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Lotteries in the 1690s: Investment or Gamble?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 October 2005

ANNE L. MURPHY
ANNE L. MURPHY
Affiliation:
University of Leicester
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Abstract

In 1693 Thomas Neale, groom porter to their majesties, organised a lottery that offered to its lucky winner a prize of £3,000. The scheme proved a great success, encouraging a variety of entrepreneurs to float similar projects. Indeed, by 1698 lotteries that offered tickets costing as little as one penny allowed all but the most destitute to indulge in dreams of wealth. Although these schemes may be seen as a mere manifestation of the contemporary love of gambling and games of chance, this article argues that they can also reveal much about the nature and progress of the financial revolution.

Type
Research Article
Information
Financial History Review , Volume 12 , Issue 2 , October 2005 , pp. 227 - 246
Copyright
European Association for Banking and Financial History, 2005

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