BILLIARDS
OCTOBER 24, 2021
The Origin Of Billiards
The origin of billiards is a long and various history. It evolved from a game similar to croquet played during the 15th century around Northern Europe and possibly France.
Earliest recorded game similar to billiards was in France in the 1340’s. It was played as an outdoor lawn game and then moved indoors onto a wooden table with green cloth to resemble the grass, a ground that it had been previously played.
The first indoor billiards table was owned by King Louis XI of France (1461 – 1483). He refined and reform the game where it soon became popular among the French royal family. This was when the term billiards came from French words. The roots are either ‘billart’ which is one of the sticks or ‘bille’, which means ball.
In the earliest days, the game was denounced and forbidden by Church in the 15th century in France. It was considered as a sinful, dangerous and morally corrupt activities.
Billiards was introduced to the Americans by the Spaniards around 16th century. The game was not very popular at first but it gained popularity slowly and between 187 and 1956 reached its height. Many annual championships were held and billiard players becoming famous.
The first billiards room was built in England around 1765, it was One-Pocket which was a table with one pocket and four balls.
The terms ‘billiards’ and ‘pool’ often used interchangeably but they do not mean the same thing. ‘Billiards’ was originally a term for a game called ‘carom billiards’, but has since evolved into a general term to describe a variety of indoor games played on a table with balls and a cue stick.
The different between billiards and pool is, billiards is played on a table without pockets while pool involves a table with six pockets. Billiards only has three balls – red, white (with spot) and another white (without a spot). For pool there are 15 balls and sometimes played with nine balls.
In general, billiards can refer to any kind of of tabletop game played with a cue stick and a cue ball. Some professional pool players still use the term billiards to describe what is commonly known as pool. Additionally, the pool chalk is commonly blue because it is easily seen if it gets on the felt of the table. This is to easily notice if there is leftover chalk on the table which is need to be brushed away, so it doesn’t interfere with the game.
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