Who is credited with inventing snooker?

Neville Chamberlain is credited with inventing snooker.

The game is generally traced to 1875 at the British Army officers’ mess in Jubbulpore, India. Lieutenant Neville Francis Fitzgerald Chamberlain is said to have suggested adding coloured balls to a game of black pool played by officers. The new combination eventually became known as snooker.

The name reportedly came from the slang term for a first-year cadet at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. Chamberlain later explained the origin to a fellow officer, and the name became attached to the game. Snooker developed from billiards and pool rather than appearing as a completely unrelated sport. A common confusion is with Joe Davis, who was a major early champion and promoter, not the game’s credited inventor.