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The game of
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 ...
is commonly divided into three phases: the
opening Opening may refer to: * Al-Fatiha, "The Opening", the first chapter of the Qur'an * The Opening (album), live album by Mal Waldron * Backgammon opening * Chess opening * A title sequence or opening credits * , a term from contract bridge * , ...
, middlegame, and
endgame Endgame, Endgames, End Game, End Games, or similar variations may refer to: Film * ''The End of the Game'' (1919 film) * ''The End of the Game'' (1975 film), short documentary U.S. film * ''Endgame'' (1983 film), 1983 Italian post-apocalyptic f ...
. There is a large body of theory regarding how the game should be played in each of these phases, especially the opening and endgame. Those who write about chess theory, who are often also eminent players, are referred to as "theorists" or "theoreticians". "Opening theory" commonly refers to consensus, broadly represented by current literature on the openings. "Endgame theory" consists of statements regarding specific positions, or positions of a similar type, though there are few universally applicable principles. "Middlegame theory" often refers to maxims or principles applicable to the middlegame. The modern trend, however, is to assign paramount importance to analysis of the specific position at hand rather than to general principles. The development of theory in all of these areas has been assisted by the vast literature on the game. In 1913, preeminent chess historian H. J. R. Murray wrote in his 900-page magnum opus ''
A History of Chess The book ''A History of Chess'' was written by H. J. R. Murray (1868–1955) and published in 1913. Details Murray's aim is threefold: to present as complete a record as is possible of the varieties of chess that exist or have existed in differen ...
'' that, "The game possesses a literature which in contents probably exceeds that of all other games combined." He estimated that at that time the "total number of books on chess, chess magazines, and newspapers devoting space regularly to the game probably exceeds 5,000". In 1949, B. H. Wood estimated that the number had increased to about 20,000.Hooper and Whyld, p. 229. David Hooper and
Kenneth Whyld Kenneth Whyld (6 March 1926 – 11 July 2003) was a British chess author and researcher, best known as the co-author (with David Hooper) of ''The Oxford Companion to Chess'', a single-volume chess reference work in English. Whyld was a str ...
wrote in 1992 that, "Since then there has been a steady increase year by year of the number of new chess publications. No one knows how many have been printed..." The world's largest
chess library Chess libraries are library collections of books and periodicals on the game of chess. In 1913, preeminent chess history, historian H. J. R. Murray estimated the total number of books, magazines, and Chess columns in newspapers, newspaper columns ...
, the
John G. White John Griswold White (10 August 1845 – 27 August 1928) was a prominent Cleveland lawyer, attorney, a chess connoisseur, and a bibliophile. Early life and education John Griswold White was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1845 to Bushnell and Eliza ...
Collection at the
Cleveland Public Library Cleveland Public Library, located in Cleveland, Ohio, operates the Main Library on Superior Avenue in downtown Cleveland, 27 branches throughout the city, a mobile library, a Public Administration Library in City Hall, and the Ohio Library for the ...
, contains over 32,000 chess books and serials, including over 6,000 bound volumes of chess periodicals. Chess players today also avail themselves of computer-based sources of information.


Opening theory

The earliest printed work on chess theory whose date can be established with some exactitude is ''Repeticion de Amores y Arte de Ajedrez'' by the
Spaniard Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex history, including a number of different languages, both ind ...
Luis Ramirez de Lucena Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archai ...
, published c. 1497, which included among other things analysis of eleven chess openings. Some of them are known today as the
Giuoco Piano The Giuoco Piano (Italian: "Quiet Game"; ), also called the Italian Opening, is a chess opening beginning with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Bc4 Bc5 "White aims to develop quickly – but so does Black. White can construct a pawn cen ...
,
Ruy Lopez The Ruy Lopez (; ), also called the Spanish Opening or Spanish Game, is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Bb5 The Ruy Lopez is named after 16th-century Spanish priest Ruy López de Segura. It is one o ...
,
Petrov's Defense Petrov's Defence or the Petrov Defence (also called Petroff Defence, Petrov's Game, Russian Defence, or Russian Game – russian: Русская партия) is a chess opening characterised by the following moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nf6 Tho ...
,
Bishop's Opening The Bishop's Opening is a chess opening that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Bc4 White attacks Black's f7-square and prevents Black from advancing the d-pawn to d5. By ignoring the beginner's maxim "develop knights before bishops", White ...
, Damiano's Defense, and
Scandinavian Defense The Scandinavian Defense (or Center Counter Defense, or Center Counter Game) is a chess opening characterized by the moves: :1. e4 d5 This opening is classified under code B01 in the ''Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings'' (). The Scandinavian ...
