Become Versed in Craps – Tips and Tactics: The Background of Craps
Be cunning, play clever, and master craps the correct way!
Games that use dice and the dice themselves date back to the Crusades, but current craps is just about one hundred years old. Modern craps developed from the old Anglo game called Hazard. Nobody absolutely knows the beginnings of the game, but Hazard is believed to have been created by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, in the twelfth century. It’s presumed that Sir William’s knights bet on Hazard amid a siege on the citadel Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was derived from the citadel’s name.
Early French settlers imported the game Hazard to Nova Scotia. In the 18th century, when exiled by the English, the French relocated south and found sanctuary in southern Louisiana where they a while later became known as Cajuns. When they departed Acadia, they brought their favorite game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns streamlined the game and made it mathematically fair. It is said that the Cajuns adjusted the name to craps, which is derived from the name of the bad luck throw of snake-eyes in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi riverboats and across the country. A great many consider the dice maker John H. Winn as the creator of current craps. In the early 1900s, Winn created the current craps setup. He created the Do not Pass line so gamblers can wager on the dice to not win. Later, he established the spaces for Place bets and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.