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PREFACE
PREFACE
The present world war has given great impetus to the game of Chess. In the prison camps, in the field hospitals, in the training camps and even in the trenches Chess has become a favorite occupation in hours of leisure, not only because it offers a most fascinating pastime, but mainly because it serves beyond any doubt to develop what is now the most interesting study for every soldier—the grasp of the principles underlying military strategy and the ability to conceive and to carry out military
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INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
The History of Chess The game of Chess in the form in which it is played to-day is usually assumed to be of a much older date than can be proved with certainty by documents in our possession. The earliest reference to the game is contained in a Persian romance written about 600 A.D., which ascribes the origin of Chess to India. Many of the European Chess terms used in the Middle Ages which can be traced back to the Indian language also tend to prove that India is the mother country of the game.
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PART I: THE GAME OF CHESS I THE RULES OF THE GAME BOARD AND MEN
PART I: THE GAME OF CHESS I THE RULES OF THE GAME BOARD AND MEN
The game of Chess is played by two armies who oppose each other on a square board or battlefield of sixty-four alternate white and black squares. Each army has sixteen men; one King, one Queen, two Rooks (or Castles), two Bishops, two Knights and eight Pawns. The Generals of the two armies are the two players themselves. The men of one side are of light color and are called White, those of the other side are of dark color and are called Black. The object of the game is to capture the opposing Ki
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SPECIAL TERMS
SPECIAL TERMS
Attack and Defense A man is said to ATTACK another man if he moves so that on his next move he could capture the other man. Thus, in Diagram 5, White could attack Black's Bishop by moving his Rook to d1 or to e6. A man is said to DEFEND or to PROTECT another man if he moves so that in case the other man is captured by a hostile man he could recapture the latter. Thus, in Diagram 5, Black could defend his Bishop by moving his Knight to either e4 or e8 in case White attacks with the Rook from d1.
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SYMBOLS FOR MOVES
SYMBOLS FOR MOVES
In addition to the symbols used for squares and men, as explained on page 5, the following are used to indicate the moves: — means "moves to" X means "captures" o-o means "Castles King's side" o-o-o means "Castles Queen's side" + means "check" +/- means "checkmate" Thus: R-f5 means the Rook moves to square f5. If either Rook could move to f5 then the original square of the Rook to be moved must also be shown. Kte3xd5 means the Knight standing on e3 captures the man standing on d5. o-o-o means th
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CHESS LAWS
CHESS LAWS
If a player having the move touches one of his men he is compelled to move him; if he touches a hostile man he must capture him. This law is void, however, if the man so touched cannot be legally moved or captured. A man may be moved to any square accessible to him as long as the hand of the player has not left him. If an illegal move has been made it must be retracted and if possible another move must be made with the same man. If a player has castled illegally, King and Rook must be moved back
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ELEMENTARY TACTICS
ELEMENTARY TACTICS
The beginner who thinks he ought to be able to play a good game of Chess after learning the moves of the men is like the soldier who is confident that he could lead an army after he has learned how to march. He may have great strategical gifts but he will not be able to use them to any advantage unless he is thoroughly conversant with the tactical possibilities afforded by the cooperation of the different units of which his army is composed and by the topography of the ground on which the battle
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FUNDAMENTAL ENDINGS
FUNDAMENTAL ENDINGS
Considering that the object of the game is the capture of the opposing King, it seems most important to find out whether there are positions in which this capture can be accomplished in the face of the best possible defense. Naturally a player must have a certain material superiority to be able to force a mate, and the first question which offers itself is what MINIMUM force is required to compel the surrender of a King whose men have all been captured during the game. It is clear that in order
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RELATIVE VALUE OF THE MEN
RELATIVE VALUE OF THE MEN
