A Brief History of Petanque
Petanque, as a game, spread through France after its invention in the south of the country around 1910. Petanque is a modified version of an older, more athletic game Jue Provencal.
A great player of Jue Provencal, a game played over a length of 15 to 21 metres, Jules le Noir was a champion but chronic rheumatism was preventing him from joining in the competitions taking placed in his home town of La Ciotat. He began to amuse himself by playing a much shorter game and was soon joined by his friend Ernest Pitiot. Between them they devised a new game which Jules, even with his encroaching disability could play.
Others soon became interested in what the two friends were up to and very soon a competition match was organised according to the newly drawn up rules.
The game of Jue Provencal requires the player to deliver the boule with a running throw. The modified game required the player to keep his feet in a circle drawn on the ground “Pieds Tanque” (feet tied). This expression gave rise to the name for the new game Petanque.
In 1930 a mechanic from St Bonnet le Chateau by the name of Jean Blanc invented a method of making steel boule, welding two hemispheres together. These replaced the wooden boule then used for Jue Provencal. These wooden boule had flat headed mails hammered into them and were referred to as “les boule cloutee”.
Many of our players will be playing with JB boules manufactured in St Bonnet le Chateau. Petanque is the second most popular participation sport in France and is now played across the world.
Written by Derek Hart – Chairman of the Jersey Petanque Association
NOVEMBER 2006