, though Lucena did not use those terms. The authorship and date of the
Göttingen manuscript The Göttingen manuscript is the earliest known work devoted entirely to modern chess. It is a Latin text of 33 pages held at the University of Göttingen. A quarto parchment manuscript of 33 pages, ff. 1–15a are a discussion of twelve chess op ...
are not established,Murray, p. 782. and its publication date is estimated as being somewhere between 1471 and 1505. It is not known whether it or Lucena's book was published first. The manuscript includes examples of games with the openings now known as Damiano's Defence,
Philidor's Defense The Philidor Defence (or Philidor's Defence) is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 d6 The opening is named after the famous 18th-century player François-André Danican Philidor, who advocated it as an alternative ...
, the Giuoco Piano, Petroff's Defense, the Bishop's Opening, the Ruy Lopez, the
Ponziani Opening The Ponziani Opening is a chess opening that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. c3 It is one of the oldest chess openings, having been discussed in the literature by 1497. It was advocated by Howard Staunton, generally consid ...
, the
Queen's Gambit Accepted The Queen's Gambit Accepted (or QGA) is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. d4 d5 :2. c4 dxc4 The Queen's Gambit Accepted is the third most popular option on Black's second move, after 2...e6 (the Queen's Gambit Declined) and 2.. ...
, 1.d4 d5 2.Bf4 Bf5 (a form of the
London System The London System, also known as the Mason Variation, is an in chess where White opens with 1.d4 but does not play the Queen's Gambit, instead opting to rapidly develop the . This often results in a . The London System can be used against virt ...
),
Bird's Opening Bird's Opening (or the Dutch Attack) is a chess opening characterised by the move: :1. f4 Bird's is a standard flank opening. White's strategic ideas involve control of the e5-square, offering good attacking chances at the expense of slightly ...
, and the
English Opening The English Opening is a chess opening that begins with the move: :1. c4 A flank opening, it is the fourth most popular and, according to various databases, one of the four most successful of White's twenty possible first moves. White begins th ...
. Murray observes that it "is no haphazard collection of commencements of games, but is an attempt to deal with the Openings in a systematic way." Fifteen years after Lucena's book,
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
apothecary ''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...
Pedro Damiano Pedro Damiano ( pt, Pedro Damião; ''Damiano'' is the Italian form, much like the Latin ''Damianus''; 1480–1544) was a Portuguese chess player. A native of Odemira, he was a pharmacist by profession. He wrote ''Questo libro e da imparare gioca ...
published the book ''Questo libro e da imparare giocare a scachi et de la partiti'' (1512) in Rome. It includes analysis of the Queen's Gambit Accepted, showing what happens when Black tries to keep the
gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...
pawn Pawn most often refers to: * Pawn (chess), the weakest and most numerous piece in the game * Pawnbroker or pawnshop, a business that provides loans by taking personal property as collateral Pawn may also refer to: Places * Pawn, Oregon, an his ...
with ...b5. Damiano's book "was, in contemporary terms, the first bestseller of the modern game."
Harry Golombek Harry Golombek OBE (1 March 1911 – 7 January 1995) was a British chess player, chess author, and wartime codebreaker. He was three times British chess champion, in 1947, 1949, and 1955 and finished second in 1948. He was born in Lambeth t ...
writes that it "ran through eight editions in the sixteenth century and continued on into the next century with unflagging popularity." Modern players know Damiano primarily because his name is attached to the weak opening Damiano's Defense (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f6?), although he condemned rather than endorsed it. These books and later ones discuss games played with various openings, opening traps, and the best way for both sides to play. Certain sequences of opening moves began to be given names, some of the earliest being Damiano's Defense, the
King's Gambit The King's Gambit is a chess opening that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. f4 White offers a pawn to divert the black e-pawn. If Black accepts the gambit, White has two main plans. The first is to play d4 and Bxf4, regaining the gambit p ...
(1.e4 e5 2.f4), the
Queen's Gambit The Queen's Gambit is the chess opening that starts with the moves: :1. d4 d5 :2. c4 It is one of the oldest openings and is still commonly played today. It is traditionally described as a ''gambit'' because White appears to sacrifice the ...
(1.d4 d5 2.c4), and the
Sicilian Defense The Sicilian Defence is a chess opening that begins with the following moves: :1. e4 c5 The Sicilian is the most popular and best-scoring response to White's first move 1.e4. Opening 1.d4 is a statistically more successful opening for White b ...