From the foregoing examples it is possible to form a vague idea of the strength of the different pieces. The Queen is apparently the strongest piece. On account of her superior mobility she can confine the hostile King with a few moves and force him into a mating net. Of the other pieces the Rook is no doubt the strongest for he is sufficient to force a mate in conjunction with his own King, while Bishop or Knight cannot do so. Two Bishops apparently are stronger than two Knights, while it is no
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HOW THE DIFFERENT MEN COOPERATE
HOW THE DIFFERENT MEN COOPERATE
There are two kinds of elementary attack. One when a single man attacks two or more hostile men at the same time; the other when more men are brought up to attack an opposing man than can be mustered for defense. The beginner, as a rule, makes attacks with the sole aim of driving away a hostile piece; it is clear that these attempts will in most cases be futile as they generally allow the attacked piece to move to another square just as or perhaps more favorable. The advantage of attacking two m
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SACRIFICING
SACRIFICING
A player is said to SACRIFICE if he allows a certain amount of his forces to be captured without recapturing himself an equivalent amount of his opponent's forces. He will not, of course, knowingly do so unless he expects to obtain some other advantage which will at least compensate for his loss of material. Such compensation can only be afforded by a superiority of the position. In as much as a position can only be considered superior if it enables the mating of the opposing King or the obtaini
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III
III
In reading the chapter on "Elementary Tactics" the beginner will have obtained a fair idea of the value of the different pieces and he will have gained an insight into the possibilities of their cooperation. However, the fundamental principle of Chess strategy, the method of developing the inherent powers of the men so that they may be able to do all the work possible for them, will still be a secret to him. At the beginning of the game the Knights are the only pieces which are able to move, and
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KING'S PAWN OPENINGS
KING'S PAWN OPENINGS
After (1) P-e4, P-e5 the only Pawn which both players have to move to enable the development of all pieces is the Queen's Pawn, which obstructs the Queen's Bishop. Of course, it would also be possible to secure an outlet for the Queen's Bishop by advancing the Queen's Knight's Pawn one step; but in the long diagonal the Bishop is ordinarily not so well posted as the development of the Queen's Knight to his most natural square, that is c3 or c6 respectively, would block the way of the Bishop. The
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QUEEN'S PAWN OPENINGS
QUEEN'S PAWN OPENINGS
The same two leading principles apply to Queen's Pawn openings which were discussed in connection with the King's Pawn openings; but there is one great difference between the two kinds of openings which is not obvious to the beginner. This is the fact that in Queen's Pawn openings, in most cases, neither player has a chance to open a file in the center of the board through the exchange of one of the center-Pawns, and that, therefore, an additional Pawn move is necessary in the opening stage to p
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THE MIDDLE GAME
THE MIDDLE GAME
It is not possible to draw a distinct dividing line between the two stages of the game which are called the OPENING and the MIDDLE GAME. Strictly speaking the opening comprises only such moves as are NECESSARY for the development of the pieces, and any move which a player—without being compelled—makes with a piece that is already developed, ought to be regarded as a Middle-game move. To give an example: If after (1) P-e4, P-e5; (2) Kt-f3, Kt- c6; (3) Kt-c3, Kt-f6; (4) B-b5 Black plays Kt-d4, he
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GAME NO. 2
GAME NO. 2
Played in the New York Masters' Tournament 1915 White Black Edward Lasker Jose Raoul Capablanca (1) P-d4 P-d5 (2) Kt-f3 Kt-f6 (3) P-c4 P-e6 (4) Kt-c3 Ktb8-d7 (5) B-g5 B-b4 Ordinarily the Bishop is developed to e7 as on b4 he is out of place as soon as White has castled. (6) P-e3 P-c5 With this move Black threatens Q-a5, attacking the Knight c3 for the second time and unpinning the Knight f6 who is then free to cooperate with the Bishop b4 and the Queen by advancing to e4. In
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V
V
To offer an exhaustive treatise on the manifold varieties of Chess problems is not within the scope of this book. The intention of the author is merely to make it quite clear to the reader that the Chess problem, apart from the moves of the men, has no relation to the game and to illustrate the vast difference between PROBLEM combinations and positions and GAME combinations and positions by a few typical examples from the works of master composers. The mating methods and mating positions in the
