Pétanque originated in La Ciotat, France, around 1910 when Ernest Pitiot adapted the game of Jeu Provençal to accommodate a friend with rheumatism, creating the fixed-feet rule from which the name "pétanque" (meaning "feet planted") derives. This modification simplified the older game by eliminating the required run-up, allowing players to throw their metal balls (boules) while standing within a drawn circle. The modern sport quickly gained popularity, replacing Jeu Provençal and leading to the development of metal balls and the formation of national and international federations in the 20th century.
Before the mid-1800s, European boules games were played with solid wooden balls. The late 1800s saw the introduction of cheap mass-manufactured nails, and wooden boules gradually began to be covered with nails. After World War I, cannonball manufacturing technology was adapted to allow the manufacture of hollow, all-metal boulescalled integrals. the manufacture of steel boules by stamping two steel blanks into hemispheres and then welding the two hemispheres together to create a boule. With this technological advance, hollow all-metal balls rapidly became the norm.
After the development of the all-metal boule, petanque spread rapidly from Provence to the rest of France, then to the rest of Europe, and then to Francophone colonies and countries around the globe. Today there are National Federations throughout the world and Petanque is actively played in most countries in the world.
Barry told us about the rules of the game and how to hold the ball in order to achieve a winning shot on basically a dirt track!
We were invited to join him at the Filton club where we could try to put this new found knowledge into practice and then, maybe, teach the French and Spaniards a thing or two when we next go on holiday.