Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

CHESS

William Hartson
Sunday 28 May 1995 23:02 BST
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

When you have opened a file alongside your opponent's king, and are barging ahead with a mating attack using your major pieces, it is a lesson most of us learn from bitter experience that rooks should lead the way with a queen in the rear, rather than the other way round. This is a theme problemists have put to good use too. Take the following position, for example. Composed by Eric Zepler in 1933, it is White to play and mate in four.

, , , ,

,G, , ,

, , , ,

, , , ,

, , , ,

,H,S, ,

ANf, , ,

, z , ,

1.Rc7?? is stalemate, 1.Rd7? loses the queen to Nb4+, and 1.Qe2 invites 1...Nb4+! when Rxb4 is stalemate again. The natural try is something like 1.Qd6 followed by Rd7 and Qd1 mate, but Black plays 1...Ne1! 2.Rd7 Nd3! when 3.Qxd3 is stalemate again.

That last variation (particularly when taken in conjunction with the opening comments) should suggest the right answer: 1.Qd8! Ne1 (best) 2.Rd7! and now 2...Kc2 3.Rd1! forces a knight move when Qd3 (or Qxd3) is mate, while 2...Nd3 3.Rxd3! Kc2 allows 4.Rc3 mate.

The next diagram is a far more complex and beautiful version of the same theme. It is White to play and mate in 7 and was composed by Markus Ott in 1959.

, , , ,

, , , ,

n , n ,

,h, nH,

, ,A, ,

, , , ,

dn NH, ,

zf,S, ,G

With Black's king entrenched in the corner, it is not easy to see how White will get at it, even with seven moves to spare. One try might be to bring the king closer, but 1.Kd3 e4+ 2.Kc2 b4 even leaves Black threatening b3 mate.

Another idea is to wait for b4, then play Qa4 followed by Rxb1+ when Kxb1 is met by Qd1 mate. But after 1.(something) b4 2.Qa4 b3! where does White go?

The formula has to be (White moves indicated by question marks): 1.?? b4 2.Qa4

b3 3.?? b5 4.?? b4 and then a brilliant three-move mate. If only White's queen and rook were the other way round, we might have a glimmer of an idea. Okay, lets do it: 1.Rf1!! b4 2.Qa4 b3 3.Qa7!! b5 4.Qg1! b4 and now the clever bit: 5.Rxb1+! Bxb1 6.d3!! Ka2 7.Qa7 mate! Finally, if Black meets 1.Rf1 with Bd5+, White mates with 2.Kxd5 Ka2 3.Qxb1+ Ka3 (or Kb3) 4.Rf3+! Ka4 (or Kb4) 5.Qe4+ Ka5 6.Ra3. The fourth move of that line explains why 1.Re1 does not work in the starting position.

William Hartston

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in