The Art of Checkmate E-Book

Georges Renaud

• Herausgeber: Batsford
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 274

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Beschreibung

The Art of Checkmate, first published in Monaco in 1947, has remained one of the most popular and enduring chess books of all time, loved by chess players and regularly appearing in top ten lists of their favourites. Remarkably, despite its widespread popularity, the first English edition, published in the 1950s, was marred by careless and faulty translation. But now, for the first time, all these mistakes have been rectified so as to reflect accurately the authors' original work and thereby make the English edition of The Art of Checkmate an even better book. The Art of Checkmate offers the reader a systematic classification of all the principal types of checkmate and the procedures required to achieve these in actual play. Each chapter starts with the basic pattern of the checkmate under consideration and this is followed by an explanation of the process whereby the mate can be carried out. Examples from practical play and test yourself puzzle positions then reinforce the readers' understanding of the mechanics of the checkmate and their ability to deliver crushing and, at times, picturesque checkmates in their own games An enjoyable and easy-to-read book chess instructor that will benefit players of any ability.

Leseprobe

The Art of Checkmate

new translation by Jimmy Adams

Georges Renaud and Victor Kahn

Contents

Translator’s Foreword

Introduction

PART ONE: Picturesque Mates

1. Légal’s Pseudo-Sacrifice

2. The Power of the Double Check

3. The Smothered Mate

4. The Guéridon and Epaulettes Mates

5. The Calabrian Sacrifice

6. Exercises

PART TWO: Typical Mates

1. The Corridor Mate (No. 1)

2. Variation of the Corridor Mate (No. 2)

3. Greco’s Mate (No. 3)

4. Mate No. 4

5. Anastasia’s Mate (No. 5)

6. Boden’s Mate (No. 6)

7. Blackburne’s Mate (No. 7)

8. Exercises

9. Mate No. 8 and Lolli’s Mate

10. Mate No. 9

11. Anderssen’s Mate (Continuation of No. 9)

12. Mate No.10 and Pillsbury’s Mate

13. Exercises

14. Damiano’s Mates (Nos. 11. 12 and 13)

15. Morphy’s Mates (Nos. 14, 15, 16)

16. Exercises

17. Mates with Major Pieces (Nos. 17 and 18)

18. Mate with Minor Pieces (No. 19)

19. Mate of the Two Bishops (No. 20)

20. Mate of the Two Knights (No. 21)

21. Another Bishop and Knight Mate (No. 22)

22. Arabian Mate (No. 23)

23. Pay Attention to the Ranks!

24. Exercises

25. In Search of a Typical Mate

26. Solutions to Exercises

Translator’s Foreword

The Art of Checkmate has been a best selling chess book, praised for its instructional value, ever since it was first published in Monaco in 1947.

However, when the first French to English translation appeared in the 1950s it was severely criticised by the highly respected chess writer and teacher, Cecil Purdy, who wrote in the Australian magazine Chess World:

“The Art of Checkmate by Georges Renaud. and Victor Kahn, former champions of France, is yet another demonstration of how very suited the French literary tradition is to chess exposition. The close attention to the order and neatness of presentation makes study of most of the French chess writers a pleasure. In this case, a clumsy translation has succeeded in making merely delightful what could have been made super-delightful. It is a magnificent exposition of that vital department of chess skill, the mating combination.

The original was L’Art de Faire Mat, of which my copy – I don’t know if a nicer edition was printed – is on poor paper and very unattractive to the eye. Bell’s have produced an English edition in their usual style – well-nigh impossible to better as far as the appearance goes.

The excellence of the presentation is still there, too – the order, the neatness, and the pleasing system of classification according to names, which makes everything so easily remembered, e.g., Légal’s Pseudo-Sacrifice, Greco’s Mate, Anastasia’s Mate, Boden’s Mate, Blackburne’s Mate, Anderssen’s Mate, Pillsbury’s Mate, Damiano’s Mate, Morphy’s Mate, the Arabian Mate, and so on. All these mates – the student discovers – are typical mates that occur daily. They are not ephemeral flights of genius recalled only in print, but part of the stock in trade of every expert player; but a book like this that codifies them so elegantly and interestingly gives even an expert a far better grip of them, so that his chances of scoring a vital extra point in a tournament are appreciably increased. Over and over again, the authors quote instances of forced mates missed by masters in the heat of battle. And for the average player, from now on we list this as a must book.

