Napoleon at St Helena is a 2-deck

patience (or forbearance) is the ability to endure difficult circumstances. Patience may involve perseverance in the face of delay; tolerance of provocation without responding in disrespect/anger; or forbearance when under strain, especially when faced ...

solitaire Solitaire is any tabletop game which one can play by oneself, usually with cards, but also with dominoes. The term "solitaire" is also used for single-player games of concentration and skill using a set layout tiles, pegs or stones. These game ...

card game A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games (such as poker). A small number of card ...

for one player. It is quite difficult to win, and luck-of-the-draw is a significant factor. The Emperor

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

often played patience during his final exile to the island of St Helena, and this is said to be the version he probably played. Along with its variants, it is one of the most popular two-deck patiences or solitaires. The winning chances have been estimated as 1 in 10 games,Morehead (2001), p.203. with success typically dependent on the player's ability to clear one or more columns.Galt (1999), p. 83. The game is the progenitor of a large family of similar games, mostly with variations designed to make it easier to

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. Alternative names include Le Cadran ("The Dial") and, in the US, Forty Thieves, Big Forty and Roosevelt at San Juan.

History

"Napoleon at St. Helena" is recorded as early as 1870 by Annie Henshaw who describes it as a "most excellent game which has the added charm of having been a favorite with Napoleon at St. Helena".Henshaw (1870), p. 10. The game appears frequently in patience collections of the late 19th century.

Lady Adelaide Cadogan Lady Adelaide Cadogan (née Paget; 1820–1890) was a British noblewoman and prodigious author, most noted for her seminal work on plays and card games. She used her title in her publications and that is how she is generally styled. Biography ...

(1874) calls it ''Le Cadran'' which reinforces a possible French origin.Cadogan (1874), pp. 3–4. In the 1920s, American sources started recording ''Big Forty'' and ''Forty Thieves'' as alternative names, along with the early variant forms known as Twenty-Four Card Tableau, Twenty-Eight Card Tableau, Thirty-Two Card Tableau and Thirty-Six Card Tableau. In 1939, the alternative name of ''Roosevelt at San Juan'' is first recorded by Coops. The game continues to feature in compilations of patiences and solitaires to the present day, "usually... under the name of Napoleon at St Helena". Arnold (2011) revives the name ''Le Cadran'' "to honour a different strand of history."Arnold (2011), pp. 82–84.

Rules

The rules of Napoleon at St Helena are follows:Morehead & Mott-Smith (1949), p. 118.Crépeau (2001), pp. 258–260. * Two decks are used (104 cards). * Deal four rows of ten cards, face up and overlapping to form a

tableau Tableau (French for 'little table' literally, also used to mean 'picture'; tableaux or, rarely, tableaus) may refer to: Arts * ''Tableau'', a series of four paintings by Piet Mondrian titled '' Tableau I'' through to ''Tableau IV'' * ''Tableau vi ...

of ten columns with all cards visible. * Leave space for eight

foundations Foundation may refer to: * Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization ** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S. ** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...

above the tableau. * You may only move the

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from any tableau column. You may place any one card in an empty tableau

space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider ...

. * The tableaus are

built down Games of patience, or (card) solitaires as they are usually called in North America, have their own 'language' of specialised terms such as "building down", "packing", "foundations", "talon" and "tableau". Once learnt they are helpful in de ...

by suit. * The foundations are

built up Games of patience, or (card) solitaires as they are usually called in North America, have their own 'language' of specialised terms such as "building down", "packing", "foundations", "talon" and "tableau". Once learnt they are helpful in des ...

by suit, from ace to king. * You may take one card at a time from the

stock In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided.Longman Business English Dictionary: "stock - ''especially AmE'' one of the shares into which ownership of a company ...

and play to the tableau, the foundations, or to the

wastepile The following is a glossary of terms used in card games. Besides the terms listed here, there are thousands of common and uncommon slang terms. Terms in this glossary should not be game-specific (e.g. specific to Bridge, Hearts, Poker or Rummy), ...

. * You may use the top card from the wastepile. * You may only go through the stock once. * The object of the game is to move all the cards to the foundations to form

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...

built up from ace to king.

Variants

Napoleon at St Helena forms the basis for several variant games, most of which make it easier to win. Common variations are: dealing the aces to the foundations at the start of the game, building the tableau down by alternating colour rather than by suit, and allowing cards built down on top of a tableau to be moved, as a sequence, together. Others include: allowing use of any card from the waste, dealing some of the tableau cards face down, and changing the number of tableau piles and/or the number of cards in each tableau.

Single-pack variants

Single-pack variants include the following games together with their key differences from Napoleon at St Helena: * Canister: only one pack is used. Six rows of eight cards each are dealt and four cards to a seventh row overlapping the third to sixth cards. Packing is in alternating colour. * Martha: only one pack is used and the Aces are extracted to the foundations before four rows of twelve cards are dealt, the first and third face down, the second and fourth face up. Packing is in alternating colours. *

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(American variant): one pack of cards is used. Three rows are dealt, the first two face down, the third face up. Packing is in alternating colours and sequences may be moved between depots.