(1.e4 c5). Damiano's book was followed by general treatises on chess play by
Ruy López de Segura Rodrigo "Ruy" López de Segura (c. 1530 – c. 1580) was a Spanish chess player, author, and Catholic priest whose 1561 treatise '' Libro de la invención liberal y Arte del juego del Axedrez'' was one of the first books about modern chess in ...
(1561),
Giulio Cesare Polerio Giulio Cesare Polerio (c. 1550, – c. 1610; reconstruction of places and dates by Adriano Chicco) was an Italian chess theoretician and player. Name affixes used for him are ''l'Apruzzese'', Giu io Cesare ''da Lanciano'' (Salvio/Walker), and ''L ...
(1590),
Gioachino Greco Gioachino Greco (c. 1600 – c. 1634) ( ελληνικά/greek: Τζοακίνο Γκρέκο), surnamed Cusentino and more frequently ''il Calabrese'', was an Italian chess player and writer. He recorded some of the earliest chess games kno ...
(c. 1625),
Joseph Bertin Captain Joseph Bertin (1690s – c. 1736) was one of the first authors to write about the game of chess. David Hooper and Kenneth Whyld in ''The Oxford Companion to Chess'' call his book ''The Noble Game of Chess'' "the first worthwhile ches ...
(1735), and
François-André Danican Philidor François-André Danican Philidor (7 September 1726 – 31 August 1795), often referred to as André Danican Philidor during his lifetime, was a French composer and chess player. He contributed to the early development of the ''opéra comique''. ...
(1749).I.A. Horowitz, ''Chess Openings: Theory and Practice'', Simon and Schuster, 1964. The first author to attempt a comprehensive survey of the openings then known was
Aaron Alexandre Aaron (Albert) Alexandre ( he, אהרון אלכסנדר, around 1765/68 in Hohenfeld, Franconia – 16 November 1850 in London, England) was a German– French–English chess player and writer. Aaron Alexandre, a Bavarian trained as a rabbi, a ...
in his 1837 work ''Encyclopédie des Échecs''. According to Hooper and Whyld, "
arl ARL may refer to: Military * US Navy hull classification symbol for repair ship * Admiralty Research Laboratory, UK * United States Army Research Laboratory * ARL 44, a WWII French tank Organizations * Aero Research Limited, a UK adhesives comp ...
Jaenisch produced the first openings analysis on modern lines in his ''Analyse nouvelle des ouvertures'' (1842-43)."Hooper and Whyld, p. 280. In 1843,
Paul Rudolf von Bilguer Paul Rudolf (or Rudolph) von Bilguer (21 September 1815 – 16 September 1840) was a German chess master and chess theoretician from Ludwigslust in the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Bilguer, who was a lieutenant in the Prussian army, ...
published the German ''
Handbuch des Schachspiels ''Handbuch des Schachspiels'' (''Handbook of Chess'', often simply called the ''Handbuch'') is a chess book, first published in 1843 by Tassilo von Heydebrand und der Lasa. It was a comprehensive reference book on the game, and one of the most imp ...
'', which combined the virtues of Alexandre and Jaenisch's works. The ''Handbuch'', which went through several editions, last being published in several parts in 1912–16, was one of the most important opening references for many decades. The last edition of the ''Handbuch'' was edited by
Carl Schlechter Carl Schlechter (2 March 1874 – 27 December 1918) was a leading Austro-Hungarian chess master and theoretician at the turn of the 20th century. He is best known for drawing a World Chess Championship match with Emanuel Lasker. Early life Sc ...
, who had drawn a match for the World Championship with
Emanuel Lasker Emanuel Lasker (; December 24, 1868 – January 11, 1941) was a German chess player, mathematician, and philosopher who was World Chess Champion for 27 years, from 1894 to 1921, the longest reign of any officially recognised World Chess Champ ...
in 1910.
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 ...
William Hartston William Roland Hartston (born 12 August 1947) is an English journalist who wrote the Beachcomber column in the '' Daily Express''. He is also a chess player who played competitively from 1962 to 1987 and earned a highest Elo rating of 2485. He ...
called it "a superb work, perhaps the last to encase successfully the whole of chess knowledge within a single volume." The
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...
Howard Staunton Howard Staunton (April 1810 – 22 June 1874) was an English chess master who is generally regarded as the world's strongest player from 1843 to 1851, largely as a result of his 1843 victory over Pierre Charles Fournier de Saint-Am ...