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PART II THE GAME OF CHECKERS I
PART II THE GAME OF CHECKERS I
The game of Checkers (English: Draughts) is played on the 32 black or white squares of the Chess board by two opponents, each of whom has twelve men of the same kind. The object of the game is to capture all opposing men or to block them so that they cannot move. The original position of board and men is shown in Diagram 85. It will be seen that the board is placed in such a way that the players have a vacant square at their lower right hand corner. This corner is called the DOUBLE CORNER becaus
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II
II
The first thing a Checker player has to know is what superiority in material or position is required to FORCE a win in the ending. The most elementary case is the one shown in Diagram 88, in which White wins by playing 32-27. With this move White takes the opposition or as most Checker players call it, White has the "move." Whatever Black replies he is forced to the edge of the board and finally he is obliged to let White capture his King. Supposing Black plays (2) 26-22, in order to reach the d
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THE FIRST POSITION
THE FIRST POSITION
It does not make any difference in the method of play whether the Black man is located as shown in Diagram 93 or on 3, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11 16, 20 or 24. The essential point is that he must not be able to march to the King row without being intercepted by White. The winning maneuver is this: White turns the Black King out of the double corner in the manner shown in the play from the position of Diagram 89 and thereby compels the Black man to advance, finally forcing an exchange which secures the oppo
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THE CHANGE OF THE MOVE
THE CHANGE OF THE MOVE
By the exchanges of men in the foregoing example the move was altered in each case. However, exchanges of pieces often occur which do NOT change the move, and as win or loss in a great number of endings depends upon which player has the move, it is necessary for the beginner to obtain a clear insight into the questions involved. An exchange always alters the move if the capturing piece is recaptured in turn. If a different piece is recaptured, it depends upon the relative position of the capture
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THE THIRD POSITION
THE THIRD POSITION
32 31 30 +———————————————————-+ | | | | | | | | | 29 |———————————————————-| 28 | o | | | | | | | | |———————————————————-| | | | | | | | | | 21 |———————————————————-| 20 | oo | | ** | | | | | | |———————————————————-| | | | | | | | | | 13 |———————————————————-| 12 | oo | | ** | | | | | | |———————————————————-| | | | | | | | | | 5 |———————————————————-| 4 | | | | | | | | | +————
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THE FOURTH POSITION
THE FOURTH POSITION
Although White is a piece ahead he has great difficulties in winning on account of the weak position of the man on 12. Black's man on 3 holds 32 31 30 +———————————————————-+ | | | | | | | | | 29 |———————————————————-| 28 | | | | | | | | | |———————————————————-| | | | | | | | | | 21 |———————————————————-| 20 | | | | | | | | | |———————————————————-| | | | | | | oo | | | 13 |———————————————————-| 12 | o | | oo
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THE FIFTH POSITION
THE FIFTH POSITION
White is on the move, and it is evident that he loses if he moves the man on 27 permitting black to reply 11-15. The only way to save the game is to sacrifice the man on 20 by 20-16. The following play would ensue. 32 31 30 +———————————————————-+ | | | | | | | | | 29 |———————————————————-| 28 | | | o | | | | | | |———————————————————-| | | | | | | o | | o | 21 |———————————————————-| 20 | o | | o | | | | | | |——————————————————
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IV
IV
It is possible to apply general strategic principles to the game of Checkers, just as well as the game of Chess, even though there is not the scope in Checkers for strategic maneuvers on the grand scale on which they can be carried out in Chess. Again it is naturally the principle of greatest mobility which should govern the plan of mobilization in any opening, and it is consequently more desirable to have the men work in the center of the board, than on the edge, where part of their range is cu
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V
V
Checker problems, unlike the Chess problems, are intimately related to the game itself and do not enable combinations different in kind from those which occur in the actual fight over the board. PROBLEM No. 1. WHITE TO MOVE AND DRAW. 32 31 30 +———————————————————-+ | | | | | | | | | 29 |———————————————————-| 28 | | | o | | | | | | |———————————————————-| | | o | | | | | | o | 21 |———————————————————-| 20 | | | | | | | | | |———
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