Free Beleaguered Castle Solitaire Online
Beleaguered Castle is an open solitaire game: all cards are face up, there is no stock, and the four Aces start on the foundations. Solitaire Play offers Beleaguered Castle in your browser for free, with Hint, Undo and a daily challenge, and no download or sign-up.
Official Rules & Scoring
The goal is to move all 52 cards to the four foundations, one per suit, building each up from Ace to King. The four Aces start on the foundations. The other 48 cards are dealt face up into eight columns of six cards each.
- Columns: build down by rank, and suit does not matter: a 6 of any suit goes on a 7 of any suit. Only one card moves at a time, and only the bottom card of a column can move.
- Empty columns: an empty column accepts any card.
- Foundations: add the next card of the same suit on top of the Ace (2, 3, 4 and so on up to the King). Cards on a foundation stay there unless you undo.
- No stock, no free cells, no redeal: every card is visible from the start, so the whole game is planning.
- Winning: you win when all 52 cards are on the foundations. If no move is left, the deal is lost.
Strategy & Tips
- Find the 2s first. The Aces are already up, so the four 2s decide how fast you can start collecting. Free them early.
- Do not bury low cards. Putting a 3 on a 4 on top of a needed 2 makes a stack that is expensive to unpick.
- Make empty columns on purpose. With no free cells, an empty column is your only spare room; it takes any card, so use it to move a card that blocks something important.
- Think before moving a card onto a column. Each card you place also sits on top of everything below it; ask what you will need to reach next.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can every Beleaguered Castle deal be won?
No, not every random deal can be won. New games and the daily challenge only use deals that our solver has proved winnable (it found a full winning line within its search limit of 200,000 positions, and the line was replayed move by move). About 46% of the random deals we screened passed, and only those are kept. Winnable does not mean easy: the solver tries every line, and you have to find one.
Does the suit matter when building columns?
No. Columns are built down by rank only, so a 6 of clubs can go on a 7 of hearts. Suit only matters on the foundations.
Can I move several cards at once?
No. Only the bottom card of a column moves, one card at a time. Plan your moves with that in mind.
What can go into an empty column?
Any card. There are no free cells in this game, so an empty column is the only spare space you have.
Where are the other solitaire games?
Klondike is on the home page, and FreeCell, Spider, Eight Off and many more have their own pages.
Want to play better? Read our Beleaguered Castle strategy guide.