, perhaps the world's strongest player from 1843 to 1851, included over 300 pages of analysis of the openings in his 1847 treatise ''The Chess Player's Handbook.'' That work immediately became the standard reference work in English-speaking countries, and was reprinted 21 times by 1935. However, "as time passed a demand arose for more up-to-date works in English".Hooper and Whyld, p. 280 ("Openings literature" entry).
Wilhelm Steinitz William Steinitz (born Wilhelm Steinitz; May 14, 1836 – August 12, 1900) was an Austrian and, later, American chess player. From 1886 to 1894, he was the first official World Chess Champion. He was also a highly influential writer and che ...
, the first
World Champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
, widely considered the "father of modern chess," extensively analyzed various double king-pawn openings (beginning 1.e4 e5) in his book ''The Modern Chess Instructor'', published in 1889 and 1895. Also in 1889, E. Freeborough and C. E. Ranken published the first edition of ''Chess Openings Ancient and Modern''; later editions were published in 1893, 1896, and 1910. In 1911, R. C. Griffith and J. H. White published the first edition of ''
Modern Chess Openings ''Modern Chess Openings'' (usually called ) is a reference book on chess openings, first published in 1911 by the British players Richard Clewin Griffith (1872–1955) and John Herbert White (1880–1920). The fifteenth edition was published in ...
''. It is now the longest-published opening treatise in history; the fifteenth edition (commonly called ''MCO-15''), by Grandmaster
Nick de Firmian Nicholas Ernest de Firmian (born July 26, 1957) is an American chess player who received the FIDE title of Grandmaster (GM) in 1985. He is a three-time U.S. chess champion, winning in 1987 (with Joel Benjamin), 1995, and 1998. He also tied for ...
, was published in April 2008. According to Hooper and Whyld, the various editions of ''Modern Chess Openings'', the last edition of the ''Handbuch'', and the fourth edition of Ludvig Collijn's '' Larobok'' (in
Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
), with groundbreaking contributions by Rubinstein, Reti, Spielmann and Nimzowitch "were the popular reference sources for strong players between the two
world wars A world war is an international conflict which involves all or most of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World WarI (1914 ...
." In 1937-39 former World Champion
Max Euwe Machgielis "Max" Euwe (; May 20, 1901 – November 26, 1981) was a Dutch chess player, mathematician, author, and chess administrator. He was the fifth player to become World Chess Champion, a title he held from 1935 until 1937. He served as ...
published a twelve-volume opening treatise, ''De theorie der schaakopeningen'', in
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
. It was later translated into other languages. In the late 1930s to early 1950s
Reuben Fine Reuben C. Fine (October 11, 1914 – March 26, 1993) was an American chess player, psychologist, university professor, and author of many books on both chess and psychology. He was one of the strongest chess players in the world from the mi ...
, one of the world's strongest players, also became one of its leading theoreticians, publishing important works on the opening, middlegame, and endgame. These began with his revision of ''Modern Chess Openings'', which was published in 1939. In 1943, he published ''Ideas Behind the Chess Openings'', which sought to explain the principles underlying the openings. In 1948, he published his own opening treatise, ''Practical Chess Openings'', a competitor to ''MCO''. In 1964,
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 ...
I.A. Horowitz Israel Albert Horowitz (often known as I. A. Horowitz or Al Horowitz) (November 15, 1907 – January 18, 1973) was an American International Master of chess. He is most remembered today for the books he wrote about chess. In 1989 he was induc ...
published the 789-page tome ''Chess Openings: Theory and Practice'', which in addition to opening analysis includes a large number of illustrative games. In 1966, the first volume of ''
Chess Informant Chess Informant (Šahovski Informator) is a publishing company from Belgrade (Serbia, former Yugoslavia) that periodically (since 2012, four volumes per year) produces a book entitled ''Chess Informant'', as well as the ''Encyclopaedia of Chess O ...
'' was published in
Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
,
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
, containing 466 annotated games from the leading chess tournaments and matches of the day. The hugely influential ''Chess Informant'' series has revolutionized opening theory. Its great innovation is that it expresses games in languageless figurine algebraic notation and annotated them using no words, but rather seventeen symbols, whose meanings were explained at the beginning of the book in six different languages. This enabled readers around the world to read the same games and annotations, thus greatly accelerating the dissemination of chess ideas and the development of opening theory. The editors of ''Chess Informant'' later introduced other publications using the same principle, such as the five-volume ''
Encyclopedia of Chess Openings The ''Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings'' () is a reference work describing the state of opening theory in chess, originally published in five volumes from 1974 to 1979 by the Serbian company Šahovski Informator ( Chess Informant). It is curren ...