Double-pack variants

Double-pack variants include the following games together with their odds of winning and key differences from Napoleon at St Helena: * Deauville: The first three rows are dealt face down and cards are packed in alternating colour.Parlett (1979), p. 122. * Colonel: three rows of 12 cards each are dealt. Tableau cards may only be moved to a higher row. *

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

: the first three rows of ten cards are dealt face down, the fourth face up. Cards are packed down in alternating colour and, in the modern version, sequences may be transferred between tableau columns. The distinguishing feature is being able to

worry back Games of patience, or (card) solitaires as they are usually called in North America, have their own 'language' of specialised terms such as "building down", "packing", "foundations", "talon" and "tableau". Once learnt they are helpful in des ...

cards, singly, from the foundations to the tableau. * Indian (1 in 2): three rows of ten cards each are dealt, the first face down. Cards are packed down on the tableau by any suit other than their own. For example, any 5 can be placed over the 6♥ except the 5♥. * Josephine: cards of the same suit built down can be moved as a unit. * Limited (1 in 5): three rows of twelve cards each are dealt.Coops (1939), p. 13. * Lucas (1 in 3): the aces are removed and act as the foundations before 3 rows of thirteen cards each are dealt. * Maria or Thirty-six Card Tableau (1 in 8): four rows of nine cards each are dealt; during play, the cards are built down by alternating colour. * Midshipman: two rows of nine cards each are dealt face down and two more face up. Packing is in any suit except the card's own. * Number Ten (1 in 10): the first two rows of ten cards each are dealt face down and the next two face up. Building is down by alternating colour and sequences can be moved as a unit. * Octave: three rows of eight cards each are dealt, the first two face down and third face up. Packing is in alternate colours. After dealing, eight

grace card Games of patience, or (card) solitaires as they are usually called in North America, have their own 'language' of specialised terms such as "building down", "packing", "foundations", "talon" and "tableau". Once learnt they are helpful in des ...

s are dealt in a line below the tableau and may be used in play. If the game blocks, the next talon card may be used. If that cannot be played, the game is lost. * Rank and File or Dress Parade (1 in 2): the first three rows are dealt face down and the top card of each is the only one exposed. Building is down alternating colour and sequences can be moved in part and in whole. * Red and Black (5 in 6): there are eight columns built down by alternating colour. * Streets: building on the tableau is down by alternating colour.

Triple-pack variant

There is also a triple-pack variant called Sixty Thieves in which twelve columns of five cards are dealt.

Related games

Other closely related games include

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

Diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

Napoleon's Square Napoleon's Square is a patience or solitaire card game which uses two decks of playing cards. First described in a revised edition of ''Lady Cadogan's Illustrated Games of Patience or Solitaire'' in the early 1900s (as Le Carré Napoleon), it is ...

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, and

Blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are le ...

. Busy Aces is a simpler game that is also part of the family.

Footnotes

References

Bibliography

* _ (1922). ''The Official Rules of Card Games: Hoyle Up-to-date.'' US Playing Card Co. * Seymour, Paul H. (1929). ''The New Hoyle: Standard Games''. Laidlaw Brothers, Chicago, New York. * Arnold, Peter (2011). ''Card Games for One.'' 2nd edn. London: Chambers. * Cadogan, Lady Adelaide (1874). ''Illustrated Games of Patience.'' London: Sampson Low, Marston, Low & Searle. * Coops, Helen Leslie (1939). ''100 Games of Solitaire.'' Whitman. 128 pp. * * Galt, David (1999). ''101 Great Card Games'', Publications International. * Henshaw, Annie B. (1870). ''Amusements for Invalids''. Boston: Loring. * Kansil, Joli Quentin, ed. (1999). ''Bicycle Official Rules of Card Games''. *

Morehead, Albert H. Albert Hodges Morehead, Jr. (August 7, 1909 – October 5, 1966) was a writer for ''The New York Times'', a bridge player, a lexicographer, and an author and editor of reference works. Early years Morehead was born in Flintstone, Taylor County, ...

and

Mott-Smith, Geoffrey The Mott-Smith Trophy, named for writer and cryptographer Geoffrey Mott-Smith, is awarded to the player with the best overall individual performance in the Spring Nationals, the spring event of the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North Amer ...

(1949). ''The Complete Book of Solitaire and Patience Games.'' New York: Grosset & Dunlop. * Morehead, Philip D., ed. (2001) ''Hoyle's Rules of Games'', 3rd edition. * Parlett, David (1979). ''The Penguin Book of Patience'', London: Penguin. {{Patience Simple packers Double-deck patience card games Year of introduction missing