This lesson will consist of a preliminary game of chess. You can follow along with your chess board and pieces. Example and study the chess moves and consider why they are made. What would you do in a similar situation. How would you counter the attack.
Enjoy this instruction which shall exhibit the application of some technical phrases in use at chess, and at the same time show a few of the most prominent errors into which an inexperienced player is likely to fall.
In this game, as in all the analyses which follow, the reader will be supposed to play the White Pieces and to have the first move, although, as it has been before remarked, it is advisable for you to accustom yourself to play with either Black or White, for which purpose it is well to practice the attack, first with the White and then with the Black Pieces.
WHITE. | BLACK. |
1. K's P. to K's 4th. | 1. K's P. to K's 4th. |
When the men are first arranged in battle order, it is seen that the only Pieces which have the power of moving are the Knights, and that to liberate the others it is indispensably necessary to move a Pawn. Now, as the King's Pawn, on being moved, gives freedom both to the Queen and to the King's Bishop, it is more frequently played at the beginning of the game than any other. You will remember, in speaking of the Pawns it was shown that on certain conditions they have the privilege of going either one or two steps when they are first moved.
2. K's B. to Q's B's 4th. | 2. K's B. to Q's B's 4th. |
Thus far the game illustrative of the King's Bishop's opening is correctly begun. Each party plays his King's Bishop thus, because it attacks the most vulnerable point of the adverse position, viz., the King's Bishop's Pawn.
3. Q. B's Pawn to B's 3d. | 3. Q's Knight to B's 3d. |
In playing this Pawn your object is afterwards to play Queen's Pawn to Queen's 4th square, and thus establish your Pawns in the center; but Black foresees the intention, and thinks to prevent its execution by bringing another Piece to bear upon the square.
4. Q's Pawn to Q's 4th. | 4. Pawn takes Q's Pawn. |
5. Q's B's Pawn takes Pawn. | 5. K's B. takes Pawn. |
Here you have played without due consideration. Black's third move of Queen's Knight to Bishop's 3d square was a bad one, and afforded you an opportunity of gaining a striking advantage, but omitting this, you have enabled him to gain a valuable Pawn for nothing. Observe, now, your reply to his third move was good enough, (4. Queen's Pawn to Queen's 4th square), but when he took your Pawn with his, instead of taking again, you ought to have taken his King's Bishop's Pawn with your Bishop, giving check: the game would then most probably have gone on thus:—
5. K's B. takes K. B. Pawn (ch.) | 5. K. takes Bishop. |
6. Queen to K. R's 5th (check). | 6. K. to his B's square. |
7. Queen takes K's Bishop (check). |
In this variation, you see Black has lost his King's Bishop's Pawn, and what is worse, has lost his privilege of castling, by being forced to move his King; and although for a moment he had gained a Bishop for a Pawn, it was quite clear that he must lose a Bishop in return by the check of the adverse Queen at King's Rook's 5th square. It is true that he need not have taken the Bishop, but still his King must have moved, and White could then have taken the King's Knight with his Bishop, having always the better position.
But now to proceed with the actual game:—
6. K's Knight to K's B's 3d. | 6. Queen to K's B's 3d. |
Bringing out the Knight is good play; you not only threaten to win his Bishop, but you afford yourself an opportunity of castling whenever it may be needful. Black would have played better in retiring the Bishop from the attack to Queen's Knight 3d square than in supporting it with the Queen.
7. Knight takes Bishop. | 7. Queen takes Knight. |
Both parties played well in their last moves. You rightly took off the Bishop, because supported by the Queen he menaced your Queen's Kt's Pawn, and Black properly retook with his Queen instead of the Knight, because having a Pawn ahead, it was his interest to exchange off the Queens.