'' and ''Encyclopedia of Chess Endings'' treatises. ''Chess Informant'' was originally published twice a year, and since 1991 has been published thrice annually. Volume 100 was published in 2007. It now uses 57 symbols, explained in 10 languages, to annotate games (see
punctuation (chess) When annotating chess games, commentators frequently use widely recognized annotation symbols. Question marks and exclamation points that denote a move as bad or good are ubiquitous in chess literature. Some publications intended for an internati ...
), and is available in both print and electronic formats. In 2005, former World Champion
Garry Kasparov Garry Kimovich Kasparov (born 13 April 1963) is a Russian chess grandmaster, former World Chess Champion, writer, political activist and commentator. His peak rating of 2851, achieved in 1999, was the highest recorded until being surpassed by ...
wrote, "We are all Children of the ''Informant''." In the 1990s and thereafter, the development of opening theory has been further accelerated by such innovations as extremely strong
chess engines In computer chess, a chess engine is a computer program that analyzes chess or chess variant positions, and generates a move or list of moves that it regards as strongest. A chess engine is usually a back end with a command-line interface wit ...
such as
Fritz Fritz originated as a German nickname for Friedrich, or Frederick (''Der Alte Fritz'', and ''Stary Fryc'' were common nicknames for King Frederick II of Prussia and Frederick III, German Emperor) as well as for similar names including Fridolin a ...
and Rybka,
software Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work. At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...
such as ChessBase, and the sale of multi-million-game databases such as ChessBase's Mega 2013 database, with over 5.4 million games. Today, the most important openings have been analyzed over 20 moves deep, sometimes well into the endgame, and it is not unusual for leading players to introduce theoretical novelties on move 25 or even later. Thousands of books have been written on chess openings. These include both comprehensive openings encyclopedias such as the ''Encyclopedia of Chess Openings'' and ''Modern Chess Openings''; general treatises on how to play the opening such as ''Mastering the Chess Openings'' (in four volumes), by International Master
John L. Watson John Leonard Watson (born 1951) is an American chess International Master and author. In 2022, Watson was inducted into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame along with GM James Tarjan and the late Daniel Willard Fiske. Watson is also a recipient of the U ...
; and myriad books on specific openings, such as ''Understanding the Grünfeld'' and ''Chess Explained: The Classical Sicilian''. "Books and monographs on openings are popular, and as they are thought to become out of date quickly there is a steady supply of new titles." According to
Andrew Soltis Andrew Eden Soltis (born May 28, 1947) is an American chess grandmaster, author and columnist. He was inducted into the United States Chess Hall of Fame in September 2011. Chess career Soltis learned how the chess pieces moved at age 10 when he ...
, "Virtually all the new information about chess since 1930 has been in the opening."


Middlegame theory

Middlegame theory is considerably less developed than either opening theory or endgame theory. Watson writes, "Players wishing to study this area of the game have a limited and rather unsatisfactory range of resources from which to choose."''Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy'', p. 10. One of the earliest theories to gain attention was that of
William Steinitz William Steinitz (born Wilhelm Steinitz; May 14, 1836 – August 12, 1900) was an Austrian and, later, American chess player. From 1886 to 1894, he was the first official World Chess Champion. He was also a highly influential writer and che ...
, who posited that a premature attack against one's opponent in an equal position could be repelled by skillful defence, and so a player's best bet was to slowly maneuver with the goal of accumulating small advantages. Emanuel Lasker in ''Lasker's Manual of Chess'' and Max Euwe in ''The Development of Chess Style'' outlined theories that they attributed to Steinitz. Leading player and theorist Aron Nimzowitsch's influential books, ''
My System ''My System'' (german: Mein System) is a book on chess theory written by Aron Nimzowitsch. Originally over a series of five brochures from 1925 to 1927, the book—one of the early works on hypermodernism—introduced many new concepts to foll ...
'' (1925), ''Die
Blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are le ...
'' (1925) (in
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
), and ''Chess Praxis'' (1936), are among the most important works on the middlegame. Nimzowitsch called attention to the possibility of letting one's opponent occupy the centre with pawns while you exert control with your pieces as in the Nimzo-Indian or Queen's Indian defences. He pointed out how in positions with interlocking pawn chains, one could attack the chain at its base by advancing one's own pawns and carrying out a freeing move (pawn break). He also drew attention to the strategy of occupying open files with one's rooks in order to later penetrate to the seventh rank where they could attack the enemy pawns and hem in the opponent's king. Another of his key concepts was prophylaxis, moves aimed at limiting the opponent's mobility to the point where he would no longer have any useful moves. In 1952, Fine published the 442-page ''The Middle Game in Chess'', perhaps the most comprehensive treatment of the subject up until that time. The mid-20th century also saw the publication of ''The Middle Game'', volumes 1 and 2, by former World Champion
Max Euwe Machgielis "Max" Euwe (; May 20, 1901 – November 26, 1981) was a Dutch chess player, mathematician, author, and chess administrator. He was the fifth player to become World Chess Champion, a title he held from 1935 until 1937. He served as ...
and Hans Kramer, and a series of books by the
Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...
