Learn to Play Craps – Pointers and Techniques: The Background of Craps
Be cunning, play brilliant, and pickup craps the correct way!
Dice and dice games date all the way back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but current craps is just about 100 years old. Modern craps evolved from the ancient English game called Hazard. No one knows for certain the ancestry of the game, although Hazard is said to have been invented by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, sometime in the twelfth century. It’s believed that Sir William’s soldiers bet on Hazard amid a blockade on the citadel Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was acquired from the fortification’s name.
Early French colonists brought the game Hazard to Canada. In the 1700s, when driven away by the English, the French headed down south and settled in the south of Louisiana where they eventually became Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they brought their best-loved game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns broke down the game and made it more mathematically fair. It is said that the Cajuns adjusted the title to craps, which is acquired from the name of the bad luck toss of 2 in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi river boats and throughout the country. Most think the dice builder John H. Winn as the father of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn developed the modern craps setup. He added the Do not Pass line so players could bet on the dice to lose. At another time, he invented the spots for Place wagers and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.