Charles Blake (12 June 1880 – 18 May 1961) was an Anglo-Canadian chess player and prominent lawyer in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

.''Who's Who in Canada'', An Illustrated Biographical Record of Men and Women of the Time, Edited by B.M Greene. Published by International Press Limited, Toronto, Canada, 1927, p. 1484 He won the

U.S. Open Chess Championship The U.S. Open Championship is an open national chess championship that has been held in the United States annually since . History The tournament was originally the championship of the Western Chess Association, and was called the Western Open. I ...

in 1911, was the chess champion of

Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada� ...

between 1907 and 1910, and was Winnipeg Chess Club Champion, between 1907 and 1910.''The Windsor Star'',

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, 7 January 1930, p. 16

Early life

Charles Blake was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 12 June 1880. He was educated at

Bedford Modern School Bedford Modern School (often called BMS) is a Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference independent school in Bedford, England. The school has its origins in Bedford Charity, The Harpur Trust, born from the financial endowment, endowments le ...

Legal career

Blake emigrated to Canada in 1903 and read law in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

, and was called to the Manitoba Bar in 1909. He practised with Rothwell & Johnson in

, between 1909 and 1911, before setting up his own practice in

Brandon, Manitoba Brandon () is the second-largest city in the province of Manitoba, Canada. It is located in the southwestern corner of the province on the banks of the Assiniboine River, approximately west of the provincial capital, Winnipeg, and east of the ...

, in 1912. He moved to

in 1925 and was called to the Ontario Bar in 1929 and the British Columbia Bar in 1949.

Chess career

Blake was the chess champion of

between 1907 and 1910, and was Winnipeg Chess Club Champion, also from 1907 to 1910. Blake won the

in 1911. He was said to be one of the few players who could effectively compete with

Magnus Smith Magnus Smith (1869–1934) was a three-time Canadian chess champion in 1899, 1904 and 1906. The Magnus Smith Trap in the Sicilian Defence is named after him. References Canadian chess players 1869 births 1934 deaths {{DEFAULTSOR ...

, the three-time Canadian Chess Champion. Blake was runner up in the

Canadian Chess Championship This is the list of all the winners of the Canadian Chess Championship, often referred to as the Canadian Closed Championship to distinguish it from the annual Canadian Open tournament. The winner of the Canadian Closed advances to the World Cup st ...

in 1909 and 1913. In the 1920s he won two Northwest Competitions in

World War I

At the outset of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Blake joined the 99th Manitoba Rangers. He was with the

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) was the expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed following Britain’s declaration of war on Germany on 15 August 1914, with an initial strength of one infantry division ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, 8th Battalion, 1st Canadian Division, from August 1914 where he was a Lieutenant, later promoted to a Captain in October 1915. He was further promoted to the rank of Major in September 1916.

Death

Blake’s wife predeceased him. He died, without issue, on 18 May 1961.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Charles 1880 births 1961 deaths Canadian people of British descent Canadian chess players 20th-century Canadian lawyers People from London People educated at Bedford Modern School