Black to Play and Mate

Pete Tamburro on Jul 12, 2009

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Summer School! The next few weeks will be puzzles oriented toward the chess novice. You know how to play the game, but would like to know a little more. I've chosen games that are short and teach a lesson about development and mating a king in the 1.e4 e5 openings as those most frequently appear. I picked out the games from an old German book from the 1920s: Schnell Matt: 700 Kurze Brillante Schachpartien (Quick Mates: 700 Brilliant Chess Games) by Claudius Huther and Ludwig Bachmann. The whole game score is given and it would be worth your while to play it through and look at the variations in parentheses and the comments. By the way, when you take your chess set out, take the Black side here!

Lesson One: Black to Play and Mate

Solution:

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 d6 5.0–0 Bg4 6.d4 exd4 7.Qb3 Qd7 8.cxd4 [Better would have been: 8.Bxf7+ Kf8 (8...Qxf7 9.Qxb7) 9.Bxg8 Rxg8 10.cxd4 Bxd4 11.Nxd4 Nxd4 12.Qd3] 8...Bxf3 9.dxc5 Nd4 10.Bxf7+ [10.Qxb7 Qg4 11.Qxa8+ Ke7 12.Bg5+ Nf6 13.cxd6+ Kd7 and White will be mated] 10...Kd8 11.Qxb7

(See Diagram)

11… Ne2+ 12.Kh1 Bxg2+ 13.Kxg2 Qg4+ 14.Kh1 Qf3#

Send questions and comments to PTamburro@aol.com.