Edward Freeborough (18 August 1830 – 14 September 1896) was the co-author, with

Charles Ranken Charles Edward Ranken (5 January 1828 – 12 April 1905) was a Church of England clergyman and a minor British chess master. He co-founded and was the first president of the Oxford University Chess Club. He was also the editor of the ''Chess Pla ...

, of ''Chess Openings Ancient and Modern'' (1889), one of the first important

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 * , ...

treatise A treatise is a formal and systematic written discourse on some subject, generally longer and treating it in greater depth than an essay, and more concerned with investigating or exposing the principles of the subject and its conclusions."Treat ...

s in the

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

and a precursor 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 ...

''. He was a member of the editorial staff of the ''

British Chess Magazine ''British Chess Magazine'' is the world's oldest chess journal in continuous publication. First published in January 1881, it has appeared at monthly intervals ever since. It is frequently known in the chess world as ''BCM''. The founder and ...

'' from 1883 until his death in 1896. He also wrote the books ''Chess Endings'' (1891, 1896) and ''Select Chess End-Games from Actual Play'' (1895, 1899), and edited the book ''Analysis of the Chess Ending, King and Queen Against King and Rook'' by "Euclid" (a

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

for A. Crosskill) (1895). Freeborough had just completed the third edition of ''Chess Openings Ancient and Modern'' and transmitted the final version to the publisher "when he was struck down by a sudden and mortal illness".

Legacy book

The first edition of the book was published in 1889. Later editions were published in 1893, 1896, and 1910. It was one of the first opening books written in columnar form: columns of move-sequences thought to constitute best play, presented in

chess notation Chess notation systems are used to record either the moves made or the position of the pieces in a game of chess. Chess notation is used in chess literature, and by players keeping a record of an ongoing game. The earliest systems of notation used ...

and concluding with a

symbol A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conc ...

indicating the analyst's assessment of the final position (such as "equal", "White wins", or "advantage to Black").

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 ...

, ''The wisest things ever said about chess'', Batsford, 2008, p. 190. . The book also set forth a number of general principles, many of which are still valid today. Even contemporary grandmasters study the book. Frank Brady wrote in his

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...

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, ...

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� ...

that ''Chess Openings Ancient and Modern'' was one of the most heavily annotated books in Fischer's personal library. Fischer had pencilled in his own analyses of the

Scotch Game The Scotch Game, or Scotch Opening, is a chess opening that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. d4 Ercole del Rio, in his 1750 treatise ''Sopra il giuoco degli Scacchi, Osservazioni pratiche d’anonimo Autore Modenese'' ("On t ...

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 ...

Evans Gambit The Evans Gambit is a chess opening characterised by the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. Nf3 Nc6 :3. Bc4 Bc5 :4. b4 The Evans Gambit is an aggressive line of the Giuoco Piano. White offers a pawn to divert the black bishop on c5. If Black accepts, ...

, Bishop's Gambit,

Danish Gambit The Danish Gambit, known as the ' in German and the ' in Dutch (both meaning Nordic Gambit), is a chess opening that begins with the moves: :1. e4 e5 :2. d4 exd4 :3. c3 White will sacrifice one or two pawns for the sake of rapid and the at ...

, and other openings. Referring specifically to the analysis in ''Chess Openings Ancient and Modern'', Grandmaster Robert Byrne wrote in a 1991 chess column in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', "Ingenious strategies and tactics were tried out in the old days, and if your opponent knows them and you don't, you are in for a pounding." Likewise Fischer, in his famous book ''

My 60 Memorable Games ''My 60 Memorable Games'' is a chess book by Bobby Fischer, first published in 1969. It is a collection of his games dating from the 1957 New Jersey Open to the 1967 Sousse Interzonal. Unlike many players' anthologies, which are often titled ''My ...

'', annotating an Evans Gambit that he had won against

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 ...

, cited analysis from the 1893 edition of ''Chess Openings Ancient and Modern'' as an improvement on Fine's ninth move.

A rare game

Freeborough was not distinguished as a player, and few of his games survive.

Amos Burn Amos Burn (1848–1925) was an English chess player, one of the world's leading players at the end of the 19th century, and a chess writer. Burn was born on New Year's Eve, 1848, in Hull.Richard Forster, ''Amos Burn: A Chess Biography'', McFar ...

, one of the world's strongest players, easily beat him in the following game. Burn–Freeborough,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

vs.

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

match, 1887:
1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Bc5 3. f4 Bxg1? 4. Rxg1 Nc6 ? 5. fxe5 Nxe5 6. d4 Ng6 7. Qf3 c6? 8. Bc4 Qf6 9. Qxf6 Nxf6 10. e5 Nh5 ?? Losing a piece. 11. g3 Ne7 12. g4 b5 13. Bd3 Bb7 14. gxh5 Kf8 15. Ne4 Nc8? Losing another piece. 16. Nc5 Rb8? 17. Nxd7+ 1–0 Burn commented, "Mr. Freeborough is so constant a writer on the theory of the game that this example of his ''practice'' is somewhat remarkable."Forster 2004, p. 272 (quoting Burn in the 25 June 1887 ''Liverpool Weekly Courier'').

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Freeborough, Edward 1830 births 1896 deaths English non-fiction writers British chess writers Chess theoreticians English male non-fiction writers