We all know at least one gambler. We know that this is a very serious vice, which can lead to bankruptcy and cause many other problems. Yet it is not something that is the vice of ordinary people, but also of the very famous ones. They have become famous in different spheres, but they all have one thing in common.
As usual, we idealize famous and successful people, so you certainly wouldn’t guess who are the most famous gamblers in history. They lived in different historical periods, they were of different nationalities, but they could not resist that same thing. But that does not mean that gambling has brought them only bad things in life, on the contrary. For some of them, that served as a great help. So let’s find out who they were.
1. Fyodor Dostoevsky
If we had to list the 10 greatest writers of all time, Dostoevsky would surely be on that list. And what is one of his most famous works? Well the novella “The Gambler” which he wrote on the basis of personal experiences. So we will start this list with him. He lived in the 19th century and with literature, he was engaged in religion and psychology, which can be seen when you read his works.
Along with “The Gambler”, some of his most famous works are “Crime and Punishment” and “The Idiot”. After serving a prison sentence, which was originally the death penalty, he began traveling to Europe, where he became a gambler. This also led to financial problems, but he later became world-famous and stopped doing so after the birth of his second child.
2. Giacomo Casanova
He is a man whose name has remained synonymous with a womanizer. Born in Venice, although he was not of noble origin, he spent his whole life surrounded by the upper class. And we mean not only to Italian nobles, but also to the clergy including the pope, then Mozart and many other famous people of that age. He was a real star by today’s standards. He was also known for his gambling successes, which brought him a lot of money but also acquaintances with different people.
He can be considered one of the first professional gamblers ever. He also occasionally lost large sums of money very carelessly because he loved to play. In his own words, he was especially reckless in gambling after new sexual experiences. Luckily for him, there were no online casinos like agensg.com at the time, otherwise, he would have lost all his money, when we know how many women he slept. He lived a very long life, full of joy, and remained famous to this day.
3. Claude Monet
Claude Monet is one of the most important people in French art ever and a man who started art movement known as Impressionism. Monet, Manet and Renoir are the three most famous painters in that art movement. What is very interesting is that painting was a kind of hobby for Monet and he dedicated himself to it only when he returned from military service in Africa in the French colonies.
What is very interesting and what puts him on this list is that the gambling allowed him to become a full time painter. He won over 10 thousand dollars in the lottery, which was a very large sum for that time. After that, he could stop doing other jobs and dedicate himself to what he is best at, and that is painting. We can thank the lottery for all the masterpieces he painted.
4. King Henry the VIII
He was the famous English king, who came into conflict with the pope and that led to the reformation of the English church. He is also known for his extraordinary improvement of navy, but also for the frequent executions he ordered without trial, which included his wives. He was also a famous gambler, but not so successful.
He tried his hand at all the games existing in that era, but that only led to big debts. What made him appreciated in that circles of people was that he did not use his royal position during gambling, but behaved like an ordinary man. Yet his addiction was not well received among the people he ruled over.
5. King Louis XIV
King Louis XIV was famous French king, known by the nickname Sun King. He ruled for over 70 years, which makes him the longest-serving monarch in European history, and probably in world history.
During his reign, France became one of the largest powers in the world, with a huge army, and the war with the Spaniards was the main one during his reign. He loved gambling so much, that he practically forced all the people around him to gamble and this became the main entertainment in Versailles during his reign.
6. Charles Bukowski
Bukowski is one of the most popular poets and short story writers of the 20th century. He wrote a genre that is mostly called dirty realism. He wrote about the lowest strata of society in Los Angeles, the city where he grew up and lived, even though he was born in Germany.
If you’ve ever read any of his work, you won’t be surprised to find it on this list. Bukowski is synonymous for all vices, primarily alcoholism and gambling. People say that he was very successful in that and that he thought it was better to lose than not to try. If you want to know about American lowlife, then this is the writer you need to read.
7. Harry S. Truman
Truman is not the only proof that even US presidents like to gamble. Truman will be remembered for many things. He is the first and for now the only man who approved an atomic weapon attack on another country. After World War II he distinguished himself as a capable statesman, primarily because of the Marshall Plan and the Truman Doctrine.
He loved to play poker, so even poker tournaments were organized in White House in which even Churchill participated. His predecessor Roosevelt also played poker at the White House with his associates, and later Nixon. It can be said that poker has become very popular in the White House.
Conclusion
These are just some of the most famous people in history who were also gamblers. Descartes, Queen Marie-Antoinette, John Montagu and many others could also find their place on this list.
