Books: Chess and Checkers: The Way to Mastership
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Edward Lasker >> Chess and Checkers: The Way to Mastership
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The Pawn
It remains to describe the move of the Pawn, the only man who
captures in a different way from that in which he moves. The Pawn
moves FORWARD ONLY in the file in which he stands, and only one
square at a time with the exception of his first move on which he
may advance two squares. Thus, in Diagram 2, the white Pawn may
move only to h5 while the black Pawn may move to either g6 or g5.
The Pawn may capture only diagonally, only forward and only one
square at a time. The privilege of taking a double step on the
first move does not extend to the capture. Thus in Diagram 2, the
white Pawn could capture only a black man on g5, the black Pawn
only a man on either f6 or h6, but not on e5. If a man stood on
h5, the Pawn h4 would be blocked. Likewise would the Pawn on g7
be blocked by a man on g6.
There is one peculiar rule to be remembered in connection with
the move of the Pawn. If a Pawn uses his privilege of making a
double step to avoid capture by a hostile Pawn he can be put back
one square and captured just the same. For instance, in Diagram
2, if the white Pawn stood on h5 and Black moved his Pawn to g5,
White could put Black's Pawn back to g6 and capture him with his
Pawn. This way of capturing is called taking "en passant" (French
for "in passing") and can be done only by a Pawn, never by a
piece.
Lastly must be mentioned the power of the Pawn to become
transformed into a piece. This is done automatically whenever a
Pawn reaches the extreme opposite side of the board. That is, the
player must remove the Pawn from the board and put any piece on
his place except a King. Thus it can happen that a player may
play with three or more Rooks, Bishops, Knights or Queens. As the
Queen is the strongest Piece the Pawns are practically always
exchanged for Queens and for this reason the process of the
exchange is called "queening."
Although a Pawn has comparatively little value as measured by his
mobility--his range of movement--he is really a very valuable man
because of the possibility of his eventually queening.
Castling
Only once in a game is a player allowed to move more than one
piece at a time. This one move is called "castling" and is made
by the King together with one of the Rooks. In castling the King
moves two squares toward the Rook and the Rook is placed on the
square over which the King has passed. In the position of Diagram
3 both players may castle either side.
White, in "castling King's side" would place his King on g1 and
the King's Rook on f1; in "castling Queen's side" the King would
leap to c1 while the Queen's Rook would take his stand on d1.
Likewise Black would castle by either playing the King to g8 and
the Rook from h8 to f8, or the King to c8 and the Rook to a8 to
d8.
+---------------------------------------+
8 | #R | | | | #K | | | #R |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | #P | #P | #P | | #Q | #P | #P | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | #Kt| #P | | #Kt| | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | #B | | #P | | ^B | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | ^B | | ^P | | #B | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | ^Kt| ^P | | ^Kt| | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | ^P | ^P | ^Q | | ^P | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | ^R | | | | ^K | | | ^R |
+---------------------------------------+
a b c d e f g h
DIAGRAM 3.
+---------------------------------------+
8 | #R | #Kt| | | #K | | | #R |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | #P | #P | | | | #P | #P | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | #P | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | #P | ^P | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | ^B | | | | ^P | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | | | #Kt| ^Kt| | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | ^P | ^P | | | | ^P | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | ^R | | | | ^K | | | ^R |
+---------------------------------------+
a b c d e f g h
DIAGRAM 4.
Castling is permitted only when neither King nor Rook concerned
has previously moved, when none of the squares between the King
and the Rook are obstructed and when none of the three squares
involved in the King's move are controlled by an adverse man.
Thus if in check (see page 17) the player may not castle. In
Diagram 4, neither White nor Black may castle.
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. Should White attack from e6, then
Black would not defend the Bishop with the Knight, for on e4 as
well as on e8 the Knight is unprotected and could be captured by
the Rook without White losing anything in exchange. Black has a
much more simple way to defend the attack of the Rook from e6,
that is, by capturing the Rook with the Pawn f7. For this reason
White would not have moved the Rook to e6.
