Baccarat may have an elitist image, but there was a big scandal around the game in 1890, involving no less than the future King of England!
Back in the days when people still spoke in full sentences and wore hats in public, baccarat was illegal in England. However, the Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII) was rather fond of gambling, and baccarat was his favourite card game.
King Edward VII (Image from Wikipedia)
One night, when he was at a party hosted by Sir Arthur Wilson, the guests decided to play baccarat, with the Prince as the banker.
During the evening, one of the noble players, Sir William Gordon-Cumming, was spotted cheating by several of the other guests. Even though Sir William denied the accusation, he signed a document stating that he would never play cards again, in return for the silence of the other guests.
Clearly the guests weren’t as silent as they promised, because the news leaked. When Sir William found himself being shunned from polite society as the gossip spread, he decided to defend his reputation in court.
The defamation trial began in June, 1891, and the Prince was called as a witness. During questioning, it was revealed that the Prince was also playing the illegal game – and hadn’t reported his fellow British Army officer’s illegal conduct, as he was supposed to. The press had an absolute field day, and both Sir William and the Prince were slated in newspapers across the country.
In the end, Sir William lost the trial anyway, was dismissed from the army and retired from society in disgrace. The Prince apparently never played baccarat again.
Now, baccarat has infiltrated pop culture and become an immensely popular online casino game – you can play it here at Vegas Palms Online Casino without worrying about court cases and public ridicule. So, the next time you play, spare a thought for the former Prince of Wales!
