Winning the Lottery A9play It’s All in the Past
The History of Winning the Lottery
It is a long-standing tradition to win the lottery. The Italian lottery, which is a term that means fate or destiny, gave rise to the word “lottery”. Lotto games is the name given to many lottery games in English. The question of how to win a lottery is a worldwide one for many years.
Ancient Lotteries
Lotteries are a well-known, long-standing and fairly controversial tradition. Many biblical passages refer to the drawing of lots to determine ownership. Chapter 26 of the Book of Numbers contains a reference to Moses using a lottery to allocate land west of Jordan. Roman soldiers used lots to determine who would be given Jesus’ cloak in the New Testament.
In 100 BC, China’s Hun Dynasty created Keno, a lottery game. Most of the funds raised went to fund the construction of Great Wall, which was intended as a perimeter defense. The country was more important than winning the lottery.
Origin of Modern Lotteries
Jan Van Eyck’s widow held the first European lottery in 1446 to dispose off his remaining paintings. You would have won a prize of mega millions if you had won this lottery today.
Encyclopedia Britannica states the history of the lottery dates back 15th century France. It was used by towns to raise funds for their defenses. Europe has a rich tradition of citizens identifying themselves with a city, and not a state, or country. A citizen would consider himself to be a Roman rather than an Italian. Lotteries were authorized by King Francis I of France in 1520. La Lotto de Firenze was the first municipality to offer money as a prize. It was started by the city Florence in 1530. The trend was quickly followed by other Italian cities.
Queen Elizabeth I founded the first English state lottery. It offered cash prizes, gold and silver plats, as well a tapestry prize. The lottery offered 400,000 tickets for sale. For a time, the question of how to win a lottery was on everybody’s minds 4d lottery.
King James I, the English monarch, established a lottery system in London through royal decree in 1612. The profits were used to finance Jamestown in Virginia, the first British colony. Two of the three winning prizes were won by Anglican Churches in the first draw.
Winning The Lottery: First National Lottery
France witnessed a significant event in the middle of the 18th century. Giacomo Girolamo Casanova, 1725-1798, convinced Louis XV of France, to establish the first state-owned monopoly lottery. The Loterie Royale Military School was the precursor to the Loterie Nationale. France banned all other lotteries. The lottery was Keno-style and players could choose 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5, numbers between 1 to 90. Casanova had an interest in the lottery. He became wealthy and sold it shortly afterward. The proceeds were lost through unwise investments. This sounds very much like the modern lottery winners.
Origin of American Lotteries
Lotteries were popular in America during the 18th Century, either to fund a venture or pay off debt. Due to military debts, the Massachusetts lottery was the first to be established. The Continental Congress created the first national lottery in 1776 to help raise funds for the American Revolution. The Founding Fathers didn’t care about winning the lottery, but how to raise funds through lotteries. Many Founding Fathers supported and played in lotteries.
Benjamin Franklin used lotteries as a way to finance cannons in the Revolutionary War.
George Washington paid for the construction of Mountain Road. It opened West Virginia up to expansion through a lottery.
Thomas Jefferson, who had $80,000 of debt at the end his life, used a lottery for most of his property. You would have received a precious piece of American heritage if you won this lottery!
John Hancock ran a lottery in order to finance the rebuilding of Faneuil Hall, an historic Boston landmark.
Additionally, many American universities were built through public lotteries, including Harvard, Yale Yale and Columbia. This was a major contribution towards the future of American education.