Check and Checkmate
If a man makes a move which attacks the opposing King the King is
said to be in "check." The player whose King is checked then has
to make a move which gets the King out of check
+---------------------------------------+
8 | | | | | | | #K | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | | | | | | #P | #P | |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | | #B | | #Kt| | #P |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | ^P | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | ^P | | | | | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | | | | | | | ^P | |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | ^R | | ^K | |
+---------------------------------------+
a b c d e f g h
DIAGRAM 5.
or he forfeits the game. This is the only case in which a player
is not at liberty to make any move he likes.
Unless the attacking man can be captured there are only two ways
of getting out of check. One of these is to interpose a man
between the King and the attacking piece, and the other to move
the King out of the line of attack. In Diagram 5 Black could give
check by moving the Bishop to c5. In answer to this White has
four moves at his disposal. He may either move the King to f1 or
h1 or h2, or he may interpose his Rook on e3. The latter would be
very unwise as Black would simply take the Rook with his Bishop,
again checking White's King. The situation would then not have
changed at all except that White would have lost his Rook.
White's King could not move to f2, for this would leave him still
attacked by the Bishop.
Instead of checking on c5 Black could have attacked White's King
on h2. But in this case the King would have simply captured the
Bishop.
If it were White's move he could give check with the Rook on e8.
But Black could take the Rook with the Knight. He would naturally
do this instead of either moving out with the King to h7 or
interposing the Bishop on f8.
If a King is in Check and there is no move with which to get him
out of it he is said to be "checkmate" and the game is ended.
Diagram 6 shows an example in which either player can give
checkmate on the move.
If it were White's move he would take the Pawn on g6 with his
Queen. Now Black's King is in check as White's Queen threatens to
take him on the next move. The King cannot move to either g7 or
h7, for these two squares are also commanded by White's Queen.
+---------------------------------------+
8 | | | | ^R | | #Kt| #K | #R |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | #P | #B | #P | | | #P | | |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | #P | #Q | #B | | | #P | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | | ^Kt| ^Kt| |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | ^B | | ^Q | | | | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | ^P | ^P | ^P | | | | ^P | ^K |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | | | | |
+---------------------------------------+
a b c d e f g h
DIAGRAM 6.
Moreover, the latter cannot be taken by the Pawn on f7 as the
black King would be in check by the Bishop on b3. The Pawn is
"pinned" by the Bishop. Black's Knight cannot take White's Queen
either as he is pinned by White's Rook. Finally, there is no
piece available which may be interposed between White's Queen and
Black's King; in other words: Black is checkmate, his game is
lost.
If it were Black's move he would take the Pawn g2 with the Queen.
Now White's King is in check as Black's Queen threatens to take
him on the next move. He may not take the Queen as he would then
be captured by the Bishop b7. Neither may the Knight f4 take the
Queen as he is pinned by the Bishop d6. Moreover, the King may
not escape to g1, h1 or g3, these three squares lying in the
rangeof Black's Queen; and so there is no move on the board with
which to get White's King out of check: He is checkmate, White
loses the game.
Stalemate
If a player, without being in check, cannot make any move which
would not get his King into check, he is said to be STALEMATE. In
this case the game is considered a draw. Diagram 7 shows an
example.
White on the move, although his forces are much inferior, can
draw the game by checking with the Rook on f3. Black cannot very
well make a move with his King in reply, as then White's Rook
would take the Queen. Black, therefore, must capture the Rook
with the Queen and with this move he stalemates White, as the
latter has no move left which would not bring his King into
check.
+---------------------------------------+
8 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | | #Q | | | | #K |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | | | | | | ^R | | |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | #R | ^Kt| ^K | |
+---------------------------------------+
a b c d e f g h
DIAGRAM 7.
If it were Black's move he would easily win. In fact he has two
different ways of checkmating White in three moves. One of them
would be to take the Knight with the Rook, attacking the King and
forcing White's Rook to recapture as the King has no square to go
to; then to give check with the Queen on g3 forcing White's King
to h1 and enabling the mate with the Queen on g2 or h2.
The other way would be to start with the check on g3. As White's
Knight is pinned he cannot capture the Queen.
