Chess is a game, played by two players. One player plays with the white pieces, and the other player plays with the black pieces. Each player has sixteen pieces in the beginning of the game: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns.

The game is played on a chessboard, consisting of 64 squares: eight rows and eight columns. The squares are alternately light (white) and dark colored. The board must be laid down such that there is a black square in the lower-left corner. To facilitate notation of moves, all squares are given a name. From the view of the white player, the rows are numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8; the lowest row has number 1, and the upper row has number 8. The columns are named, from left to right, a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h. A square gets a name, consisting of the combination of its column-letter and row-number, e.g., the square in the lower left corner (for white) is a1.

Alternately, the players make a move, starting with the white player (the player that plays with the white pieces.) A move consists of moving one of the pieces of the player to a different square, following the rules of movement for that piece - there is one special exception, named castling , where players move two pieces simultaneously.

A player can take a piece of the opponent by moving one of his own pieces to the square that contains a piece of the opponent. The opponents piece then is removed from the board, and out of play for the rest of the game. (Taking is not compulsory.)

At the start of the game, the position of the pieces is as follows.

Thus, at the second row, there are eight white pawns, at the seventh row, there are eight black pawns. At the first row, from left to right, we have a: rook, knight, bishop, queen, king, bishop, knight, and rook. Note that the queens start of squares of their own color, with a dark square in each players left hand corner.

Movement of the pieces

Rook

The rook moves in a straight line, horizontally or vertically. The rook may not jump over other pieces, that is: all squares between the square where the rook starts its move and where the rook ends its move must be empty. (As for all pieces, when the square where the rook ends his move contains a piece of the opponent, then this piece is taken. The square where the rook ends his move may not contain a piece of the player owning this rook.)

Bishop

The bishop moves in a straight diagonal line. The bishop may also not jump over other pieces.

Queen

The queen has the combined moves of the rook and the bishop, i.e., the queen may move in any straight line, horizontal, vertical, or diagonal.

Knight

The knight makes a move that consists of first one step in a horizontal or vertical direction, and then one step diagonally in an outward direction. The knight jumps : it is allowed that the first square that the knight passes over is occupied by an arbitrary piece. For instance, white can start the game by moving his knight from b1 to c3. The piece that is jumped over is further not affected by the knight: as usual, a knight takes a piece of the opponent by moving to the square that contains that piece.

Pawn

The pawn moves differently regarding whether it moves to an empty square or whether it takes a piece of the opponent. When a pawn does not take, it moves one square straight forward. When this pawn has not moved at all, i.e., the pawn is still at the second row (from the owning players view), the pawn may make a double step straight forward. For instance, a white pawn on d2 can be moved to d4.

When taking, the pawn goes one square diagonally forward.

There is one special rule, called taking en-passant . When a pawn makes a double step from the second row to the fourth row, and there is an enemy pawn on an adjacent square on the fourth row, then this enemy pawn inthe next move may move diagonally to the square that was passed over by the double-stepping pawn, which is on the third row. In this same move, the double-stepping pawn is taken. This taking en-passant must be done directly: if the player who could take en-passant does not do this in the first move after the double step, this pawn cannot be taken anymore by an en-passant move.

A double pawn step, and a following en-passant capture

Pawns that reach the last row of the board promote. When a player moves a pawn to the last row of the board, he replaces the pawn by a queen, rook, knight, or bishop (of the same color). Usually, players will promote the pawn to a queen, but the other types of pieces are also allowed. (It is not required that the pawn is promoted to a piece taken. Thus, it is for instance possible that a player has at a certain moment two queens.)

before the promotion

after the promotion

King

The king moves one square in any direction, horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. There is one special type of move, made by a king and rook simultaneously, called castling : see below.

The king is the most important piece of the game, and moves must be made in such a way that the king is never in check: see below.

Castling

Under certain, special rules, a king and rook can move simultaneously in a castling move.

The following conditions must be met:

• The king that makes the castling move has not yet moved in the game.
• The rook that makes the castling move has not yet moved in the game.
• The king is not in check.
• The king does not move over a square that is attacked by an enemy piece during the castling move, i.e., when castling, there may not be an enemy piece that can move (in case of pawns: by diagonal movement) to a square that is moved over by the king.
• The king does not move to a square that is attacked by an enemy piece during the castling move, i.e., you may not castle and end the move with the king in check.
• All squares between the rook and king before the castling move are empty.
• The King and rook must occupy the same rank (or row).