-German grandmaster
Luděk Pachman Luděk Pachman (German: Ludek Pachmann, May 11, 1924 – March 6, 2003) was a Czechoslovak-German chess grandmaster, chess writer, and political activist. In 1972, after being imprisoned and tortured almost to death by the Communist regime in ...
: three volumes of ''Complete
Chess Strategy Chess strategy is the aspect of chess play concerned with evaluation of chess positions and setting of goals and long-term plans for future play. While evaluating a position strategically, a player must take into account such factors as the rela ...
'', ''Modern Chess Strategy'', ''Modern
Chess Tactics In chess, a tactic is a sequence of moves that each makes one or more immediate threats ─ that is, a Check (chess), check, a Glossary of chess#material, material threat, a Checkmate, checkmating sequence threat, or the threat of another tactic ...
'', and '' Attack and
Defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...
in Modern Chess Tactics''. Another key turning point in middlegame theory came with the release of
Alexander Kotov Alexander Alexandrovich Kotov (Алекса́ндр Алекса́ндрович Ко́тов; – 8 January 1981) was a Soviet chess grandmaster and author. He was a Soviet chess champion, a two-time world title Candidate, and a prolific write ...
's book ''Think like a Grandmaster'' in 1971. Kotov outlined how a player calculates by developing a tree of variations in his head, and recommended that players only examine each branch of the tree once. He also noted how some players seem to fall victim to what is now known as Kotov's Syndrome: they calculate out a large range of different lines, become dissatisfied with the result, and realizing that they are short on time, play a completely new candidate move without even checking whether it is sound. More recently, Jonathan Tisdall, John Nunn and Andrew Soltis have elaborated on Kotov's tree theory further. In 1999, Watson's ''Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy: Advances Since Nimzowitsch'' was published, in which Watson discusses the revolution in middlegame theory that has occurred since Nimzowitsch's time. Many books on specific aspects of the middlegame exist, such as ''The Art of Attack in Chess'' by Vladimir Vuković, ''The Art of
Sacrifice Sacrifice is the offering of material possessions or the lives of animals or humans to a deity as an act of propitiation or worship. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Greeks, and possibly exi ...
in Chess'' by
Rudolf Spielmann Rudolf Spielmann (5 May 1883 – 20 August 1942) was a Jewish-Austrian chess player of the romantic school, and chess writer. Career Spielmann was born in 1883, third child of Moritz and Cecilia Spielmann, and had a younger brother Edgar, an o ...
, ''The Art of the
Checkmate Checkmate (often shortened to mate) is any game position in chess and other chess-like games in which a player's king is in check (threatened with ) and there is no possible escape. Checkmating the opponent wins the game. In chess, the king is ...
'' by Georges Renaud and Victor Kahn, ''The Basis of
Combination In mathematics, a combination is a selection of items from a set that has distinct members, such that the order of selection does not matter (unlike permutations). For example, given three fruits, say an apple, an orange and a pear, there are th ...
in Chess'' by J. du Mont, and ''The Art of Defense in Chess'' by
Andrew Soltis Andrew Eden Soltis (born May 28, 1947) is an American chess grandmaster, author and columnist. He was inducted into the United States Chess Hall of Fame in September 2011. Chess career Soltis learned how the chess pieces moved at age 10 when he ...
.


Endgame theory

Many significant chess treatises, beginning with the earliest works, have included some analysis of the endgame. Lucena's book (c. 1497) concluded with 150 examples of endgames and
chess problem A chess problem, also called a chess composition, is a puzzle set by the composer using chess pieces on a chess board, which presents the solver with a particular task. For instance, a position may be given with the instruction that White is to ...
s. The second edition (1777) of Philidor's ''Analyse du jeu des Échecs'' devoted 75 pages of analysis to various endgames. These included a number of theoretically important endings, such as rook and bishop versus rook, queen versus rook, queen versus rook and pawn, and rook and pawn versus rook. Certain positions in the endings of rook and bishop versus rook, rook and pawn versus rook, and queen versus rook have become known as Philidor's position. Philidor concluded his book with two pages of (in the English translation), "Observations on the ends of parties", in which he set forth certain general principles about endings, such as: "Two knights alone cannot mate" (see
two knights endgame The two knights endgame is a chess endgame with a king and two knights versus a king. In contrast to a king and two bishops (on opposite-colored squares), or a bishop and a knight, a king and two knights cannot checkmate against a lone king (howe ...
