Gambling History | Women Gamblers

Gambling is not quite a man's world. A few women have made their names at the gaming table as well.

In Asia, women have always been gamblers, but not so in the west. Women in Greece did not gamble. They were too exempt from having fun. And their Roman counterparts weren't much luckier. But at least the Roman women could play during Bona Dea, a ladies-only festival, and also Saturnalia.

In Persia one woman left her mark in history with the roll of the dice. Queen Parysatis used gambling to avenge the death of her favorite son, Cyrus the Younger. He had been put to death by his brother Artaxerses, the king. Parysatis could not punish him, of course. But she lured him into playing dice with her, and when he thought he could easily beat her, she coaxed him into playing for a slave. Then the queen-mother played her true game and won. She demanded the slave who had cut off Cyrus' head for her prize. Artaxerses had no choice but to deliver the slave, who was subject to the most cruel torments and then killed.

In France, gamblers would bring ornate boxes to the gaming table to represent their fortunes. One woman, perhaps to stir her wasteful husband's conscience, gave him such a box depicting a crying wife and children.

Some French women gambled as the men did, but their gambling activities were kept under wraps; otherwise they and their families were disgraced.

As centuries passed, women in Europe became bolder. There is this story of one Englishwoman, beautiful and virtuous. She married a good man and all went well until she met another woman of ill repute who taught her how to gamble. The young woman became so addicted to the games and easily lost a fortune. She not only paid money to the man who beat her at the gambling table, she slept with him as well. Her husband was ready to forgive her, but she would not hear of it and instead gave herself completely to the vice.

And of course, how can we fail to mention toe greatest of all women gamblers? Poker Alice. A native of Great Britain, she grew up in the southern United States. Her life changed when she married a man form Colorado and moved west. Poker Alice was so adept at gambling that she drove one casino bankrupt. No longer a belle, she adopted the rough ways of gamblers in the west. However, Poker Alice still retained some of her old school ways and utterly refused to gamble on Sundays.

Women by nature are more cautious, and wiser with money, than men. But there will always be exceptions, ladies who dare to be different and risk all at the gaming table.