Cecil John Seddon Purdy (27 March 1906 – 6 November 1979), often referred to as "C. J. S. Purdy", was an Australian

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...

player and writer. He was awarded the titles

International Master FIDE titles are awarded by the international chess governing body FIDE (''Fédération Internationale des Échecs'') for outstanding performance. The highest such title is Grandmaster (GM). Titles generally require a combination of Elo rating and ...

in 1951 and Grandmaster of correspondence chess in 1959. Purdy was the inaugural world

correspondence chess Correspondence chess is chess played by various forms of long-distance correspondence, traditionally through the postal system. Today it is usually played through a correspondence chess server, a public internet chess forum, or email. Less common ...

champion. He was also an influential chess magazine writer, editor, and publisher.

Early life

Purdy was born in

Port Said, Egypt A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

, where his father

John Smith Purdy Dr John Smith Purdy FRSE DSO MID (1872–1936) was an early 20th-century Scots-born physician and military physician who came to fame in Tasmania and Australia. Life He was born on 31 January 1872 in Glasgow, the son of George Purdy a market ...

was stationed as a doctor in the Quarantine Service. When he was a child, Purdy moved with his family to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, and then to

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, before they settled in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

when he was 12, where he was educated at Cranbrook School. While in Tasmania, one of his classmates was future film star

Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...

Career

Purdy began his chess career at the age of 16, and he soon decided to become a full-time chess writer and player. Initially an over-the-board (OTB) player, he soon began to mix OTB play with correspondence play. He was a four-time winner of the

Australian Chess Championship The Australian Chess Championship is a tournament organised by the Australian Chess Federation and held every two years. The tournament is largely restricted to Australian chess players, although it is common to allow a small number of strong overse ...

, in 1935, 1937, 1949, and 1951. He won the first two

Australian Correspondence Chess Championship The Australian Correspondence Chess Championship is organised by the Correspondence Chess League of Australia (CCLA). The event was held three times before 1937, with O Ludlow winning once and F M Hallman winning twice. Regular championships have be ...

s, in 1938 and 1945. He also won the

New Zealand Chess Championship The New Zealand Chess Championship was first conducted in 1879. Note: Up until 1934 foreign players were eligible for the title. The eligibility rules were changed in 1935 to preclude this; John Angus Erskine (twice champion in 1929 and 1935) was ...

in 1924/25. In

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

of 1952, Purdy drew a hard-fought match with

Ortvin Sarapu Ortvin Sarapu (born Ortvin Sarapuu; 22 January 1924 – 13 April 1999), known in New Zealand as "Mr Chess", was an Estonian-born chess player who emigrated to New Zealand and won or shared the New Zealand Chess Championship 20 times from 1 ...

, at the time by far the best player in New Zealand. They were thus declared

Australasia Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...

n co-champions. Purdy founded and edited the magazine ''Australasian Chess Review'' (1929–1944); this became ''Check'' (1944–45), and finally ''Chessworld'' (1946–1967). He was described by

Bobby Fischer Robert James Fischer (March 9, 1943January 17, 2008) was an American chess grandmaster and the eleventh World Chess Champion. A chess prodigy, he won his first of a record eight US Championships at the age of 14. In 1964, he won with an 11� ...

as being a great chess instructor. Some of his writings are still in print. A famous remark of his is "Pawn endings are to chess what putting is to golf." In 1976 he was awarded the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

for services to chess.

Personal life

He was married in 1934 to Anne Crakanthorp (1915–2013), the daughter of two-time Australian Chess Champion

Spencer Crakanthorp Spencer Crakanthorp, (17 February 1885 in Sydney, Australia – 1 August 1936) was a chess player and Australian Chess Champion in 1923−24, 1925−26, 1926 and 1927. He was the father-in-law of chess master Cecil Purdy Cecil John Seddo ...

. The marriage produced two children, John (1935–2011) and Diana. John Purdy followed in his father's (and grandfather's) footsteps in winning the Australian Chess Championship in 1955 and 1963. Diana was also a keen chess player, and she married leading

player Frank Hutchings in 1960.

Death

On 6 November 1979, Purdy collapsed, while playing chess in a tournament at the Chess Centre of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

and died later that day in the

Sydney Hospital Sydney Hospital is a major hospital in Australia, located on Macquarie Street in the Sydney central business district. It is the oldest hospital in Australia, dating back to 1788, and has been at its current location since 1811. It first rece ...

. He was survived by his wife, daughter and son John, who twice won the

. Purdy was cremated.Australian Dictionary of Biography - Purdy, Cecil John Seddon (1906–1979)
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Published works

* * *

References

External links

* *

''Australian Dictionary of Biography - Online Edition''

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Purdy, Cecil 1906 births 1979 deaths Chess International Masters Correspondence chess grandmasters World Correspondence Chess Champions New Zealand chess players Australian magazine editors Australian chess players Australian chess writers People from Port Said Australian people of Irish descent Australian expatriates in New Zealand Egyptian emigrants to Australia Writers from Sydney People educated at Cranbrook School, Sydney Members of the Order of Australia 20th-century chess players 20th-century Australian journalists