Card Games Pirates Likely Played in the 17th–18th Centuries

No definitive historical records list the exact card games pirates played, but period accounts and popular culture suggest several likely candidates common among sailors in the 1600s and 1700s.

Probable Games

• Seven Up (Sevens): A trick-taking game where players sequence cards; a precursor to Spades and Hearts
• All Fours: A classic trick-and-point game involving trumps, often played for stakes
• Cribbage: Dating to the early 1600s, its portability made it a shipboard favorite
• Poker (early forms): While modern poker evolved later, early betting games like "Poque" or "Brag" were popular among seafarers
• Twenty-One (Vingt-et-Un): The direct ancestor of Blackjack, simple and gambling-friendly
• Old Maid: A simple matching game for casual diversion on long voyages

Non-Card Gambling

Dice games such as Hazard (precursor to Craps) and Knucklebones (using animal bones) were also widespread.

Pirates likely adapted rules to suit their crews, and gambling on shipboard contests was common. The exact repertoire remains a mystery, but these games reflect the era's maritime culture.