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A diet of chicken washed down with white wine and crème de cassis were the perfect recipe for winning at roulette in 1891. Charles Deville Wells, from England, arrived in Monte Carlo on July 19, 1891. Aften eleven hours of gambling at the roulette tables he turned his stake of 100,000 francs into 250,000. He continued winning the following day. However his luck turned sour on the third day when he lost 50,000 francs. He gave up on roulette and instead tried his luck at a card game called trente et quarante. After recovering his losses, he returned to the roulette tables. This time he broke the bank a dozen times and won half a million francs which was a fortune in those days.

If you break the bank in a casino, it doesn’t mean that the casino is bankrupt. It means that the table has run out of cash chips. In those days in Monte Carlo, a black cloth used to be draped over the table when all the cash chips had been won. This would be noticed by all the patrons who would be encouraged to bet more. Today when the bank is broken in a casino, the float is quickly re-filled with the minimum of fuss. It can happen several times in one night.

The way that Charles Wells achieved his success was by playing a variation of the d’Alembert system. He bet on even, playing initially a ten chip bet. After a loss the stake was decreased to nine chips. After a win it was increased by one chip. Wells insisted that he was playing a more complex system and was seen to be mumbling to himself, apparently making calculations. He is also reported to have bet on the number five which was spun five times in a row.

His good luck on the tables was highly publicised and started a gaming boom in Monte-Carlo. In 1891, composer Fred Gilbert wrote a music hall song about him called The Man who Broke the Bank at Monte-Carlo. It was first performed by Charles Coborn at London’s Trocadero. The audience wasn’t impressed and booed Coborn. He retaliated that he was booked to appear for 12 weeks and he’d sing it every night, so they’d better get used to it. The song became a big hit in both England and the USA.

With his winnings Charles Deville bought a steam boat called the Tycho Brahe, promptly changing its name to Palais Royale. However he didn’t quite manage to sail away into the sunset. He got involved in several dodgy deals which resulted in a conviction for fraud and an eight year prison sentence.

Extract from the old music hall song ‘The Man who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo’

As I walk along the Bois Boulong.

With an independent air.

You can hear the girls declare.

She must be a millionaire.

You can hear them sigh and wish to die.

You can see them wink the other eye.

At the man who broke the bank in Monte-Carlo.

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Extract from the old music hall song ‘The Man who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo’