Bridge in History
KING HENRY'S SIX PARTNERS

By Terry Coulson

It is truly said that history repeats itself. Like the Emperor Nero some 1500 years earlier, Henry VIII had great difficulty in finding a bridge partner to his liking. It is a tribute to his strength of character and the headsman's biceps that he kept on trying. Nor were partners his only problem. Bridge's governing body in Henry's day was the Universal Bridge Union in Rome, which was promoting Standard Universal, a bidding system incorporating five-card majors and a strong no-trump. Henry went along with the UBU in this although he had reservations, secretly suspecting that a weak no-trump and four-card majors might well be superior.

As a loyal member of the UBU, Henry felt it to be his duty to set up the Palace Bridge Club where he ran a series of Duplicate Pairs organised by his chief TD, Thomas Wolsey. Having married Catherine of Aragon who, the UBU assured him, was a strong player, Henry looked forward to many successful sessions of pairs with her as his partner. However, he had to muster all his patience, for success seemed al-ways to elude them.

"You're just not delivering!" he would tell her.

"No comprendo," she would reply, stubbornly. "Espaņol, por favor!"

When not playing bridge, Henry liked to travel the country, meeting his subjects. It was on one such progression through Kent that he met young Anne Boleyn at Hever Castle. Accompanied by the two Thomases, Cranmer and Cromwell, he persuaded Anne to make up a four and her beguiling skills at the game so captivated Henry that he could soon think of nothing but making her his regular partner.

One of Anne's plays with which he was so impressed was the following:

Dealer: South. E/W Vul.     10 8 6   9 6 4   A K 7 6   7 5 4     Q 9   K J 10 3 2   4 3 2   J 10 9   J 7 5 4 3 2   Q 5   Q J 10   Q 2     A K   A 8 7   9 8 5   A K 8 6 3

Cranmer, playing Standard Universal of course, opened the orthodox strong no-trump. Cromwell invited and, with his maximum, Cranmer bid the game. Henry led the J and Cranmer could see seven top tricks. The needful two extras would be available from his club suit given the likely 3:2 break, but he would have to lose a club and that might require some care. If, as seemed likely, Henry held the heart length, it would be vital to lose that club trick to East.

With his plan of campaign formulated, Cranmer played small from dummy and ducked Anne's Q. She continued with the 5 and Cranmer mistakenly ducked again (the Rule of Seven was not part of the credo he recited daily). Henry won and continued with his 2 on which Anne dropped the Q. Al-though no longer entertaining much hope of success, Cranmer crossed to dummy in diamonds to lead towards his clubs in case Anne had started with the Q-J doubleton, but when she followed with the deuce he saw no way of avoiding defeat. He took his two top clubs and exited with a club. Henry won and cashed his two good hearts taking Cranmer one down.

"Lack-a-day!" lamented Cranmer. "I should have taken the second heart. Nevertheless, a veritable brilliancy, Mistress Anne!"

"What?" demanded Henry. "What?"

"Why the Q, of course, Sire!" said Cranmer.

"Well, we all pull the wrong card now and then," Henry said indulgently. "Happily, it wasn't disastrous on this occasion!"

"I found it so," Cranmer said regretfully. "Had she not unblocked it, I should have prevailed. When she played it, I would have let it hold and your J would have been dead."

"By my troth!" Henry mused. "As true as gospel, Archbishop!. What a partner you are, my pretty, to be sure!"

On his return to London, Henry lost no time in finding Wolsey. "Look, Tommy," he said, "I don't want to get up-wind of the UBU so off to Rome with you and get this sorted!" In this, Thomas was unsuccessful. The king was enraged and, when he discovered that Wolsey was running a bridge club at Hampton Court which was even more successful than the Palace BC, radical changes were inevitable.

Henry dispossessed Wolsey of his tournament directorship, and took over the Hampton BC. He broke with the UBU and set up the English Bridge Fede-ration, with himself as its head. The way was now clear to get rid of Catherine, to take Anne as his partner, and to set about popularising Standard English with his own favourite bidding ideas, viz strong 2, weak no-trump, four-card majors - much like present-day Acol.

Poor Anne did not remain in favour for long, and was soon succeeded by Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves and Cather-ine Howard, each in turn falling from grace. Henry spent his declining years playing kitchen bridge, partnered by the homely Catherine Parr. Whilst catering admirably for all the old king's other needs, Catherine fell lamentably short at the bridge table. She dutifully memorised all his fads and fancies, and all his physician's tiresome instructions, but found insurmoun-table difficulty in remembering which cards had been played and in devising a successful game plan.

For example, Catherine as South in 4 had lost three tricks and, on lead at trick nine, required all of the remaining five:

K Q   -   8 7 6   -     J 10 9   -   J 9   -   7 3   -   -   Q 9 8     8 5 4   10 9   -   -

Henry, sitting North, had followed the play closely and was aghast to watch impotently as Catherine crossed twice to dummy in spades and used her two remaining trumps to ruff diamonds, leaving herself with a good diamond in dummy with no entry to it and a losing spade in hand. She sighed resignedly and accepted her one trick defeat.

Henry also sighed. "You knew from the early play, dear wife, that the outstanding diamonds were 2-0. Did you not see," he asked through gritted teeth, "that ruffing two diamonds was a hopeless line to take?"

"I did think it might be," she said complacently, "but what can I do?"

"First lead a trump," he explained. "If West throws a diamond, one ruff esta-blishes the suit whilst dummy still has an entry. If he throws a spade, take dum-my's king and queen, then ruff back to hand to enjoy the 8."

"You're so clever, Henry!" she said admiringly.

Henry heaved another heavy sigh. That a lifetime devoted to seeking a good partner should have ended thus!