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| the swashbuckling 11. Nxe5, allowing Black | |
mate in a shower of brilliant blows. This | |||
classic is known as the "Evergreen Game." | to capture his queen. Black's king is forced | ||
3. Paul Morphy vs. Duke Karl & | to march to the center of the board, an | ||
Count Isouard, Paris, 1858 | unhealthy spot for a monarch when so many | ||
While in Paris at the opera, the brilliant, | pieces are still on the board, where he is | ||
unofficial world champion from New | mated. It's important to understand that such | ||
Orleans plays an offhand game against two | sacrifices don't just happen illogically. | ||
noblemen. In this case, we're sure it was over | White's pieces again had a dominating com- | ||
before the fat lady sang! In a Philidor | mand of the board, and Black allowed | ||
Defense, the team of two played a weak 3. | White's pressure on f7, Black's most sensi- | ||
… Bg5 that left Morphy with superior devel- | tive defensive square when he hasn't castled, | ||
opment | (more of his pieces are deployed) | to build into an explosion. | |
and the | bishop pair (two bishops against a | 6. Gaudersen vs. Paul, Melbourne, | |
bishop and knight). These two important | 1928 | ||
advantages were all Morphy needed. After | This "miniature" of only 15 moves, starts off | ||
Black wastes even more time with another | as a French Defense in which White plays | ||
pawn move, 9. … b5?, Morphy hits the duo | the Advance Variation, placing his pawns on | ||
with a series of brilliant sacrifices to mate. | d4 and e5. Black's 8th move, castling, was in | ||
Victory of mind over material is the poetry | this case a blunder because his kingside is | ||
of chess. | attacked by many pieces and not effectively | ||
4.Wilhelm Steinitz vs. Kurt von | defended. White's sparkling 9. Bxh7+ is an | ||
Bard leben, Hastings, 1895 | example of a bishop sacrifice that's hap- | ||
Wilhelm Steinitz, the first official world | pened so often it has a | ||
champion, begins this game as a Giuoco | Gift." White's 14. Nxe6+ is an example of a | ||
Piano. He maneuvers deftly to keep his | discovered check, the dive bomber of the | ||
opponent from castling into safety. Then he | chessboard. White's amusing 15th move is a | ||
sacrifices his pawn on d5 so that he can | very rare example of checkmate with the en | ||
make the square available for his knight. But | passant capture. | ||
the most brilliant move of the game is 22. | 7. Edward Lasker vs. George | ||
Rxe7+. At first glance, it simply looks like a | Thomas, London, 1910 | ||
blunder. All of White's pieces are attacked, | This masterpiece, a Dutch Defense, features | ||
and if Black wasn't in check, he could play | a famous example of the king’s walk to | ||
… Rxc1+ with mate next. But if Black can't | mate. Edward, an American distant cousin of | ||
take the | the great world champion Emmanuel Lasker, | ||
gets his pieces activated against Black's | |||
taking it, he is eventually mated anyway. If | kingside while the English champion | ||
you're interested in these complex lines, you | Thomas develops (gets his pieces off the | ||
can find a complete explanation of this clas- | back rank and into play) too slowly. By 10. | ||
sic game in many books. | Qh5, White is already threatening an | ||
5. Alexander Alekhine vs. O. Tenner, | blitzkrieg. His brilliant queen sacrifice 11. | ||
| logne, 1911 | Qxh7 is followed by a devastating discov- | |
World Champion Alekhine was a chess | ered double check, 12. Nxf6++. Then Black's | ||
fanatic (he even named his cat "Chess") and | king has to walk the plank, all the way across | ||
one of the greatest attacking players of all | the board to g1, the normal spot for the | ||
time. Here he plays the unusual Bishop's | White king! Here he breathes his last. | ||
Opening and seems to be developing quietly. | 8. Wilhelm Steinitz vs. A. | ||
Black even appears to be getting a good | Mongredien, London, 1862 | ||
game just at the time Alekhine is able to play | 12 This game starts out as a Center Counter |
(also called Scandinavian Defense). Black |
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who did not become world champion. The | ||
loses too much time developing his pieces, | opening is a | |
while White gets his into play aggressively. | pawns are potentially a | |
Indeed, White's army dominates the all- | but in the short term they control a good | |
important center of the board as well as the | many | |
king's side. This sets the stage for a mating | plays cleverly to keep a grip on the position | |
attack. White's | and breaks through on the queenside with his | |
and 14. Rh3 is called a rook lift, and is a typ- | ||
ical attacking strategy. This rook then sacri- | chance to bring his queenside rook into | |
fices itself on h7 in a way that allows Steinitz | action. He swings it against the kingside, | |
to bring his other rook quickly into the fray. | sacrificing it on g7 to win. In the final posi- | |
White is a rook down, but all of his forces | tion, Black's king will be mated by the White | |
take part in the assault, while the Black | queen, supported by the bishop on c1. Where | |
queen's rook and bishop seem to be waiting | did Black go wrong? Take a look at his | |
for the next game. They don't have long to | "unemployed" queen and rook on a8 and b8! | |
wait. | 12. J. Banas vs. P. Lukacs, Trnava, 1986 | |
9. Aaron Nimzovich vs. S. Alapin, | In a Four Knights' Game, Black gets his king | |
Riga, 1913 | into safety by castling and takes advantage | |
Another French Defense. In this one, the | of White's awkward piece placement by sac- | |
great Latvian player and writer Nimzovich | rificing his knight with 9. … Nf3+. Then he | |
(after whom the | allows White to take his bishop on c5. But by | |
that time, White's king is surrounded. In the | ||
wastes time stealing a pawn with 9. … Qxg2. | final position, after 13. … Ng4, White's only | |
"Nimzo" plays a punishing 12. | effective defender, his knight on e3, is forced | |
rificing his knight. He finishes up with a | from its square, allowing … Qg2 mate. | |
convincing queen sacrifice that forces | 13. Anatoly Karpov vs. Victor | |
checkmate. | Kortchnoi, Moscow, 1974 | |
10. Jose Capablanca vs. Herman | ||
Steiner, Los Angeles, 1933 | It is no longer typical to see | |
The handsome Cuban World Champion Jose | playing only for the attack. In fact, Korchnoi | |
Capablanca had a deceptively simple style. | at the time of this game was one of the best | |
Here we see him playing the | in the world, and his for e was defense. | |
Four Knights' game and opening up his | Many fine players would attack him ingen- | |
opponent's kingside pawn protection by | iously, only to break up on his | |
move 11! His first rook sacrifice, 17. Rxf6!, | tifications. Still, World Champion Karpov | |
can't be refused and forces Black's king into | crushes him in only 27 moves with a mating | |
a deadly crossfire. With 23. Qxb7!, Capa | attack! In a classic manner against Black's | |
offers a second rook, which can't be taken | Sicilian Dragon defense (so named probably | |
immediately because of 23. … Qxf6? 24. | because of the "tail" of control Black's bish- | |
Qb4 checkmate. But Black is forced to take | op makes from g7 to a1), Karpov plays the | |
the rook a move later and mate follows on | St. George attack, castling queenside and | |
the same square. | prying open the | |
11. Mikhail Botvinnik vs. Paul | 14. Boris Spassky vs. Tigran | |
The Hague, 1948 | Spassky won the world championship from | |
Keres, | Petrosian, Moscow, 1969 | |
Botvinnik won the world championship a | Petrosian in the match that produced this | |
record three times. His opponent here is pos- | game. In this English Opening that becomes | |
sibly the strongest | a Queen's Gambit, you'll see that once again |