| A sociable game of chance | |
 A King earns 3 jetons | |
| Origin | France |
|---|---|
| Type | Game of hazard |
| Players | 5 – 12 |
| Skills | nil |
| Cards | 52 |
| Deck | French-suited, Paris pattern |
| Play | Anticlockwise |
| Chance | entirely random |
Tontine is an historical French gambling game for five to twelve players using playing cards. It is a social game of pure chance in which the chips (jetons) circulate between the players and the pool until one player wins all the chips in play.
The rules of Tontine are recorded as early as 1725 [1] and continued to be published throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. [2]
Five to twelve play using a standard pack of 52 cards. Only the rank of the cards is important; suits are irrelevant. Deal and play are anticlockwise. [1]
At the start of the game, each player receives a quantity of jetons, the amount being determined by how long they want to play. This is called the mise. The higher the mise, the longer the game will last. A typical amount might be 12 jetons per player. A small table basket (corbillon) is placed in the middle of the table to which each player antes 3 jetons. The contents of the basket constitute the pool. The game is played until only one player has any jetons left. [1]
Each player draws a card from the pack, face down, and whoever has the highest becomes the first dealer. If two or more tie, they draw another card until the one has the highest. Dealer shuffles the pack, offers it to the left for cutting and then deals one card, face down, to each player, beginning with the player to the right and ending with himself. Accidentally flipping a card does not matter and the dealer does not have to redeal. The dealer keeps the remainder in a pile, face down to his or her right as the talon. [1]
First hand, the player to the right of the dealer, turns his or her card over, and depending on the type of card, pays or receives jetons from the pool or other players according to the table below. Then the turn moves to the player to the right and so on in turn, the dealer going last. [1]
A player who runs out of jetons is 'dead' (mort); they stay in the game, but are not dealt a card. They may still earn jetons again from a player dealt an Ace, Deuce or Trey, whereupon they are 'resuscitated' (ressuscité) and may play again. A player who has fewer jetons than he or she is required to pay, only pays what he or she has and the rest is written off. [1]
The deal rotates to the right. As soon as there is only one player left with jetons, the game stops immediately. That player has won and sweeps the pool. [1]
Bostogné, Boston or Boston Whist is an 18th-century trick-taking card game played throughout the Western world apart from Britain, forming an evolutionary link between Hombre and Solo Whist. Apparently named after a key location in the American War of Independence, it is probably a French game which was devised in France in the 1770s, combining the 52-card pack and logical ranking system of partnership Whist with a range of solo and alliance bids borrowed from Quadrille. Other lines of descent and hybridization produced the games of Twenty-five, Préférence and Skat. Its most common form is known as Boston de Fontainebleau or French Boston.
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Gilet, also Gile, Gillet, is a 16th-century Italian gambling card game that probably predates the game of Primero. Rabelais, in 1534, gives it pride of place in his list of games played by Gargantua, and Cardano, in 1564, describes it as Geleus, from the word Geleo, meaning "I have it".
Brusquembille or Briscambille is an historical, French, 3-card trick-and-draw game for two to five players using a 32-card piquet pack. The game has variable trumps. Side-payments are made for keeping or winning aces and tens.
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Briscan is an 18th-century, French Ace-Ten card game for two players played with a 32-card Piquet pack. It is a member of the Marriage group of games in which the 'marriage' of a King and Queen brings a bonus score, but Briscan takes this simple concept to extraordinary lengths.
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Bête, la Bête, Beste or la Beste, originally known as Homme or l'Homme, was an old, French, trick-taking card game, usually for three to five players. It was a derivative of Triomphe created by introducing the concept of bidding. Its earlier name gives away its descent from the 16th-century Spanish game of Ombre. It is the "earliest recorded multi-player version of Triomphe".
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Coucou ("Cuckoo") is an historical French card game that uses a pack of 32 or 52 cards and is played by five to twenty players. It is unusual for being played with only a single card in hand. As a shedding game, there is only one winner who may claim the stakes, if there are any. The game has also been called As Qui Court or Hère.
Homme d'Auvergne is an historical French card game for two to five players dating to the 17th century. It is a derivative of Triomphe and ancestral to la Bête with which it gradually become almost identical over time. It was a source of inspiration for other games, such as Écarté.
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Comet is a very old, French card game of the Stops family for 2 to 5 players that is still played today. It was originally called Manille, but acquired a new name on the appearance of Halley's Comet in 1682. It is not related to the modern trick-taking game also called Manille. The American game of Commit is an evolution of Comet.
Hoc Mazarin, also just Hoc, is an historical French gambling game of the Stops family for two or three players. The game was popular at the court of Versailles in the 17th century and was named after Cardinal Mazarin, chief minister to the King of France.
Emprunt is an historical French card game of the Hoc family for three to six players that dates to at least the early 18th century.
Ferme ("Farm") is an historical French gambling game of the banking type for ten to twelve players that dates to the mid-17th century. It was described then as being "fun and recreational".
Romestecq is an historical Dutch card game for two, four or six players in two teams that dates to at least the 17th century. It was also popular in France for over a century. Despite being criticised in contemporary sources as "complicated" it continued to appear in the literature until the end of the 19th century and was sufficiently interesting for it to appear in The Penguin Book of Card Games in 2008.
Papillon is an old French card game of the fishing type for three or four players. It has been described as "perfect for children who know how to count".
Sizette is an historical French card game for six players in two teams of three. It is unusual in that communication between partners is allowed and the team captain is permitted to ask for information and direct play. It has been described as one of the most enjoyable games of cards, albeit one requiring skill to play well. It is a form of Whist for six players.
Quadrette is an old French card game for four players, who form two teams of two. It is unusual in that communication between partners is allowed and the team captain is permitted to ask for information and direct play. It is a variant of classic Whist that is simpler and faster to play.