I am strongly opposed to the view that skill in chess can be attained only by hard work. I once studied a book on the differential calculus that was written quite flippantly, and yet gave a newcomer to the calculus a much better idea of its mysteries than the ponderous school texts I was supposed to be using. A chess book that is interesting and entertaining and yet has the subject all sewn up – that’s the ideal, and Renaud and Kahn have hit the jackpot.

They could, however, institute a lawsuit against the translator. I really must comment on this aspect in the hope that chess publishers may exercise more care in the selection of people for this work. Previously, I railed at some faults in translations of books by Botvinnik – faults that were obvious without knowing Russian. But the translation of Renaud’s and Kahn’s work reaches what I sincerely hope is an all-time low. I am no French scholar, but any fourth-former could fault this stuff.

In almost every page one finds sentences that are not translations at all, or even paraphrases. They contain as much of the original as the pathetic skull of Yorick contained of the soul of that lively jester, and the bones are padded out not with the thoughts of Renaud and Kahn but, rather, thoughts of the translator’s own which he seems – for no valid reason – to prefer ...”

Cecil Purdy then goes on to give illustrative examples to support his criticisms.

Thus it is to rectify these serious shortcomings and do full justice to the original work of Georges Renaud and Victor Kahn, that we have endeavoured to produce a fresh and accurate translation of L’Art de Faire Mat, whilst at the same time converting the old descriptive notation used in the English version to modern figurine algebraic and making various analytical observations, which are given in italic type.

We hope this new edition of a timeless classic will continue to benefit and be enjoyed by players of all strengths for many more years to come.

Introduction

Nothing is more annoying for a player, after he has racked his brains over a position and then selected and made what he thought to be the best move, than to hear a voice in the gallery exclaim in an ironic tone:

“Everyone to their own taste … but in your place I would have preferred to announce mate in two moves.”

And he is astonished to discover that there really was a mate in two moves and that his premature exchange of pieces has destroyed the opportunity for ever. He curses himself for not having seen it.

Here is a typical example. In the diagram position it was Black to move in a club tournament. The player of the Black pieces thought for a short moment, then he picked up his Queen, held it for a moment in the air and placed it triumphantly on d3. Indeed, he threatened … ♕c2 mate.

White sacrificed the exchange by ♖xf5 and having two pawns more, exchanged Queens a few moves later and easily won the game.

When it was all over, the loser said:

“There was nothing I could do. I had sacrificed two pawns and the exchange for an attack that didn’t come off.”

Replacing the pieces in the diagram position, we showed him that there was a forced mate in two moves. The player thought for a few minutes and finally exclaimed:

“Well, I never ...”

At last, albeit a little late, he saw the mate:

1 ... ♕c3+! 2 bxc3 ♗a3 mate.

However this is a classic mate which, ever since the distant day in 1857 that Boden played it for the first time, has been reproduced a considerable number of times. Perhaps the same player had seen it in a chess book or magazine. But as no one had drawn his attention to the mechanism of this mate, the position was as new to him.

The first thing the student must do is to learn how to spot the mates. One will never be a good player if one cannot detect these mates and if one does not know how to carry them out.

If an amateur, with some practical experience, is shown a position and told: “There is a mate in five moves, find it!,” he will discover it more or less easily, perhaps after a period of reflection but he will always discover it.

But let this amateur encounter the same position in a game and eighty per cent of the time, if not more, he will be blind to the mate.

Even very great masters have not escaped such misfortunes. Here are two examples that are particularly instructive:

Chigorin, in a match against Schiffers, played in Russia in 1897, reached the following position with Black:

He played ... b6 and the game was drawn, whereas he could have announced mate in five moves.

1

...

♖h1+!

2

♘xh1

♗h2+!

3

♔xh2

♖h8+

4

♔g3

♘f5+

5

♔ any

♖h4 mate.

At the tournament in Hastings in 1937/1938, the winner S. Reshevsky, having the Black pieces against W. Fairhurst, thought a long while in the position shown in the diagram and finally played 1 ... h6? However, he could have carried out a classic mate:

1

...

♖c1+

2

♗xc1

♕a7+

3

♕b6

♕xb6+

4

♖d4

♕xd4+

5

♔h1

♘f2+

6

♔g1

♘h3++

7

♔ any

♕ mates.

One could multiply examples of this sort. Magazines and chess columns have created a topic: ‘Blunders of the Masters’. Such a title is encouraging for the amateur.

