The Saragossa Opening is a
chess opening
A chess opening or simply an opening is the initial stage of a chess game. It usually consists of established theory; the other phases are the middlegame and the endgame. Many opening sequences have standard names such as the "Sicilian Defens ...
defined by the opening move:
:1.
c3
Since White usually plays more aggressively in the opening, the Saragossa is considered an
irregular opening, classified as A00 by the ''
Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings''.
History
This opening became popular in the Saragossa chess club (
Zaragoza, Spain) in 1919. The next year club member José Juncosa analyzed the opening in ''Revista del Club Argentino''.
In 1922 a theme tournament requiring the players to open with 1.c3 was arranged in
Mannheim with three participants,
Siegbert Tarrasch,
Paul Leonhardt
Paul Saladin Leonhardt (13 November 1877 – 14 December 1934) was a German chess master. He was born in Posen, Province of Posen, German Empire (now Poland), and died of a heart attack in Königsberg during a game of chess.
A player with ...
and
Jacques Mieses, which Tarrasch won.
Basics
The opening of 1.c3 seems at first to be an unambitious move. It opens a diagonal for the
queen, but it makes only a timid claim to the center. It prepares to play d4, but White could simply have played that move immediately. Also, the
pawn on c3 has the apparent disadvantage of taking the c3-square away from the
knight.
It is not a terrible move, however, because it is likely to
transpose into many solid systems, including a reversed
Caro-Kann Defence or
Slav Defense (but with an extra tempo for White); the Exchange Variation of the
Queen's Gambit Declined, after 1.c3 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.cxd4 d5; to a solid but passive type of
Queen's Pawn Game
Queen's Pawn Game broadly refers to any chess opening starting with the move 1.d4, which is the second most popular opening move after 1.e4 ( King's Pawn Game).
Terminology
The term "Queen's Pawn Game" is usually used to describe openings begi ...
after 1.c3 Nf6 2.d4 or 1.c3 d5 2.d4; or to a reversed
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 ...
after 1.c3 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.Qxd4!? Nc6 4.Qa4; as well as the
Ponziani and
Center Game
The Center Game is a chess opening that begins with the moves:
:1. e4 e5
:2. d4 exd4
The game usually continues 3.Qxd4 Nc6, with a gain of tempo for Black due to the attack on the white queen. (Note that 3.c3 is considered a separate open ...
openings, to name just a few.
Black has a number of responses, the most common (and effective) being 1...d5, 1...e5, and 1...Nf6. After 1...d5, White can essay the Plano Gambit, 2.e4?!, in effect an unusual response to the Scandinavian Defense. After 2...dxe4, 3.Qa4+ recovers the pawn, but Black gets quick development with 3...Nc6 4.Qxe4 Nf6 5.Qc2 e5. Also reasonable is 1...f5, when 2.d4 transposes into a
Dutch Defense
The Dutch Defence is a chess opening characterised by the moves:
:1. d4 f5
Black's 1...f5 stakes a claim to the e4-square and envisions an attack in the middlegame on White's ; however, it also weakens Black's kingside to an extent (especia ...
where White has played the passive move c3.
The reply 1...c5 is also playable, but gives White more opportunity than other moves to transpose into standard openings where he may have a small advantage. The move 1...c5 2.e4 transposes into the Alapin Variation of the
Sicilian Defence
The Sicilian Defence is a chess opening that begins with the following moves:
:1. b:Chess Opening Theory/1. e4, e4 b:Chess Opening Theory/1. e4/1...c5, c5
The Sicilian is the most popular and best-scoring response to White's first move 1.e4. Ope ...
. The sequence 1...c5 2.d4 is also possible, when 2...cxd4 (2...e6 3.e4 d5, transposing into a
French Defence after 4.e5 or 4.exd5, is also possible) 3.cxd4 d5 transposes into a regular Exchange Variation of the
Slav Defense (usually reached by 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.cxd5 cxd5), which gives White a slight advantage.
The move 1...Nc6 is also possible, as it transposes into the 1.Nc3 system (with colors reversed), where Black embarks on a rather dubious plan with c6 and d5. After 2.d4 d5, Black seems to be holding the admittedly unusual position without particular difficulties.
See also
*
List of chess openings
*
List of chess openings named after places
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
{{White's twenty opening moves in chess
Chess openings
1922 in chess