Lansquenet in the 19th Century

Modern Lansquenet

Lansquenet, having fallen out of favor with players in the second half of the 18th century, made a comeback in gaming salons shortly before the middle of the 19th century, but considerably simplified — to the point that it retains practically nothing of the game but the name.

Its implementation, much easier than that of its ancestor, its speed, and the possibility of playing it with as few as two players, brought it great popularity. It was then often mentioned in literature, being for example the subject of a novel entitled Les Chevaliers du Lansquenet by Xavier de Montépin published in 1847, and gave rise to an expression, "a coup de Lansquenet", used in everyday life to describe a quick and risky decision made when choosing between two possibilities.

1. Number of Players and Deck of Cards

Modern Lansquenet is a game of chance in which an unlimited number of players may take part, starting from two, commonly using two identical decks of 52 cards combined into a single pack of 104 cards. It is possible to play with just a single deck, or with a number of decks of up to six.

The suit of the cards is of no importance.

There is no ranking, and only the card's face value is taken into account (king, queen, jack, etc.)

2. The Banker, the Punters, Preparing the Game

One of the players, chosen by mutual agreement or by lot, is the first banker. The other players are called the punters.

The banker plays alone against the punters.

With the players seated around a game table, the banker divides the pack of 104 cards (in the case where two decks are used) into an even number of piles which are taken by an equal number of players, each of whom shuffles one. The piles are then regrouped two by two to be shuffled again by the players. This procedure continues until the whole pack has been reassembled.

The banker shuffles the pack one last time, presents it to be cut to the punter seated on his left, then places it in front of himself.

3. The Banker's Stake, the Punters' Bets

The banker begins by announcing the amount he is staking, for example 20 chips, 25 chips, 50 chips, or any other sum. Then it is the turn of the punter seated on his right to speak, having the choice:

– to pass, not wishing to take part in the game for this round ;
– to raise, announcing an amount corresponding to a fraction of the sum staked by the banker ;
– to go banco, in which case he wagers a sum of chips equal to that staked by the banker.

If the first punter has passed or has only raised, it is up to the next player to the right to decide among the same three choices. If this player does not wish to go banco after the first one has raised, he raises again, announcing an amount which, added to that of the previous player, may not exceed the banker's stake. Announcements continue in this way, moving counter-clockwise.

The announcement phase ends when :

– either the amount staked by the banker is entirely covered by the raises ;
– or when a player has gone banco, which he may only do on his turn to speak, and only if the banker's stake has not yet been covered by the previous raises.

If, once all the players have spoken, the banker's stake is not fully covered, another round of speaking takes place, and the players who had passed may then raise or go banco.

When, after two rounds of speaking, the banker's stake is still not covered, he may, as he wishes :

– either withdraw ;
– or reduce his stake to the total amount of the punters' bets.

4. How the Game is Played

Once the bets are settled and the round is being played, the banker turns over the first card of the pack and places it on his left – this is his card. He then turns over the second card of the pack, which he places on his right – this is the punters' card.

If the punters' card is of the same rank as the banker's card, this is called a doublet. If there is a doublet, the banker wins all the punters' bets, otherwise the banker turns over the third card of the pack, which he places between the two previous ones.

If this middle card is of the same rank as the banker's card, he wins all the punters' bets, but if it is of the same rank as the punters' card, they win instead, and the banker pays each punter an amount equal to their bet.

If the middle card matches neither the banker's card nor the punters' card, the banker turns over the next card of the pack, and so on until either the banker or the punters win.

It can be seen that the banker's advantage lies in the draw of the second card, which gives him the win of the round in the event of a doublet.

If the banker has lost, the player seated on his right becomes the banker, staking in turn whatever amount he chooses, which he will have to cover. The new round proceeds as the previous one did.

If the banker has won with a middle card, he has two options :

– either he remains banker, but is then required to put his original stake plus his winnings back into play, his stake thus doubling on the second round, quadrupling on the third, and so on ;

– or he decides to pass the bank. In this case, the players each speak in turn, moving clockwise, starting with the one seated to the right of the last banker, and whoever offers to stake an amount equal to what the former banker would have had to stake becomes the new banker, his stake thus being set. This is called "buying the bank."

Each time the banker voluntarily passes the bank, the same procedure is followed. However, when a banker who has bought the bank loses, the player who would have become banker before the successive purchases of the bank automatically becomes the new banker. He sets the amount of his stake as he wishes.

If the banker has won thanks to a doublet, he has two options :

– either he remains banker but may, if he wishes, pocket the punters' bets. This is called a refait, meaning the banker's stake does not double ; if it was 80 chips, he would have won 80 chips which he would not put back into play, so the stake for the next round would still be 80 chips. If the banker wishes, he can leave his winnings in play and his stake is doubled as usual ; in that case there is no refait.

– or he passes the bank, and a player may take it up again following the usual purchase procedure. However, the purchase may be made at the level of the previous bank if there had been a refait (with the example above, the bank could be bought back for simply 80 chips), or, preferably, at its full level if there had been no refait (in the example, 160 chips).

If a player takes up the bank at the level set by a refait, he is obliged to pass the bank as soon as his first round is finished, whether he wins or loses. The bank then reverts to the usual rightful successor, who sets its level arbitrarily.

The bank may not be bought more than three times in a row.

5. Remarks

The number of decks used varies depending on the rules. It ranges from a single deck up to six. Since the cards turned up in one round are not reused in the next, the more decks there are, the longer it will be possible to play.

In Herminie by Alexandre Dumas, a female banker offers to withdraw after drawing the first two cards, noticing that her own card has already come up six times. This means the pack was made up of at least two decks of 52 cards. Her chances of success were greatly reduced. The punters refused to let her withdraw, even though the banker was ready to pay all the punters half of their bet. It is also in this short story that the refait procedure is highlighted.

If the punters were not to fully cover the banker's stake after two rounds of speaking, it would be accepted that a player waiting standing by could occasionally make up the bets.