But there is a lesson to be drawn from these blunders. For if great masters such as Chigorin and Reshevsky did not see – accidentally and no doubt pressed for time – such mates in a given number of moves, how many will always be overlooked by amateurs?

Yet mates in a given number of moves are the simplest of all the combinations, since more often than not they consist of a series of checks with forced replies. In addition, the majority of these mates can be reduced to a few standard types whose characteristics are easy to remember.

It is necessary to know these typical mating positions:

1) In order to apply them automatically and without loss of time when coming across them in games;

2) In order to try to obtain them when one has the attack;

3) In order to carefully avoid becoming a victim oneself.

When you are playing, there is no guardian angel to grab your arm as you are about to make a mistaken move and whisper in your ear, when the moment has come:

“Take care, my friend. There is a mate in four moves here, absolutely forced. Find it and do not miss the opportunity.”

And the following lines are designed to accompany you, dear reader, in the role of this good and useful guardian angel.

The majority of manuals reproduce a famous game, at rook odds, which was played move by move, blow by blow, by Walker, Morphy and Steinitz, against amateurs. Let’s examine it too and try to understand the way these three great players were able to deliver mate in the same manner against an inexperienced opponent.

GAME NO. 1

Evans Gambit Accepted

New York, 1857

P. Morphy – Amateur

(Remove White’s Queen’s Rook)

1

e4

e5

2

♘f3

♘c6

3

♗c4

♗c5

4

b4

♗xb4

5

c3

♗a5

6

d4

exd4

7

0-0

A century ago this opening was played as automatically as the first seven moves of the Orthodox Defence of the Queen’s Gambit are nowadays.

7

...

♘f6?

Experience has shown us that the only playable move in this position is 7 ... ♗b6.

8

♗a3

♗b6?

There is already no satisfactory move. The only one which allows Black further resistance is 8 ... d6. From now on the game proceeds like clockwork.

9

♕b3

d5

Giving back a Pawn to escape the opponent’s clutches.

10

exd5

♘a5

With this simultaneous attack on White’s Queen and Bishop, Black hopes to get rid of the dangerous Bishop.

11

♖e1+

♗e6

Here starts an entertaining combination. White, who is already playing at Rook odds, sacrifices his Queen.

12

dxe6!

♘xb3

Of course he should not take the Queen. But in the 19th century, amateurs always allowed themselves to be tempted by their opponent’s gifts. Anyway this has hardly changed. It is a common misconception with some players that they imagine they are playing against a novice who has thoughtlessly left his Queen en prise.

White announces mate in six moves:

13

exf7+

♔d7

14

♗e6+

♔c6

15

♘e5+

♔b5

16

♗c4+

♔a5

17

♗b4+

♔a4

18

axb3

mate.

Can we teach the technique of such a mate? We do not think so. There is no recipe. The King was collected at its initial square and dragged gradually to the other side of the board, right up to a4, where it was mated.

An experienced player feels instinctively that positions, such as the one in the diagram, are rich in possibilities and so he searches. As here all the moves are forced and as there are no variations, it is relatively easy, with a little practice, to calculate the consequences of the Queen sacrifice and to see that seven moves later the King will be mated. And even if he is not able to see this exactly, the discerning player will ‘feel’ that the enemy King is about to embark on a journey from which it will not return.

We can also mention another no less famous game which appears in all the text books.

GAME NO. 2

Dutch Defence

London, 1912

Ed. Lasker – Sir George Thomas

1

d4

e6

2

♘f3

f5

3

♘c3

♘f6

4

♗g5

♗e7

5

♗xf6

♗xf6

6

e4

fxe4

7

♘xe4

b6

8

♘e5

0-0

9

♗d3

♗b7

10

♕h5

If 10 ... h6 11 ♕g6 wins. [But 10 ... g6 11♘xg6 hxg6 12♕xg6+♗g7 13♘g5 (or 13♘d6)♖f6! defends. And 10 ...♗xe5 11♘d2! g6 12♕xe5 maintains equality.]

10

...

♕e7

The text move seems to save the game, since the h7 square is covered by the Queen after 11 ♘xf6+ gxf6. This position, however, is as full of hidden possibilities as the one in the Morphy game. And Edward Lasker announced mate in 8 moves.

11

♕xh7+!!

♔xh7

12

♘xf6++

♔h6

13

♘eg4+!

