The French are probably best known for their pastry and perfume.  However French contributions to world culture lie in many varied areas – engineering, architecture, art, and even entertainment.  The French have always been inventive and original in their leisure time concepts and activities.  One of France’s greatest entertainment inventions is the card game of Blackjack, and it is mainly because of the French that the game of Blackjack has been preserved for all of us to enjoy, in both land-based casinos and online blackjack sites today.

History teaches us that the game of Blackjack dates back to the seventeenth when the aristocracy of France invented the game in order to provide amusement and entertainment for themselves.  The game of Blackjack evolved shortly thereafter in French casino parlours.  At that time, the French were heavily into fighting oppression and protecting human rights on a number of fronts.  Thus, the game of Blackjack became a welcomed leisure time activity for the French.

The French were always imaginative in the development of card game schemes.  As in most cases, there were contributions made by other countries as the game evolved down through the centuries.  In the case of Blackjack, the English made significant contributions.  However, it was the French who assigned the numerical value of “21” as the highest total in the game of Blackjack, and the total that all players should ultimately aspire to achieve.  It was also the French who developed the concept of the “natural” Blackjack card hand.

The English put the finishing touches on Blackjack by awarding a special payout for an Ace coupled with the Jack of Spades.  Thus, the term “Blackjack” was coined, and the use of the term has continued down through the centuries.  The game was introduced to America by French settlers back in the mid-seventeenth century.  Blackjack was outlawed in America by the Federal Government and went underground until the middle of the 20^th Century, when Las Vegas became the gambling capital of the western world.   

Today, you can enjoy online Blackjack by simply logging onto one of the foremost online blackjack sites on the World Wide Web.  Additionally, you can enjoy free blackjack games on free casino sites, where you can play online blackjack at no cost.  Free blackjack games are very popular, as people today are watching how they spend their discretionary incomes.