The History of Alquerque
A small jumping game on a board of lines, written down in 13th-century Spain - and the ancestor of checkers.
A Name from Arabic
The name comes from the Arabic al-qirkat, the name of a board game known in the Arab world. It reached Spain under Moorish rule and lived on there as alquerque.
The Book of Games
In 1283 King Alfonso X of Castile had the Libro de los juegos, the Book of Games, completed. Besides chess, dice and tables games it describes alquerque with its rules and illustrations, which makes it one of the earliest written sources for the game.
From Alquerque to Checkers
Checkers is generally seen as a descendant of alquerque: its jumping capture and the rule that a capture must be taken were carried over to the squares of the chessboard. Alquerque itself kept being played, and similar games are known from many regions.
On PaperGames
PaperGames plays the 12-against-12 game on the 5x5 board with compulsory capture. The board's lines are drawn in full, because only they show which diagonal moves exist.