+---------------------------------------+
8 | | | | | | | #K | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | | | | | | | #P | |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | ^Q | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | #Q | | | | | ^P | |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | #P | | | | | | | ^P |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | | | | ^K |
+---------------------------------------+
a b c d e f g h
DIAGRAM 8
Interposing the Rook on g2 would not help either as the Queen
would simply take him at the same time checkmating the King.
White's only move is, therefore, to play the King into the
corner, and Black then mates by first taking the Knight and then
moving the Queen to g2 or h2.
Perpetual Check
If a player is able to check the opposing King continually and he
indicates his intention to do so the game is considered a draw.
In the following position, for instance, White on the move can
draw the game by giving a perpetual check on e8 and h5. Black
cannot help himself as he has to go back and forth with the King
on h7 and g8. Without the possibility of this perpetual check
White would be lost, for he cannot prevent the Pawn a2 from
queening and with two Queens against one Black would easily win
as will be seen later from the discussion of elementary endings.
Exchange
To exchange means to capture a hostile man when it allows a man
of the same value to be captured by the opponent.
It is rather confusing that the term "exchange" is also used for
the difference in value between a Rook and a Bishop or a Knight.
To win the exchange, in this sense, means to capture a Rook and
to lose for it only a Bishop or a Knight.
Double Pawn
Two Pawns of the same player standing in one file are called a
double Pawn. Three Pawns in one file are called a triple Pawn.
Passed Pawn
A Pawn whose advance to the eighth rank is not blocked by an
opposing Pawn in the same file and who does not have to pass one
on an adjoining file is called a passed Pawn.
Isolated Pawn
A Pawn is called isolated if there are no Pawns of the same
player on the adjoining files.
Backward Pawn
A Pawn is called backward if he cannot advance far enough to be
protected by fellow Pawns in an adjoining file.
Fork
A Pawn is said to fork two pieces if he attacks them
simultaneously.
Minor Piece
The Bishops and the Knights are called minor Pieces as compared
with the Rooks and the Queen.
Sacrifice
To sacrifice means to give up a man without obtaining for him a
man of the opponent or to give up a man for one of lesser value.
Discovered Check and Double Check
A discovered Check is an attack on the King caused by a man
moving out of the line of a piece which he was obstructing. If
the man discovering the Check also attacks the King the Check is
called a double Check.
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 the player castles Queen's side and in so doing
gives check.
[Footnote: In the descriptive notation alluded to on page 5 every
square of the board has two different names, each player counting
the ranks from his own side. The files are named after the pieces
which stand on them at the beginning of the game. Thus, c4 would
be QB4 (Queen's Bishop's fourth) or QB5 depending on whether a
black or a white move is described. If a square is referred to
without relation to a particular move it is necessary to add from
which side of the board the square is counted. It is customary to
say in cases of this kind "White's Queen's fourth" or "Black's
Queen's fourth," etc.
Instead of naming the square on which a capture takes place, the
man captured is named, so that an additional description is
necessary in case more than one man of the same kind can be
captured.
As a matter of comparison the first ten moves of a game are
described above in both notations.]
! signifies a good move.
? signifies a bad move.
(1) P-d4 P-d5
(2) P-c4 P-e6
(3) Kt-c3 P-c5
(4) Kt-f3 Kt-c6
(5) Pxd5 Pxd5
(6) B-f4 Kt-f6
(7) P-e3 B-e6
(8) B-d3 B-e7
(9) o-o o-o
(10) R-c1 Kt-h5
(1) P-Q4 P-Q4
(2) P-QB4 P-K3
(3) Kt-QB3 P-QB4
(4) Kt-B3 Kt-QB3
(5) PxQP KPxP
(6) B-KB4 Kt-B3
(7) P-K3 B-K3
(8) B-Q3 B-K7
(9) Castles Castles
(10) R-B Kt-KR4
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 and the King must make another move,
if there is a legal one.
If a player touches a man with the sole object of adjusting his
position, he must indicate his intention by saying "j'adoube"
(French for: I adjust) beforehand. In castling, the King must be
moved first as otherwise a doubt might arise whether castling or
a Rook's move only was intended.
