Jaques, Makers of Bagatelle Boards & Games. A Great Pub Game For The Whole Family.

Jaques Bagatelle Bagatelle ( the name comes from France from the Château de Bagatelle) is a traditional wooden handmade indoor Pub game.

The hand made wooden Bagatelle is played in a similar way to Billiards. The object of the game of Jaques wooden bagatelle is to get a set number of small metal bagatelle balls (usually nine) past the bagatelle pins in the handmade bagatelle table and in to holes' each of which carry a score. This is how you score is a game of bagatelle, the handmade Jaques game.

The game of bagatelle itself evolved from efforts to bring outdoor games, such as Croquet and Shuffleboard, indoors.

In France at chateau de bagatelle, during the reign of King Louis XIV, Billiard tables (like giant bagatelle and snooker tables) were narrowed and pins placed at one end of the table whilst making the player shoot the balls from the other. Over time the decision was made to fix the pins to the table (as they took too long to reset once knocked over) and targets were replaced with holes. Players would then have to ricochet balls off the fixed pins to reach the harder to reach and higher scoring holes.

In 1777 (18 years before Jaques of London was founded by the now world famous Thomas Jaques) a party at the Château de Bagatelle took place in the King's honor. The highlight at the party was this new table top game in which players shot ivory bagatelle balls up an inclined playfield. The table game was dubbed Bagatelle (like todays Jaques handmade Bagatelle board game) by the comte d'Artois and shortly after swept through France.

bagatelle board game

Above is a photo of the Jaques Handmade Bagatelle Board game being made in the Jaques Wooden Games workshops.

"Bagatelle" in this sense made its debut in English in 1819 and soon afterwards became so popular in America as well that a political cartoon from 1863 depicts President Abraham Lincoln playing a tabletop bagatelle game. Modern-day pinball machines ( now more popular in the USA that bagatelle) also owe their present existence and popularity to this remarkable handmade bagatelle game.

Jaques Hit-a-Pin Bagatelle.

Jaques Bagatelle Board games being made

Above is a photo of Jaques Bagatelle boards stacked and ready for the first phase of spraying.

The Jaques family and Team of bagatelle board game makers craftsman and makers currently manufacture two variations of Bagatelle tables. Jaques' Hit-a-Pin Bagatelle is handcrafted from hardwood, mahogany and brass to the same design as the supplied to Queen Victoria.

Jaques' Hit-a-Pin version conforms to regulation size and correct layout and comes complete with a facsimile copy of Jaques' Bagatelle instructions dating back over 100 years.

Jaques' Trumps Bagatelle is a new larger bagatelle version of the original game of bagatelle game based on the Victorian version of the game. The Trumps version of the game introduces card suits and a double trump feature to create a new element of rapidly changing scores. The Jaques' Trumps Bagatelle table comes complete with a fitted spirit level to ensure a completely flat playing surface.

To see our full collection of Bagatelle Tables, games, handmade , traditional bagatelle and our entire range of traditonal indoor games please click here to visit the Jaques of london online indoor games store.