♔g5

14

h4+

♔f4

15

g3+

♔f3

16

♗e2+

♔g2

17

♖h2+

♔g1

18

♔d2 mate.

This mate seems amazing to the novice. However, since all the moves of the Black King are forced, it can be calculated precisely without the need for considerable mental effort.

But, here again, even if we gather together a hundred examples of King walks across the chess board, it is not possible to lay down rules.

The idea is to sacrifice material in order to draw out the King from its seemingly safe position, then, by a series of checks, corner it on the fatal mating square.

It is a question of rapid judgment, imagination and practice.

In 1940 and 1941, once a week, the authors voluntarily held a public chess course for some students. It included theoretical training on a demonstration board, practical exercises and simultaneous games. On these occasions they learned a lot themselves and this book was prompted by their training lessons.

To be able to deliver mate in a given position, two things are necessary:

1) To recognize that there is the possibility of a mate.

2) To know how to carry out this mate.

We have therefore endeavoured to classify methodically the typical mating positions. For each of these we have established a scheme. For each scheme we have explained the mechanism of the mate.

We then give examples drawn from practice. These examples are of three types.

The first includes games which end with the typical mate.

The second includes games which end with a variation, a modification of the typical mate.

The third is more complex. In fact, between experienced players of good playing strength, one will have difficulty in carrying out a typical mate. But one threatens to carry it out. And to avoid this threat, the opponent will often be compelled to make a defensive move, which weakens his position or loses material.

In ninety-five percent of games the two opponents castle. In ninety percent of the games where the opponents castle, one or the other castle on the King’s side. So, in practice, nine times out of ten, it is against King’s side castling that one mounts an attack. It is therefore a castled position on the King’s side which above all we will come to attack.

In all the examples which follow, we assume – unless otherwise specified – that the castled position to attack is the short side castling of the Black King. It goes without saying that everything we say about short side castling of the Black King applies to short side castling of the White King.

To attack the enemy king a certain number of preliminary conditions have to be fulfilled:

1) The castled position must have a weakness.

There are two kinds of weaknesses:

a) Lasting and irrevocable weaknesses.

These are the advance of one or several of the Pawns defending the castled position, namely the f, g and h-Pawns.

b) Momentary and other similar weaknesses.

These are the removal or the absence of Pieces which defend the castled position, namely the King’s Knight, generally placed on f6, and the Piece defending the King’s Knight, be it the ♗e7, ♘d7 or ♕d8.

2) White must be able to attack these weaknesses.

To attack the weaknesses, it is necessary:

a) To have open lines (files, ranks or diagonals) against the castled position;

b) To have Pieces on these open lines.

c) To have more Pieces for the attack than the opponent has for the defence.

It is immaterial whether the defender has more Pieces than the attacker. What is essential is that he does not have the possibility of bringing them in time and to the desired place for the defence.

Time and again it is necessary to apply these principles. Indeed these principles are equally applicable for attack and position play. They govern the conduct of the game.

In this way our study, though limited in its objective – typical mating positions – by the same token will introduce the reader, gradually and effortlessly, to handy methods of conducting a game well.

Isn’t the best way to learn the major principles of play by getting to know them through their application in the most brutal and most dramatic positions arising on the chess board: those which offer mates announced in a given number of moves.

And this will serve as the best introduction to a further book we are preparing, which will deal with the conduct of the game.

Finally, a remark to end this introduction. The typical mates we are going to examine are often encountered in practical play. But often does not mean always. On the contrary, between players of the same strength, it is extremely rare that a game ends in an announced mate. One of the opponents resigns because he has lost a Piece, or simply a Pawn, because he sees that after the exchange of material he will be left with a hopeless endgame.

We must not therefore imagine that in all his games a player will have the opportunity to deliver a typical mate and that in order to achieve this he must embark on reckless sacrifices. Each of these mates, in order to be carried out, requires that a certain number of conditions are met. If one is missing then the sacrifice will be in vain. The player will just be left one or two pieces down and his game will be lost.

Let us be bold, certainly … it is the only way to win. But let us have good judgement as well.

Part One:

PICTURESQUE MATES

In the first section, we are going to study Légal’s Pseudo-Sacrifice and show that it is a mechanism applicable to many positions; the power of the double check, because the double check is one of the fundamental elements of a mating attack; the Smothered Mate, which belongs in a mating category of its own; the Epaulettes and Guèridon Mates, which are in fact simply a curiosity, and finally the Calabrian Sacrifice.