A game is void if a mistake has been made in setting up board or
men or if in the course of the game the position or number of men
have been altered in a manner not in accordance with the rules of
play and the position cannot be reconstructed from the point
where the error was made.
If a player resigns his game before he is actually mated he
acknowledges that in the end mate is unavoidable, and the game is
counted as a loss to him.
If neither player has sufficient material left to enforce a mate
(compare following chapter) the game is considered a draw. A draw
may also be claimed by either player if the moves are repeated so
that the same position occurs three times with the same player on
the move, or if fifty moves have been made without the capture of
a man or the move of a Pawn.
II
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 takes place.
The different conditions of the battle ground in war which make
some positions more easily accessible to infantry than to
artillery and vice versa have their equivalent on the Chess board
in the different ways in which the men move and which make
certain squares accessible to some of them which others cannot
reach.
The first thing, then, for the beginner to do is to acquaint
himself thoroughly with the characteristic features of each man
so that he may know exactly how much work to expect from him. The
best way to accomplish this is the study of the elementary
problems which are in end games, that is, in positions where only
a few men are left on each side.
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 to checkmate the lone King it is
necessary to attack the square on which he stands as well as all
adjacent squares to which he could escape. The most unfavorable
position for the King is, of course, a corner of the board as
there he has only three squares to go to while in the middle of
the board eight squares are accessible to him. Consequently, in
an ending in which one player has only his King left the other
player will try to drive the King into a corner where he needs
control over only three additional squares.
It can easily be seen that this can be done without difficulty
with King and Queen or with King and Rook. Supposing, for
instance, White has his King on c3 and his Queen on h3 while
Black's King stands on d6 as shown in the following diagram.
+---------------------------------------+
8 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
7 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
6 | | | | #K | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
5 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
4 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
3 | | | ^K | | | | | ^Q |
|---------------------------------------|
2 | | | | | | | | |
|---------------------------------------|
1 | | | | | | | | |
+---------------------------------------+
a b c d e f g h
DIAGRAM 9.
How will White proceed in order to drive the King into a corner
and checkmate him there?
A direct onslaught with the Queen on e6 or d7 is clearly not
advisable as the Queen would not be protected on these squares,
so that the King could simply capture her. A long range attack
from h2, g3, d3 or h6 is not effective either as it would not
restrict the mobility of the King who could go to either d5 or e6
or e5, that is away from the corner to which he is to be driven.
The correct way of maneuvering for White will be to confine
Black's King to a smaller and smaller territory until he finally
has to back up against the side or the corner of the board. This
consideration indicates the following line of play:
(1)Q-f5, K-c6; (2)Q-e5, K-d7; (3) K-c4, K-c6; (4) Q-e7, K-b6; (5)
Q-d7, K-a6. White must now be very careful to avoid a stalemate
which would result if he deprived the King of all mobility
without attacking him at the same time. This would be the case if
he now moved Q-c7. For then Black could not move the King to b5,
as this square is controlled by White's King, and he could not go
to any of the other four squares in his range on account of
White's Queen attacking all of them. The correct move is (6) K-
c5. This leaves only the square a5 for Black's King, and White
checkmates by (7) Q-a7 or (7) Q-b5.
If, in Diagram 9, White had a Rook on h3 instead of the Queen,
the mating process would take a few more moves, but there would
be no escape for Black either.
It will again be White's aim to confine Black's King to a smaller
and smaller number of squares. The best way to start will
therefore be (1) R-e3. No matter what Black replies, he cannot
prevent White from driving him to the edge of the board in a
similar way to the one shown in the following example:
(1) ..., K-d5; (2) R-e1. This is a WAITING MOVE. Black must leave
d5, thus enabling either White's King to advance or the Rook to
occupy e5. (2) ..., K-c5; (3) R-e5; K-d6; (4) K-d4, K-c6; (5) R-
d5, K-b6; (6) R-c5, K-b7; (7) K-d5, K-b6; (8) K-d6, K-b7; (9) R-
b5, K-a6; (10) K-c6, K-a7; (11) K-c7, K-a6; (12) R-h5, K-a7; (13)
R-a5 mate.
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