8. Q's Knight to Q's 2d. | 8. K's Knight to B's 3d. |
You played correctly here in not exchanging Queens, and also in protecting your Bishop and your King's Pawn, both of which were attacked by the adverse Queen; but all this might have been done without impeding the movements of any of your Pieces, by simply playing Queen to King's 2d sq.; as it is, the Knight entirely shuts your Queen's Bishop from the field. Black properly brings another Piece to the attack of your King's Pawn:—
9. K. B's Pawn to B's 3d. | 9. Q's Knight to King's 4th. |
In protecting the King's Pawn with your K. Bishop's Pawn, you are guilty of a very common error among young players; as you improve, you will find that it is rarely good play to move the K. Bishop's Pawn to the third square—in the present instance, for example, you have deprived yourself of the power of castling, at least for some time, since the adverse Queen now commands the very square upon which your King, in castling on his own side, has to move. Black's last move is much more sensible. He again attacks your Bishop, and by the same move brings his Q's Knight into co-operation with the King's, on the weak point of your position:—
10. Pawn to Q. Kt's 3d. | 10. Q. takes Queen's Rook. |
This is a serious blunder indeed. In your anxiety to save the threatened Bishop, which you feared to withdraw to Q. Kt's 3d sq., on account of the adverse Knight's giving check at your Queen's 3d square, you have actually left your Q's Rook en prise! Black takes it, of course, and having gained such an important advantage, ought to win easily.
11. Castles, (i.e., plays K to his Kt's sq., and Rook to K. B's sq.) | 11. Q's Kt. takes Bishop. |
12. Kt. takes Kt. | 12. Castles. |
13. Queen to her 2d. | 13. Q. B's Pawn to B's 4th. |
Your last move is very subtle; finding the mistake that Black had committed in not retreating his Queen directly after winning the Rook, you determine, if possible, to prevent her escape by gaining command of all the squares she can move to. Seeing the danger, Black throws forward this Pawn to enable him, if possible, to bring the Queen off, by playing her to her 5th sq., giving check.
14. Bishop to Q. Kt's 2d. | 14. Q. takes Q. R's Pawn. |
This move of the Bishop is well timed; it does not, to be sure, prevent the Queen from escaping for a move or two, but it gives you an attack, and very great command of the field.
15. Q. to K. Kt's 5th. | 15. Knight to K's sq. |
Very well played on both sides. By playing the Queen to K. Kt's 5th, you threatened to win his Knight by at once taking it with your Bishop, which he could not retake without opening check on his King. Instead of so moving, you might have played the Knight to Q. Rook's 5th sq., in which case, by afterwards moving the Rook to Q. Rook's square, it would have been impossible for his Queen to get away.
16. Q. to King's 3d. | 16. K. R's Pawn to R's 3d. |
You prudently retreated your Queen to guard her Knight's Pawn, which it was important to save, on account of its protection to the Knight. Black played the King's R's Pawn to prevent your Queen returning to the same post of attack.
17. K. R's P. to R's 3d. | 17. K. to his R's sq. |
Here are two instances of what is called "lost time" at chess, neither move serving in the slightest degree to advance the game of the player. That you should have overlooked the opportunity of gaining the adverse Queen was to be expected. Similar advantages present themselves in every game between young players, and are unobserved.
18. K. B's Pawn to B's 4th. | 18. Q. Kt's Pawn to Kt's 3d. |
Again you have failed to see a most important move; you might have taken the K. Rook's Pawn with your Queen, giving check safely, because Black could not take your Queen without being in check with your Bishop. All this time, too, your opponent omits to see the jeopardy his Queen is in, and that as far as practical assistance to his other Pieces is concerned, she might as well be off the board.
19. K. Kt's Pawn to Kt's 4th. | 19. Q. Kt's Pawn to Q. Kt's 4th. |
Your last move is far from good. By thus attacking your Knight, Black threatens to win a Piece, because upon playing away the Knight you must leave the Bishop unprotected.
