Games of chance as the source of revolutions: back to the Spa Games Case (1785-1787)

The town of Spa is famous for being a favourite holiday destination for English, French and Austrian aristocrats. Boasting numerous gaming halls, salons and theatres, it was the scene of various diplomatic dealings, both official and unofficial, thanks to the substantial revenue generated by the casinos. As part of the small imperial and ecclesiastical principality of Liège, a de facto state under French rule, Spa was also the setting for a major legal saga: the Spa games affair (1785-1787). Initially based on the question of the right to regulate gambling, the case brought by casino owners against the Prince-Bishop of Liège quickly became the symbol of the new struggle against the Ancien Régime. Fascinated by the France of the Enlightenment, the Spadois casino owners, many of whom formed the hard core of the Liège (1789-1795) and French Revolutions, accused the police and the prince of abusing their powers to muzzle the nation and deprive the people of Liège of their fundamental freedoms to associate, deliberate and gamble freely. This paper therefore proposes to analyse gambling as an economic and political issue in the Principality of Liège at the end of the 18th century. The aim is also to understand how French and Austrian influences affected the political struggle in Liège, which culminated in an armed revolution that mirrored the events in France.