When castling, the king moves two squares towards the rook, and the rook moves over the king to the next square, i.e., black's king on e8 and rook on a8 move to: king c8, rook d8 (long castling), white's king on e1 and rook on h1 move to: king g1, rook f1 (short castling).

position before and after castling: white short, and black long

Neither white nor black may castle: white is in check, and the black king may not move over d8

Check, mate, and stalemate

Check

When the king of a player can be taken by a piece of the opponent, one says that the king is in check . For instance, the white player moves his rook to a position such that it attacks the black king, i.e., if black doesn't do anything about it, the rook could take the black king in the next move: we say that the white rook gives check. It is considered good manners to say check when one checks ones opponent.

Mate

When a player is in check, and he cannot make a move such that after the move, the king is not in check, then he is mated . The player that is mated lost the game, and the player that mated him won the game.

Note that there are three different possible ways to remove a check:

1. Move the king away to a square where he is not in check.
2. Take the piece that gives the check.
3. (In case of a check, given by a rook, bishop or queen: ) move a piece between the checking piece and the king.

Stalemate

When a player cannot make any legal move, but he is not in check, then the player is said to be stalemated . In a case of a stalemate, the game is a draw.

When black must move, the game is a stalemate

Resign and draw proposals

A player can resign the game, which means that he has lost and his opponent has won.

After making a move, a player can propose a draw: his opponent can accept the proposal (in which case the game ends and is a draw) or refuse the proposal (in which case the game continues).

Repetition of moves

If the same position with the same player to move is repeated three times in the game, the player to move can claim a draw. (When the right to make a certain castling move is lost by one of the players between positions, then the positions are considered to be different.

One case where the repetition of move occurs is when a player continues to give check forever.

50 moves rules

If there are have been 50 consecutive moves of white and of black without

• any piece taken
• any pawn move

then a player can claim a draw.

Touching pieces

When a player touches one of his own pieces, he must, if possible, make a legal move with this piece. When a player touches a piece of the opponent, he must, if possible, take this piece.

STRATEGY

Excerpt from Chess Step by Step by Frank Marshall and J.C.H. Macbeth

The intelligent reader may enquire: "Why am I supposed to study Chess Strategy, while I have only a very slender knowledge of the Chess Openings?" The reply to this question is, that learning Chess is somewhat similar to learning a language. We all know that children acquire a certain vocabulary of their native tongue before they begin to delve into the mysteries of grammar and syntax, and, as a matter of fact, a considerable proportion of people of all nationalities are content to go through life without troubling themselves to learn the laws and principles which govern their language. In Chess, knowledge of the moves and how to play under certain given conditions is equivalent to acquiring a vocabulary in a language, and the syntax may be said to be the study and analysis of the Openings, which we have therefore reserved for a later stage, by which time the student will be better equipped for the task of making himself conversant with the subtleties and beauties of the many and complex variations in the different Chess Openings.

Some Opening Principles and Chess Strategies

For the purpose of study and analysis, a game of Chess is divided into three phases - the Chess Opening, the Middle Game, and the End Game.

The Chess Opening consists of the first six or eight moves, when both sides endeavor to develop their forces into the sphere of action where they will exercise the greatest power against the opponent's defenses. By this time the reader will be in a position to understand the following principles with regard to the Chess Opening - principles which experience has proved cannot be deviated from with impunity.

Avoid Moving a Chess Piece Twice During the Opening is a good chess strategy.

This means that when you have developed a piece, it should not be moved again until the other pieces have been developed. If a piece has been attacked, it must, of course, be moved, but this is not a violation of the rule, as the opponent in all probability has departed from principle in attacking your piece, which will ultimately prove to be advantageous to you.

It is Better Chess Strategy to Develop the Knights before Their Respective Bishops.

This principle does not mean that both Knights should be developed before bringing out a Bishop, but that it is advisable to play say the King's Knight before the King's Bishop, and similarly on the Queen's side.

The following is an example of the consequences that may ensue by violating the foregoing principles and strategies.

White   Black
1.e4 e5
2.Nf3 d6
3.Bc4 Bg4

Here Black has violated the strategy principle by playing the bishop instead of the Knight.

4.Nc3 Nc6
5.0-0 Nd4

Black has again played contrary to the principle strategy, in moving the Knight twice during the Opening.

6.Nxe5 dxe5

Best. If at his 6th move Black plays 6...Bxd1, White gives Mate in two moves: 7.Bf7+ Ke7 8.Nd5#, and Knight Mates.

The move in the text leaves him a pawn minus and an inferior position.

A good chess strategy is to Develop Both Knights before the Queen's Bishop.

A good chess strategy is Do Not Develop your Chess Pieces Exclusively on One Side.

A good chess strategy is as a Rule Do Not Play a Piece beyond Your Own Side of the Board in the Opening.

This last principle means that you should not play a piece beyond its 4th square, until by development you have the other pieces ready to back up any incursions the piece may make into enemy territory. In some forms of Opening, however, this principle is disregarded, notably in the Ruy Lopez, but in that case, it is attacking an important piece which the opponent is supposed to require for his defense.

