amusing round game and one which anyone can learn in a few minutes."
Vingt-un is first recorded in the second half of the 18th century in France, Britain and Prussia, but its first rules were published in 1800 in Britain, and elaborations of this simple game were developed over the course of the 19th century. The name "pontoon" appeared during the First World War and appears to be a soldier's corruption of the French vingt-un. It is recorded as such in 1917 by an American soldier who served with the British during the First World War, where he describes pontoon as one of the pastimes played by "Tommy" when off duty and equates it to the American "black jack or twenty-one", adding that "the banker is the only winner."[citation needed] Another name that was probably also a mispronunciation was Van John.
It took time for the new name to be established; in 1939 it was still referred to as vingt-et-un with the name "pontoon" being given as an alternative. The game's popularity continued unabated such that, by 1981, it had become the 3rd most popular card game in Britain after Rummy and Whist, a phenomenon possibly helped by the prominence of its casino game forms known as Blackjack or Twenty-One. Unlike the latter, however, it has no official rules and consequently its manner of play varies widely from place to place. It is very much an informal family game, but is also popular with children, students, workers and members of the armed forces.
The following rules give a brief illustration of the development of pontoon from its progenitor vingt-un as it was played around 1800, to the more elaborated rules developed during the 19th century and finally to pontoon as it is typically played today.
The game is played with a standard, 52-card, French-suited pack, without Jokers. The values of the cards are as follows: an Ace scores 1 or 11 as desired; court cards score 10 each and the pip cards score their face value. If the two cards dealt to a player (excluding any subsequently drawn) are an Ace and a court card or an Ace and a Ten, they score 21 exactly and the combination is called a natural or a natural vingt-un.
The game may be played by two or more players, six or eight being best according to "Trumps" and five or six according to Arnold, who sets an upper limit of ten players. Phillips and Westall suggest the use of a second pack if more than seven play. "Trumps" merely states that two or more packs may be combined "if the party is large".
The following is a summary of the earliest known rules for vingt-un, published in the 1800 edition of Hoyle's Games.
The first dealer is chosen by any agreed method, e.g. the first player to turn up an Ace becomes the dealer. It is likely that deal and play were clockwise and that players staked a fixed amount before the deal, but the rules are vague on these points.
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Pontoon (card game) AI simulator
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Pontoon (card game)
Pontoon, formerly called vingt-un, is a card game of the banking family for three to ten players and the "British domestic version of Twenty-One," a game first recorded in 17th-century Spain, but which spread to France, Germany and Britain in the late 18th century, and America during the early 19th century. It is neither a variant of nor derived from Blackjack. Both are descended from the early British version of vingt-un. In Britain, it first became known as pontoon during the First World War, the name apparently being a soldier's corruption of its former French name. The game has no official rules and varies widely from place to place. It is a popular family game, but also widely played by children, students, and members of the armed forces. In 1981, pontoon was the third most popular card game in Britain after rummy and whist. It has been described as "an amusing round game and one which anyone can learn in a few minutes."
Vingt-un is first recorded in the second half of the 18th century in France, Britain and Prussia, but its first rules were published in 1800 in Britain, and elaborations of this simple game were developed over the course of the 19th century. The name "pontoon" appeared during the First World War and appears to be a soldier's corruption of the French vingt-un. It is recorded as such in 1917 by an American soldier who served with the British during the First World War, where he describes pontoon as one of the pastimes played by "Tommy" when off duty and equates it to the American "black jack or twenty-one", adding that "the banker is the only winner."[citation needed] Another name that was probably also a mispronunciation was Van John.
It took time for the new name to be established; in 1939 it was still referred to as vingt-et-un with the name "pontoon" being given as an alternative. The game's popularity continued unabated such that, by 1981, it had become the 3rd most popular card game in Britain after Rummy and Whist, a phenomenon possibly helped by the prominence of its casino game forms known as Blackjack or Twenty-One. Unlike the latter, however, it has no official rules and consequently its manner of play varies widely from place to place. It is very much an informal family game, but is also popular with children, students, workers and members of the armed forces.
The following rules give a brief illustration of the development of pontoon from its progenitor vingt-un as it was played around 1800, to the more elaborated rules developed during the 19th century and finally to pontoon as it is typically played today.
The game is played with a standard, 52-card, French-suited pack, without Jokers. The values of the cards are as follows: an Ace scores 1 or 11 as desired; court cards score 10 each and the pip cards score their face value. If the two cards dealt to a player (excluding any subsequently drawn) are an Ace and a court card or an Ace and a Ten, they score 21 exactly and the combination is called a natural or a natural vingt-un.
The game may be played by two or more players, six or eight being best according to "Trumps" and five or six according to Arnold, who sets an upper limit of ten players. Phillips and Westall suggest the use of a second pack if more than seven play. "Trumps" merely states that two or more packs may be combined "if the party is large".
The following is a summary of the earliest known rules for vingt-un, published in the 1800 edition of Hoyle's Games.
The first dealer is chosen by any agreed method, e.g. the first player to turn up an Ace becomes the dealer. It is likely that deal and play were clockwise and that players staked a fixed amount before the deal, but the rules are vague on these points.