These diverse mates are heterogeneous. They could be classified differently. They are not, in the sense of the term as we understand it, typical mates, apart from the Calabrian Mate. We have grouped them under the arbitrary title of ‘Picturesque Mates.’

CHAPTER 1:

Légal’s Pseudo-Sacrifice

We have not called this chapter ‘Légal’s Mate,’ but ‘Légal’s Pseudo-Sacrifice.’ Indeed it is not so much a mate that we are proposing to study as an attacking manoeuvre.

In certain cases this manoeuvre leads to a mate. In other cases it leads to a decisive gain of material.

GAME NO. 3

Philidor Defence

Paris, about 1750

Kermur de Légal – X

De Kermur, Sire de Légal (1702-1792), born in Paris, was a strong French player, considered the champion of the Café de la Régence until he was beaten by A.D. Philidor, whom he had taught the game.

1

e4

e5

2

♘f3

d6

3

♗c4

♗g4

This move violates a general principle of open games, enunciated for the first time by Emanuel Lasker (1896). In an open game, that is to say where, on the part of the other player, the e-Pawn has been advanced two squares, it is not always advisable to pin the opponent’s King’s Knight before he has castled.

There are three reasons for this.

First of all because this bishop can be chased away with gain of time by h2-h3 (or … h7-h6 if it was White who played ♗g5) or be induced to exchange … ♗g4xf3, which speeds up White’s development and gets into play the Queen after it recaptures the Bishop.

Then because the Knight, which at the start of the game can only reasonably come out on two or three well defined squares (f6, c6, d7), should preferably be developed before the Bishop, which has the choice of several moves according to the formation adopted by the opponent.

Finally, because the pin on a Knight, which is absolute when the King is behind, is only relative when it is the Queen. The Knight can move, be it with check or with a mating threat, and the Bishop, if it is unprotected or insufficiently protected on g4, ‘hanging’ as they say, will be en prise.

4

♘c3

g6?

5

♘xe5!

This brilliant move, devised by Légal, leaves the Queen en prise. That does not matter because it introduces a threat of mate in two moves, that is to say if it were White’s move now he would mate by 6 ♗xf7+ ♔e7 7 ♘d5 mate.

5

...

♗xd1??

A major blunder. Black has not seen the threat and thoughtlessly rushes to take the Queen, without considering that the opponent is neither foolish nor forgetful, and that he is perfectly aware that he has left the Queen en prise.

The lesser evil is the reply 5 ... dxe5. But after 6 ♕xg4, White has recaptured the piece and remains with the advantage of a Pawn and a decisive lead in development.

White announces mate in two moves.

6

♗xf7+

♔e7

7

♘d5 mate.

The Typical Légal Mate

What good, you may think, is it to spend such a long time on this mate? It is over two hundred years old. It is famous. It is quoted as an example in all the chess books. All amateurs know it. There is no chance whatsoever of pulling it off again.

Not at all. First and foremost we ask you not to learn it by heart but to grasp the precise mechanism, to understand that the Bishop on g4 is ‘hanging’, that is to say exposed to capture if the Knight moves to threaten mate. But this mechanism appears in many positions as a latent threat and the opponent, if he pins your King’s Knight, is obliged to take this into account.

Finally, do not assume that because a mate is famous and more than two centuries old no one will fall for it. All strong players know that in a simultaneous exhibition it is rare that one is unable to make use of it. The victims are well aware of Légal’s mate. But not having recognised the position – perhaps because some detail is different from that which they have seen and indeed learned by heart, but without properly understanding the mechanics of it– they get caught out like novices. There are even games played by correspondence where it had been possible to make Légal’s sacrifice.

Here, by way of example, are a few instructive games.

GAME NO. 4

Scotch Gambit

Vienna, 1847

E. Falkbeer – X

Ernst Falkbeer (1819-1885) was a strong Austrian player and the inventor of the gambit which bears his name: 1 e4 e5 2 f4 d5!

1

e4

e5

2

♘f3

♘c6

3

d4

exd4

4

♗c4

White offers a Pawn to speed up his development.

4

...

d6

Black shuts in his King’s Bishop and defends passively. Better would have been 4 ... ♘f6, developing a Piece.

5

c3

Making it a Pawn sacrifice. The Pawn could have been recaptured by 5 ♘xd4. But White prefers to get his pieces into play.

5

...

dxc3

6

♘xc3

♗g4

The bad pin.

