La Belle Lucie Solitaire

🎉 Step into the charming world of La Belle Lucie Solitaire! This classic fan‑style patience game (also called Lovely Lucy 😍) deals all 52 cards face-up into 17 small fans (plus one leftover card). The goal is simple but deceptively tricky: build all cards onto four foundations (each Ace up to King by suit) while playing tableau cards in descending suit order. Players love La Belle Lucie for its pleasing, fan‑shaped layout and its “just one more game!” challenge. Each round is a fun brain‑teaser 🧠 – wins are rare (about 1 in 10 deals), so beating the odds feels extra rewarding 🎖️. Shuffle up and see if you can master this beautiful classic!

How to Play

1. Deal the cards: Shuffle a standard deck and lay out 17 fans of 3 cards each, with the remaining card in an 18th fan. All cards are face-up and overlapping (so every card is visible).
2. Start foundations: Immediately move any exposed Aces up to start the four foundation piles (one Ace of each suit). Foundations build up by suit (2♦ on A♦, 3♠ on 2♠, etc.).
3. Play on the tableau: Move cards between fans down by suit – for example, place the 7♣ onto an 8♣. Only the top card of each fan can be moved (the cards underneath remain locked until exposed).
4. Empty spaces stay empty: If a fan empties, leave it empty (you cannot refill it with any card).
5. Reshuffle when stuck: When no more moves are possible, gather all tableau cards (off the foundations), shuffle them, and redeal into fans of three again. Do this up to two times during a game. After the second redeal, if you’re still blocked the game ends.
6. Win the game: Keep moving cards to the foundations whenever possible. You win when all cards are built into the four foundations (each Ace through King in suit).

Rules of the Game

• Setup: Deal all 52 cards into the tableau as 17 fans of 3 cards (the 18th fan has just 1 card). All cards are face-up.
• Movable cards: Only the top card of each fan can be played. You can move it either to a foundation or onto another tableau fan.
• Tableau building: On the tableau, build cards down in suit – e.g. 7♣ can be placed on 8♣. You may only move one card at a time.
• Foundations: Foundations build up in suit, starting from each Ace (Ace→2→3…→King of the same suit).
• Empty spaces: Once a fan is emptied, it cannot be filled again (even with a King).
• Reshuffles: If no more moves are possible, you may collect and reshuffle the tableau cards and redeal into fans again. Up to two reshuffles are allowed.
• Goal: The game is won when all cards have been moved to the foundations.

History of the Game

La Belle Lucie is a classic 19th-century patience game. It originated in France (hence the French name “Beautiful Lucy”) and later spread to England. Its first printed rules appeared in Lady Adelaide Cadogan’s famous Illustrated Games of Patience (1870). Cadogan helped popularize many solitaire games in Victorian England, and La Belle Lucie quickly became a staple in her collection. Over the years the game picked up many nicknames – for example “Lovely Lucy” is simply an English version of the name – as well as variant titles like Clover Leaves, Alexander the Great, and Midnight Oil. Its elegant fan-shaped deal has kept it popular for over a century, making La Belle Lucie a beloved antique of the solitaire family.

Tips and Tricks

• Plan every move: Since all cards are face-up from the start, take a moment to study the layout before playing. Look for potential blockages (e.g. a lower card trapped under a higher one) and plan around them. “Look ahead” – don’t bury cards you need.
• Free the Aces fast: Whenever an Ace is exposed, play it to a foundation immediately. There’s rarely any benefit in holding back a playable card, especially Aces or any card that can go to a foundation.
• Build smartly on piles of one: If a fan has only one card, it’s safe to build on it. You won’t be blocking any other card by covering that single card. Likewise, if a fan has a small descending sequence (like 7♣ on 8♣), it’s generally safe to add to that pile too.
• Watch the Kings: Cards under a King are locked until the King moves to a foundation. So try to free Kings by playing Queens (and then Jacks, etc.) onto them. In early play (before redeals), Kings usually can’t move to the foundation, so it’s often okay to build on a King – just keep track of them for later.
• Avoid stuck sequences: Don’t create piles that can never be moved. For example, don’t place a 7♠ on an 8♠ if you have no place to move that 7♠ later. Always check if the card under your target can move first.
• Use reshuffles wisely: You only get two reshuffles, so don’t waste them until you’re really out of moves. After the second reshuffle, try one final play (in the Three-Shuffles variant you even get one “draw” for a blocked card).
• Stay positive: Remember that La Belle Lucie is famously difficult – only about 10% of games are winnable. Don’t be discouraged if you lose; each game is a puzzle. With practice and careful planning, you’ll improve your odds – and when you do win, it’s that much more satisfying!

Where to Play

Ready to deal? You can play La Belle Lucie Solitaire for free right now on SolitaireX. Just visit solitairex.io/la-belle-lucie-solitaire on your computer or mobile device to start a game immediately – no download required! 😉

More Games

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Sources: Authoritative solitaire guides and histories.