King (playing card)

The King is a playing card with a picture of a king on it. The usual rank of a King is as if it were a 13, that is, above the Queen. In some games, the King ranks high; in others, it ranks below the Ace; in yet others, such as pinochle, it ranks below the 10.

In the standard English playing card deck, the King and the other face cards represent no one in particular. However, the court cards in a French deck do have names. Confusion often arises because the suits in an English deck came from the French deck as well.

Following are the personages represented by the Kings in the French deck:

• King of Spades: David (a Biblical King)
• King of Hearts: Charlemagne (Holy Roman Emperor)
• King of Diamonds: Julius Caesar (Dictator of Rome)
• King of Clubs: Alexander the Great (King of Macedon)