A good chess strategy is if You Have Castled Do Not Permit the Opponent to Open a File on Your King.

A good chess strategy is to Avoid Pinning the Opponent's King's Knight before He has Castled, Especially When You Have Yourself   Castled on the King's Side.

A good chess strategy is to Avoid Making Exchanges which Develop Another Piece for the Opponent.

It might be thought that the wisdom of this last principle was self-evident, but many beginners constantly disregard it. If, however, the piece which is developed by the capture is the Queen, compensation for the loss of balance in the development of the forces may be obtained by attacking the adverse Queen, which should not, as a rule, be brought too early into action.

A good chess strategy is to Avoid Exchanging Bishops for Knights Early in the Game.

We have seen that in the early stages of a game the Bishops have a longer range than the Knights, so it is clearly advisable to keep them in the field as long as possible. The disparity between the two pieces gradually tapers off as the game progresses, until in the End Game the Knight is frequently more powerful than the Bishop because its action is not limited to one color of square as is that of the Bishop.

A good chess strategy is to Avoid Premature Attacks.

It is probable that more games are lost by beginners through disregard of this principle than from any other cause. An attack should never be launched until there is sufficient force in the field to carry it to a successful conclusion, and a premature attack almost inevitably recoils on the head of the attacker. The following is a classic example of the result of violation of some of the foregoing principles, and the position brought about may be reached in a number of different ways.

White   Black
1.e4 e5
2.Nf3 Nc6
3.Bc4 Nf6
4.0-0 Bc5
5.d3 d6
6.Bg5 h6

White's 6th move clearly violates the principle of avoiding the pin of the adverse King's Knight before Castling, and after he himself has Castled on the King's side. If instead of retreating the Bishop after Black's 6th move, he takes the Knight, it is evident that he will violate another principle, for after 7...gxf6, Black will have a open file for his Rook, bearing directly on White's King.

7.Bh4 g5
8.Bg3 h5

White's game is now as good as lost. He is threatened with the loss of his Bishop by 9...h4, and if he plays 9.h3 to make an opening for it, 9...g4 by Black will perforce open a file for Black's menacing and powerful King's Rook.

9.Nxg5 h4

With all his forces ready for an onslaught on the White King, Black ignores the threat of 10.Nxf7, attacking his Queen.

10.Nxf7 hxg3
11.Nxd8 Bg4
12.Qd2 Nd4

Now play as he may, White cannot escape from disaster.

13.Nc3 Nf3+
14.gxf3 Bxf3

Black Mates in a move or two.

White cannot escape the consequences of his ill-advised Opening by playing as his 13th move 13.h3, as Black's reply will be 13...Ne2+ 14.Kh1, then Black plays 14...Rxh3+, and after 15.gxh3 Bf3# Mates.

If, instead of moving his King, White at Move 14 in this variation plays 14.Qxe2, then 14...Bxe2 will leave Black a piece to the good with a winning position.

A good chess strategy is Seeking a Weak Spot in Opponent's Position.

Suppose that both sides have developed their game without disregarding any of the foregoing principles, and that the stage of the Middle Game has been reached, sooner or later one of the players makes a doubtful move which weakens his position, and success in Chess, in a great measure, depends upon the ability of the opponent to detect this weakness, and then take full advantage of it.

It is only by experience derived from assiduous practice and observation that players acquire the knowledge which is requisite to enable them accurately to gauge a weakness in the opponent's position, and the only assistance we can render is to give some examples, taken from games actually played, and demonstrate the weak points in the positions, and how advantage was taken of them. In order that the reader may derive the greatest possible benefit from these examples, he should always set up the pieces from the various diagrams, and, before consulting the text, endeavor to find out whether White or Black has the better position, what weakness exists, and finally how to direct the attack on that weakness. It will be practically useless merely to set up the position and then proceed right away to play the moves that are given.

This position was reached in a game between Johner and Marshall at the International Tournament at Pestyen, in 1912. A cursory examination might lead to the conclusion that as White has a pawn to the good, and Black's c-pawn is weak and unsupported, the position is favorable to White, but White cannot play 1.Rxc5 without losing the game.

White   Black
1.Rxc5 Ne2+
2.Kh2 (best) Qf4+
3.g3 Nxg3

It is clear that White's position is hopeless.

There is, however, a great weakness in White's position, inasmuch as he is defending his Bishop with his Queen, which, with all the open files at his disposal, is a fine target for Black's Rooks. The following moves indicate how swiftly and inexorably Black availed himself of this weakness.

White   Black
1.Kh2 Rfd8
2.Qe4 Re8
3.Qd5 Re5

Resigns

White resigns, because if he plays 4.Qd7 to protect his Bishop, Black will play 4...Re7 again attacking the Queen and the Bishop is lost.