7

0-0

♘e5

A presumptuous move. Black, who is already behind in his development, imagines that he has the right to attack. The refutation comes immediately and convincingly.

8

♘xe5!

Winning at least a Piece. Black’s best reply would in fact be 8 ... dxe5 9 ♕xg4 with a Bishop more and a lead in development. But Black is greedy and blind.

8

...

♗xd1?

9

♗xf7+

♔e7

10

♘d5 mate.

GAME NO. 5

Vienna Game

Played in a twelve board simultaneous blindfold exhibition, Hanover, 1900

H. N. Pillsbury – Fernandez

Harry Nelson Pillsbury (1872-1906) was the strongest authentically American player since Morphy. A player of aggressive temperament, he gained many successes in international tournaments: 1st, Hastings, 1895; 2nd, Paris 1900; 1st, Munich 1900. A remarkable blindfold player, he was in his day the holder of the world record with twenty-three simultaneous games. He gave his name to a variation of the Queen’s Gambit Declined, commonly known as the Cambridge Springs Defence, and also an attacking formation in the same gambit. He was Champion of the United States from 1897 until his death.

1

e4

e5

2

♘c3

♘c6

3

f4

d6

4

♘f3

a6?

A lost tempo.

5

♗c4

♗g4

Always the absurd pin.

6

fxe5

♘xe5?

Once again, the same misplaced ambition. It is the second player, having already lost time in playing … a6, having blocked in his King’s Bishop by … d6, who has the naïve pretension to want to attack!

7

♘xe5!

♗xd1??

And the unsuspecting guzzler pounces on the queen.

8

♗xf7+

♔e7

9

♘d5 mate.

GAME NO. 6

Danish Gambit

Great Britain, 1912

A. G. Essery – F. H. Warren

Both players were British amateurs.

1

e4

e5

2

d4

exd4

3

c3

dxc3

4

♗c4

d6

5

♘xc3

♘f6

6

♘f3

♗g4

Wherever Chess is played, this pin seems to be an irresistible attraction for many players.

7

0-0

♘c6

8

♗g5

Sensing the coming blunder, White pins the enemy King’s Knight in advance.

8

...

♘e5

The blunder comes ... always the same.

The refutation too!

9

♘xe5

♗xd1

10

♗xf7+

♔e7

11

♘d5 mate.

Mate is possible, despite the presence of the King’s Knight on f6, on account of the real pin by the Bishop on g5.

GAME NO. 7

Italian Opening

Played in a simultaneous exhibition at Leysin, 1929

A. Chéron – X

André Chéron (1895-1980), born in Colombes, was Champion of France three times (1926, 1927 and 1929). He was the author of the Traité Complet d’Echecs (Brussels 1927), which was rightly regarded as one of the best chess manuals of the time. André Cheron specialized at first in didactic studies and systematized the rules of the various endgames featuring rook and pawn against rook.

He was also a well-known and successful problem composer whose specialty was the strategical problem, pioneered in France by G. Renaud, and in Les Echecs Artistiques his presentation of the theory of this type of problem is a model of logic.

1

e4

e5

2

♘f3

♘c6

3

♗c4

d6

4

♘c3

♗g4

5

h3

♗h5?

He had to play 5 ... ♗xf3 and no harm would have come to him.

6

♘xe5

♗xd1?

The lesser evil was 6 ... ♘xe5 7 ♕xh5 ♘xc4 8 ♕b5+, followed by 9 ♕xc4 and White has an extra Pawn and a good game.

7

♗xf7+

♔e7

8

♘d5 mate.

The Second Form of the Légal Mate

If the e7 square (or e2 if it is White who is under attack) is already either obstructed or guarded (usually by a Bishop), there is no longer the need for a Knight to give mate and the Légal sacrifice is possible and effective without the intervention of the Queen’s Knight.

Let’s start with a didactic example composed for demonstration purposes.

GAME NO. 8

Alapin Opening

1

e4

e5

2

♘e2

It is already bad to play a Piece to a square where it hampers the development of another Piece. Here the Queen and the Bishop are blocked.

2

...

♘f6

3

d3

♗c5

4

♗g5

The bad pin.

4

...

♘xe4!

5

♗xd8??

♗xf2 mate.

Examples abound of Légal’s sacrifice in this kind of position. Of course it is not always as simple as in the preceding schematic game. Here are a few more which the student will find fruitful.

