Blüchern

Blüchern is a simple gambling card game played by any number of participants against a banker, using either a standard 52-card French deck or a 32-card French or German deck. It is named after the Prussian Field Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, who was said to enjoy playing it. Before a hand, a betting board marked with the numbers 1 through 13 is used, and players place stakes on the number they think will come up. The banker shuffles the deck, lets a player cut it, then deals cards one at a time from the talon, calling out numbers in sequence and turning each card face up. Whenever a card's value matches the number being called, the bank collects every stake placed on that number. If none of the thirteen cards in a round match the called number, the banker doubles every stake still on the board, and players may then claim their winnings, let the bet ride, or place a fresh one. Play continues until the talon is exhausted, after four complete rounds through the deck. The game survives today mainly as a historical curiosity rather than as a commonly played modern pastime.