14 different variants of Checkers/Draughts from all over the world in one game !
Checkers or Draughts, as it is known in Great Britain, has ancient roots. It is thought that the earliest form of checkers was a game discovered in an archeological dig at Ur in Iraq. Carbon dating makes it appear that this game was played around 3000 B.C. However, the game used a slightly different board, a different number of pieces and no one is quite certain of the exact rules.
In Ancient Egypt a game called Alquerque, which had a 5X5 board was a common and much played game. Historians have traced it as far back as 1400 B.C. It was a game of such popularity that it was played all over the western world for thousands of years.
Around 1100 a Frenchman got the idea of playing the game on a chess board. This meant expanding the number of pieces to 12 on a side. It was then called "Fierges" or "Ferses". It was soon found that making jumps mandatory made the game more challenging.