Bezique

Robert Stacy

Bezique was originally a French card game dating back to the 17th century; it is similar to Piquet, from which it is derived. It is, in its basic form, a two-player game, although there are variations for more players. It is very similar to Pinochle, which developed from the standard two-hand Bezique. Bezique's peak of popularity was during the 19th century, when it was well known enough to be mentioned in novels. For example, when Emile Zola conducted research for what would be his novel Nana , he investigated the lives of courtesans and found that typically these women could be expected to squeeze in a game of Bezique after lunch during their busy day. Bezique was popular enough for several variations to come into existence. There is the two-handed variation, known as Rubicon Bezique, which uses four decks for play and has certain variations in ...

Users without subscription are not able to see the full content on this title. Please, subscribe or login to access all content on this website.