Fiction writers of the last century loved to describe the harsh everyday life of Russian officers in exile in this way: people driven to despair and no longer appreciating their lives played Russian roulette. One cartridge was inserted into the revolver, the drum rotated, after which the man made an attempt to shoot himself in the temple. Probably, many have heard about this deadly game. However, the history of her appearance, like other deadly fun in the tsarist army, is not known to everyone.
Fatal shot
Oddly enough it sounds, but the concept of "Russian roulette" in relation to the shocking game with a revolver, in the drum of which there is one cartridge, has a rather indirect relation to Russia. This is not a Chinese tea ceremony or a Spanish bullfight, when a particular action has clearly defined national characteristics. Not! Russian, or, as it is also called, hussar roulette, according to historians, has neither a definite place, nor a reliable date of birth. Only the fearlessness and some adventurism of the Russian officer are associated with Russia this deadly game. True, by indirect signs, one can establish the time when they began to play it directly in the Russian Empire. This sad event happened in 1876 with the arrival of the first batch of 130 thousand Smith-Wesson III revolvers of 10.67 mm caliber into the army. Obviouslyat this time, a reckless test of courage began with one cartridge in the drum.
At the same time, since revolvers were intended exclusively for officers as personal weapons, it is not surprising that the fatal game became widespread among them.
Deadly game rules
A logical question arises: how did the representatives of the officer corps play Russian roulette? Despite the seeming simplicity of the process itself, the game had its own rules. Most often six officers took part in it. One cartridge was inserted into the drum of a six-shot revolver, after which the participants in the fatal amusement spun the drum and tested themselves for courage. In the order of a predetermined queue by lot, the officers brought the revolver to their temples and pulled the trigger. In the event that the shot did not occur, the turn to attempt voluntary suicide passed to the next player. Of course, each next player risked much more than his predecessor. However, there were also more humane versions of the game. In this case, the drum was additionally spun before each shot. An additional element of randomness appeared,and the game lasted a little longer. At the same time, the officers had a much better chance of surviving. However, it also happened that only one cartridge was taken out of a full drum, and the game acquired all the signs of a slightly delayed suicide. In rare cases, the shot was fired not in the temple, but in the hand or in the air, but this fun could not be called Russian roulette.
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Chances to survive
Considering that in two of the three variants of the rules one participant was bound to die, in the 20th century a lot of research papers appeared that studied the psychology of players. But most of all the public, as well as the fans of this game, were interested in the chances of survival after each shot. Such studies have been carried out. Mathematicians calculated that when playing Russian roulette with one cartridge in a six-round revolver without rotating the drum after each shot, the chances of dying for the first player are 16%, for the second - 20%, for the third - 25%, for the fourth - 33%, the fifth - 50%, the sixth always died. The fate of the players was different if the drum was rotated after each shot. In this case, after the first shot, the player could die with a probability of 33%, after the second attempt - 40%, the third - 48%, the fourth - 57%, the fifth - 69%,and the sixth got 83% to die. Despite the fact that the players had a higher chance of dying compared to the first version of the game, there was a 17% chance that all participants in the deadly game would survive. In this version, the game no longer looked so fatal.
The game went on
Talking about Russian roulette, it would be unfair not to mention one interesting fact. The game got its name in the USA, while in the Russian Empire it was called hussar or American roulette. The situation is similar with roller coasters, which today are called Russians overseas. At the same time, it is interesting to note that the first players in the deadly game are not at all the officers of Russia or the United States, but prisoners in American penal colonies of the 19th century. For their own amusement, they were forced to risk their lives by the warders.
In the Russian army, as in the armed forces of other countries of the world, Russian roulette appeared primarily as a semi-legal method of dueling, which was officially strictly prohibited. In this case, there was no one to punish for the death of the loser, and the incident itself was usually attributed to careless handling of weapons. True, it was not easy to deceive the authorities. Considering the almost craze of the officers of the tsarist army for Russian roulette, be it a game, a demonstration of courage or a masked duel, the emperor issued a decree on its strictest prohibition in the army. The officers noticed in the game were demoted in rank, deprived of orders and even sent into retirement. However, the Russian roulette, despite all the punitive measures, continued to exist.
These crazy Russians …
There are no analogues of Russian roulette in the history of other European nations. This is not surprising, because in most religions of the world, suicide, which in essence is such a game, is considered a terrible sin. Only a number of Eastern religious teachings and the pre-Christian faith of the Slavs despise death, which is why the Slavic warriors from time immemorial were considered the most courageous and even invincible!
When it comes to the history of Russian roulette, most historians immediately recall the Ottoman archives that have survived after the Russian-Turkish wars. In them, the Turks noted with horror that terrible fun was popular among the Russian prisoners. They took a revolver with one cartridge, spun the drum and, holding the muzzle to their temples, pulled the trigger. The Turks watched such entertainment with bewilderment and fear.
It is not surprising that Russian roulette reached its peak during the Civil War and emigration, allowing white officers to beautifully settle accounts with a life that had lost its meaning for them. True, some officers, while in exile, earned decent money on games with death. However, usually they did not risk anything. They took a pistol with a freely rotating drum. It is quite logical that during its spinning, the nest with the bullet, as the heaviest, turned out to be below, and not at the muzzle, and the shot never occurred.
Deadly "Cuckoo"
It is interesting that in Russia during the First World War there was an officer's fun, similar to Russian roulette. The game was called "Cuckoo", its rules were extremely cruel.
During the game of Cuckoo, several officers gathered in an abandoned or remote building at dusk. Each of them had to carry a revolver and a decent supply of cartridges for it. They drew lots. The one to whom it fell, was appointed "cuckoo". By candlelight, the officers entered the building and, as soon as it became completely dark, scattered to different corners. Then the candles were extinguished.
The man who happened to be a "cuckoo" had to reveal himself from time to time by shouting "cuckoo", and other officers fired at the voice. The main task was to shoot the tireless "cuckoo" as soon as possible. It happened that the "cuckoo" died after the very first shots, but there are cases when the person on whom the lot fell, "held out until the first roosters and remained alive. It was believed that the "Cuckoo" develops dexterity, attentiveness and the ability to control oneself, if, of course, all the players remained alive …
Magazine: Secrets of the 20th century №41. Author: Dmitry Sokolov