GAME NO. 9

Italian Opening

Germany, 1837

B. Horwitz – L. Bledow

1

e4

e5

2

♘f3

♘c6

3

♗c4

♗c5

4

c3

♗b6

5

d4

♕e7

6

d5

♘d8

7

♗e2

d6

8

h3?

f5

9

♗g5

♘f6

10

♘bd2

0-0

11

♘h4

fxe4

12

♘xe4

12

...

♘xe4

The Légal sacrifice. White accepts it and falls headlong into the trap.

And don’t suppose that B. Horwitz was a duffer. This strong Mecklenburg player (1807-1885) was resident in London, where he collaborated with J.Kling on a collection of studies and endgames, Chess Studies, 1851, which is justly famous.

His conqueror, Ludwig Bledow, a good German player, was the inventor of a counter-gambit which bears his name. Only we are in 1837. The Légal sacrifice was only a century old…

13

♗xe7

♗xf2+

14

♔f1

♘g3 mate.

This mate and the sacrifice that preceded it would not have been possible if White had not played the pointless 8 h3.

GAME NO. 10

Philidor Defence

Played in 1852

C. F. Smith – X

(Remove White’s Queen’s Knight)

1

e4

e5

2

♘f3

d6

3

♗c4

c6

4

d4

♗e6?

5

♗g5

♕d7?

6

♕e2

♗g4?

7

dxe5

dxe5

8

♖d1

♕c7

9

♘xe5!

♗xe2?

10

♖d8+

To deflect the Queen.

10

...

♕xd8

11

♗xf7 mate.

GAME NO. 11

Ruy Lopez

Graz, 1888

J. Berger – Frolich

The player of the White pieces, Johann Berger, from Graz in Austria (1845-1933), was at the time a strong player who distinguished himself in international tournaments, a talented problem composer, a composer of studies and the author of a book on end-games, Theorie und Praxis der Endspiele (Leipzig, 1890), which is still regarded as authoritative the world over.

1

e4

e5

2

♘c3

♘c6

3

♘f3

d6

4

♗b5

♗g4

5

♘d5

♘ge7

6

c3

a6

7

♗a4

b5

8

♗b3

♘a5

Instead of thinking about getting castled, Black indulges in inappropriate manoeuvres on the Queen’s wing.

9

♘xe5!

♗xd1?

Note the pretty variation: 9 ... ♘xb3 10 ♘xg4 ♘xa1 11 ♘gf6+! gxf6 12 ♘xf6 mate! Upon the better defence, Black loses a Pawn. For example: 9 ... ♘xb3 10 ♘xg4 ♘xd5 11 axb3 etc.

10

♘f6+

gxf6

11

♗xf7 mate.

GAME NO. 12

Four Knights’ Opening

Played in 1890

Pollock – Hall

1

e4

e5

2

♘f3

♘c6

3

♘c3

♗b4

4

♗c4

♘f6

5

0-0

d6

6

♘d5

♗g4

7

c3

♗c5

8

d3

♘e7

This position is reminiscent of that in the Berger game.

9

♘xe5!

♗xd1?

10

♘xf6+

10

...

gxf6

If instead 10 ... ♔f8 11 ♘ed7+ ♕xd7 12 ♘xd7+ ♔e8 13 ♘xc5, followed by 14 ♖xd1.

11

♗xf7+

♔f8

12

♗h6 mate.

GAME NO. 13

Philidor Defence

Played in 1868 in a tournament at the New York Chess Club

G. H. Mackenzie – F. Perrin

George Henry Mackenzie, born in Bellfield (Scotland) in 1837, died in New York in 1891, became a naturalised American in 1858, was a captain during the War of Secession, and obtained success in international tournaments between 1870 and 1890. He was 1st at Frankfurt ahead of J. Blackburne, S. Bardeleben, S. Tarrasch and J. Berger.

F. Perrin, an American player, was above all known for the games he lost against Morphy.

1

e4

e5

2

♘f3

d6

3

d4

f6

4

♗c4

♕e7?

5

0-0

♘c6

6

♘c3

♗g4

7

♘d5

♕d8

8

c3

♘ge7

9

dxe5

♘xe5

10

♘xe5!

♗xd1

11

♘xf6+

gxf6

12

♗f7 mate.

When the defending King’s Knight has been moved or exchanged

The King’s Knight is essential both for the defence of the Kingside castled position and also the protection of the King if it still remains on its initial square.