Pope Julius, or Pope July, is a
gambling
Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of Value (economics), value ("the stakes") on a Event (probability theory), random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy (ga ...
card game
A card game is any game that uses playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, whether the cards are of a traditional design or specifically created for the game (proprietary). Countless card games exist, including famil ...
of the 16th century for four or more players. Players included King
Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
and it appears to have been one of his and
Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn (; 1501 or 1507 – 19 May 1536) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, as the Wives of Henry VIII, second wife of King Henry VIII. The circumstances of her marriage and execution, by beheading ...
's favourite pastimes.
Very little is known about the game, and its existence is known to be attested only by three written sources, those being:
*c. 1521 -
John Skelton, ''Speke, parrot''
*:
*1532 - anon, ''Privy Purse Expences of King Henry VIII'' (30 November 1532)
*:
*c. 1596 -
Sir John Harington, ''A Treatise on Playe'', in ''Nugae antiquae'' (1769)
*:
Some sources speculate that it was the precursor to the game of
Pope Joan
Pope Joan (''Ioannes Anglicus'', 855–857) is a woman who purportedly reigned as popess (female pope) for two years during the Middle Ages. Her story first appeared in chronicles in the 13th century and subsequently spread throughout Europe. ...
.
''Lives of the Queens of England''
by Agnes Strickland. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pope Julius (Card Game)
16th-century card games
French deck card games
English card games