Gleek

This three player game was popular in England in the 16th and 17th centuries. The name must be related to the German gleich (equal); a gleek in this game is a set of three equal cards, and four of a kind is called a mournival.

Gleek was a fairly elaborate game in four main stages:

1. bid for the right to improve your hand by discarding cards and replacing them from the stock;
2. vie (bet) for who has the best ruff (highest value of cards in a suit);
3. declare your gleeks and mournivals;
4. play the cards in tricks; each trick scores and certain trumps have an additional value.

David Parlett's Gleek page gives rules of the game and some historical background.

Another reconstruction can be found on the Gleek page of the Medieval and Renaissance Games site.