20. Pawn to K. Kt's 5th. | 20. Pawn takes Knight. |
Although your Knight was thus attacked, it might have been saved very easily. In the first place, by your taking the adversary's Q. B's Pawn, threatening to take his K's Rook, on his removing which, or interposing the Q's Pawn, you could have taken the Pawn which attacked your Knight; or, in the second place, by moving your Queen to her 2d square. In the latter case, if Black ventured to take the Knight, you would have won his Queen by taking the K. Kt's Pawn with your Bishop, giving check, and thus exposing his Queen to yours. Black would have been obliged to parry the check, either by taking the Bishop or removing his King, and you would then have taken his Queen. This position is very instructive, and merits attentive examination.
21. B. to Q. B's 3d. | 21. Pawn takes Q. Kt's Pawn. |
22. Pawn to K. R's 4th. | 22. Pawn to Q. Kt's 7th. |
In such a position, the advance of your King's flank Pawns is a process too dilatory to be very effective.
23. Pawn to K. B's 5th. | 23. Pawn to Q. Kt's 8th, becoming a Queen. |
Now the fault of your tortoise-like movements with the Pawns becomes fatally evident. Black has been enabled to make a second Queen, and has an overwhelming force at command.
24. Rook takes Queen. | 24. Queen takes Rook (check). |
You had no better move than to take the newly-elected Queen, for two Queens must have proved irresistible.
25. King to his Kt's 2d. | 25. Kt. to Queen's 3d. |
26. K. Kt's Pawn to Kt's 6th. | 26. P. takes Pawn. |
27. P. takes Pawn. | 27. Bishop to Q. Kt's 2d. |
Here you have given another remarkable instance of lost opportunity. At your last move you might have redeemed all former disasters by checkmating your opponent in two moves. Endeavor to find out how this was to be accomplished.
28. K. R's Pawn to R's 5th. | 28. Knight takes King's Pawn. |
29. Bishop to King's 5th. | 29. Kt. to K. Kt's 4th (discovering check). |
Up to Black's last move you had still the opportunity of winning the game before mentioned.
30. King to Kt's 3d. | 30. K's Rook to B's 6th. (ch.) |
31. King to R's 4th. | 31. Q. to K. Bishop's 4th. |
At this point you were utterly at the mercy of your antagonist, but fortunately he wanted the skill to avail himself properly of his vast superiority in force and position, or he might have won the game in half a dozen different ways.
32. Q. takes Rook. | 32. Q. takes Queen. |
33. B. takes K. Kt's Pawn (ch.) | 33. King takes Bishop. |
This was your last chance, and its success should serve to convince you that in the most apparently hopeless situations of the game there is often a latent resource, if we will only have the patience to search it out. By taking the Bishop, Black has left your King, who is not in check, no move without going into check, and as you have neither Piece nor Pawn besides to play, you are stalemated, and the game is DRAWN.
If thoroughly acquainted with the information contained in the preceding sections, you may now proceed to the consideration of the openings; before you do this, however, it is necessary to apprise you that without a great abridgment of the notation adopted in the foregoing game, it would be impossible to compress within the limits of this work one-third of the variations which are required to be given. The following abbreviations will therefore be used throughout the remainder of our free chess lessons:
K. | for | King. |
Q. | Queen. | |
R. | Rook. | |
B. | Bishop. | |
Kt. | Knight. | |
P. | Pawn. | |
sq. | square. | |
adv. | adversary's. | |
ch. | check or checking. | |
dis. ch. | discovering check. |
The word "square" is only used to distinguish the first row of squares on which the superior Pieces stand at the commencement—thus, we say, Kt. to K's 2d, and omit the word square; but if the Kt. were played to K's first square or R's first square, the move would be described not as Kt. to K's or R's first square, but "Kt. to K's or R's square."
Congratulations to those who you who could make it thus far. You have played your first game of chess. In addition to challenging your friends to a game of chess, I recommend you continue following the free chess lessons. In the upcoming posts I will examine advanced chess openings and chess strategies. Until then, Check.
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