), the ending with a bishop and rook pawn whose queening square is on the opposite color from the bishop is drawn (see Wrong rook pawn#Bishop and pawn), and a queen beats a bishop and knight (see Pawnless chess endgame#Queen versus two minor pieces). Staunton's ''The Chess-Player's Handbook'' (1847) includes almost 100 pages of analysis of endgames. Some of Staunton's analysis, such as his analysis of the very rare rook versus three minor pieces endgame, is surprisingly sophisticated. At page 439, he wrote, "Three minor Pieces are much stronger than a Rook, and in cases where two of them are Bishops will usually win without much difficulty, because the player of the Rook is certain to be compelled to lose him for one of his adversary's Pieces. If, however, there are two Knights and one Bishop opposed to a Rook, the latter may generally be exchanged for the Bishop, and as two Knights are insufficient of themselves to force checkmate, the game will be drawn." Modern-day
endgame tablebase An endgame tablebase is a computerized database that contains precalculated exhaustive analysis of chess endgame positions. It is typically used by a computer chess engine during play, or by a human or computer that is retrospectively analysin ...
s confirm Staunton's assessments of both endings. Yet Reuben Fine, 94 years after Staunton, erroneously wrote on page 521 of '' Basic Chess Endings'' that both types of rook versus three minor piece endings "are theoretically drawn." Grandmaster
Pal Benko Pál C. Benkő ( hu, Benkő Pál; July 15, 1928 – August 26, 2019) was a Hungarian-American chess player, author, and composer of endgame studies and chess problems. Early life Benko was born on July 15, 1928 in Amiens, France, where his ...
, an authority on the endgame and like Fine a world-class player at his peak, perpetuated Fine's error in his 2003 revision of ''Basic Chess Endings''. Reuben Fine and Pal Benko, ''Basic Chess Endings (Algebraic Edition)'', McKay Chess Library, 2003, p. 524, . Grandmaster
Andrew Soltis Andrew Eden Soltis (born May 28, 1947) is an American chess grandmaster, author and columnist. He was inducted into the United States Chess Hall of Fame in September 2011. Chess career Soltis learned how the chess pieces moved at age 10 when he ...
in a 2004 book expressly disagreed with Staunton, claiming that the rook versus two bishops and knight ending is drawn with correct play. Andrew Soltis, ''Rethinking the Chess Pieces'', Batsford 2004, p. 84. . At the time Benko and Soltis offered their assessments (in 2003 and 2004, respectively), endgame tablebases had already proven that Staunton was correct, and that Fine, Benko, and Soltis were wrong, although the ending can take up to 68 moves to win. Müller and Lamprecht, p. 403. Staunton's conclusions on these endgames were, anticipated by the British master
George Walker George Walker may refer to: Arts and letters * George Walker (chess player) (1803–1879), English chess player and writer *George Walker (composer) (1922–2018), American composer * George Walker (illustrator) (1781–1856), author of ''The Co ...
, who wrote in 1846 (and perhaps earlier):
Although the two Bishops and Kt win, as a general proposition, against Rook, yet the two Knights with a Bishop cannot expect the same success; and the legitimate result of such conflict would be a draw. The Bishops, united, are stronger than the Knights, as they strike from a greater distance. When the two Knights are left with a Bishop, the Rook has also the chance of exchanging for the latter, which can hardly be avoided by his adversary, and the two Knights, alone, have not the mating power.
In 1941 Reuben Fine published his monumental 573-page treatise ''Basic Chess Endings'', the first attempt at a comprehensive treatise on the endgame. A new edition, revised by
Pal Benko Pál C. Benkő ( hu, Benkő Pál; July 15, 1928 – August 26, 2019) was a Hungarian-American chess player, author, and composer of endgame studies and chess problems. Early life Benko was born on July 15, 1928 in Amiens, France, where his ...
, was published in 2003.
Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
writers published an important series of books on specific endings: ''Rook Endings'' by
Grigory Levenfish Grigory Yakovlevich Levenfish (russian: Григо́рий Я́ковлевич Левенфи́ш;  – 9 February 1961) was a Soviet chess player who scored his peak competitive results in the 1920s and 1930s. He was twice USSR Chess Champ ...
and
Vasily Smyslov Vasily Vasilyevich Smyslov ( rus, Васи́лий Васи́льевич Смысло́в, Vasíliy Vasíl'yevich Smyslóv; 24 March 1921 – 27 March 2010) was a Soviet and Russian chess grandmaster, who was World Chess Champion from 1957 to ...
, ''Pawn Endings'' by
Yuri Averbakh Yuri Lvovich Averbakh (russian: Ю́рий Льво́вич Аверба́х; 8 February 1922 – 7 May 2022) was a Russian chess grandmaster and author. He was chairman of the USSR Chess Federation from 1973 to 1978. He was the first centenaria ...
and I. Maizelis, ''Queen and Pawn Endings'' by Averbakh, ''Bishop Endings'' by Averbakh, ''Knight Endings'' by Averbakh and
Vitaly Chekhover Vitaly Alexandrovich Chekhover (also spelled Tschechower or Czechower, pronounced "chekh a VYAIR") (russian: Вита́лий Алекса́ндрович Чехове́р) (December 22, 1908 – February 11, 1965) was a Soviet chess player and ch ...
, ''Bishop v. Knight Endings'' by Yuri Averbakh, ''Rook v. Minor Piece Endings'' by Averbakh, and ''Queen v. Rook/Minor Piece Endings'' by Averbakh, Chekhover, and V. Henkin. These books by Averbakh and others were collected into the five-volume ''Comprehensive Chess Endings'' in English. In recent years, computer-generated
endgame tablebase An endgame tablebase is a computerized database that contains precalculated exhaustive analysis of chess endgame positions. It is typically used by a computer chess engine during play, or by a human or computer that is retrospectively analysin ...
s have revolutionized endgame theory, conclusively showing best play in many complicated endgames that had vexed human analysts for over a century, such as
queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
and pawn versus queen. They have also overturned human theoreticians' verdicts on a number of endgames; for example by proving that the two
bishops A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
versus
knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
ending, which had been thought drawn for over a century, can be a win for the bishops (see pawnless chess endgame#Minor pieces only and Chess endgame#Effect of tablebases on endgame theory). Several important works on the endgame have been published in recent years, among them ''Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual'', ''Fundamental Chess Endings'' by
Karsten Müller Karsten Müller (born November 23, 1970 in Hamburg, West Germany) is a German chess Grandmaster and author. He earned the Grandmaster title in 1998 and a PhD in mathematics in 2002 at the University of Hamburg. He had placed third in the 1996 Ger ...
and
Frank Lamprecht Frank Lamprecht (born 21 June 1968) is a German chess International Master and chess trainer. He is a co-author of ''Fundamental Chess Endings'' (2001) and ''Secrets of Pawn Endings'' (2000), both with Karsten Müller Karsten Müller (born Nove ...
,Karsten Muller and Frank Lamprecht, ''Fundamental Chess Endings'', Gambit Publications, 2001. . ''Basic Endgames: 888 Theoretical Positions'' by
Yuri Balashov Yuri Sergeyevich Balashov (russian: Ю́рий Серге́евич Балашо́в; born 12 March 1949) is a Russian chess player. He was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 1973. Chess career Born in Shadrinsk, Balashov was awarded ...
and Eduard Prandstetter, ''Chess Endgame Lessons'' by Benko, and ''Secrets of Rook Endings'' and ''Secrets of Pawnless Endings'' by
John Nunn John Denis Martin Nunn (born 25 April 1955) is an English chess grandmaster, a three-time world champion in chess problem solving, a chess writer and publisher, and a mathematician. He is one of England's strongest chess players and was former ...
.John Nunn, ''Secrets of Pawnless Endings'', Henry Holt, 1994. . Some of these have been aided by analysis from endgame tablebases.


See also

*
Chess endgame literature Chess endgame literature refers to books and magazines about chess endgames. A bibliography of endgame books is below. Many chess masters have contributed to the theory of endgames over the centuries, including Ruy López de Segura, François-A ...
*
Chess piece relative value In chess, a relative value (or point value) is a standard value conventionally assigned to each piece. Piece valuations have no role in the rules of chess but are useful as an aid to assessing a position. Valuation systems almost always assign ...
*
List of chess openings This is a list of chess openings, organized by the ''Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings'' () code. In 1966, Chess Informant categorized the chess openings into five broad areas ("A" through "E"), with each of those broken down into one hundred subca ...


References

{{Chess Chess terminology