June 13, 2004

By: David Sacco
Website: http://www.a1-in-toys.com

The History And Basics Of Cribbage

Cribbage is a classic card game and is one of the most earliest and long lasting to date.  A very wealthy Englishman by the name of Sir John Suckling (1609 - 1642) has been credited to being the creator of this card game.  It was originally known as "Noddy"  prior to the modification of the rules by Sir John Suckling.  He was regarded as one of the foremost card players of his time as he traveled throughout Europe.  By 1630 he was knighted by the King, and fell from grace several years later.  In 1641 he had been involved in a conspiracy to save a friend who had been jailed in the Tower of London.  The plan had failed and Sir John had to flee England.  Unable to return to his beloved country, he had ended his life by the age of 33.  He left behind the game of Cribbage as his legacy.

The rules of this game are very simple and take as little as a half an hour to learn.  To start you need a deck of cards and a Cribbage board.  The boards come in many different styles, and all have the same total points in various combinations, 61 (once around) or the grand total of 121 points.  They come in wood, ceramic, and travel sizes.  Using the holes on the board each player gets two pegs to keep their score. Each player moves a pair of pegs up the outside and down the inside of their side of the board. 

On the Cribbage board the front peg shows the current score, while the rear peg shows the previous score.  This system prevents mistakes and the possibility of cheating.  The holes are clearly divided into sets of five, this allows the scores to be tallied immediately without counting.  A quick glance at the board will reveal who is currently ahead or who is winning and by how much.

Cribbage can be played by two or more people.  When two people are playing each person gets dealt six cards. A complete trip up and down the board is 60 holes, but each has a finishing hole into which the winning peg is to be placed.  The game scored is usually first to 61, 121 or 181.

For a great selection of Cribbage boards and games, check out great sites such as Amazon, and KBtoys who offer a diverse selection and different styles and versions of this popular card game.  Check out our Buyer's Guide in the Board Games section of our site to find great board selections such as the ones listed below:

• Cribbage Board 4 Track - great two player game. Excellent game for teaching your kids math and strategy.
• Cribbage Travel Game - very durable and light weight.  Excellent version to stuff into your carry-on for the next flight you take, or put it into your purse for the next long line-up. Also makes a great gift for those die-hard players.
• Kings Cribbage Game - an all family game featuring the well known board game, as well as the fun of a tile game.  Player's build off of each others cribbage hand in a crossword style fashion. It contains 104 wooden tiles, 4 wooden tile holders and a cloth tile bag. Great for 1-4 players.

For more information on Cribbage or to choose from a variety of related products and services, select from the following: