Every square in chess has a name based on a coordinate system. All files have a letter, from a - h, going from the queen's rook file to the king's rook file. Each rank has a number from the 1st and 2nd rank where Whit...
A great strategy to help win chess games is to capture opposing pieces. Most captures are made the same way that pieces normally move. Remember, that pawns capture one square diagonally, instead of their normal forwar...
Check means that one side is threatening to capture the opposing king. You never capture the king in chess, so the other side must get out of check. To notate a check, you add a "+" to the end of your notation. For...
When you are in check you must escape check. The ways to get out of check are to move the king, block the check with another piece or to capture the checking piece.
You win when your opponent is in check and cannot escape. That is called checkmate!
Have you ever wondered what the fastest possible checkmate is in chess? The fastest possible checkmate takes only two moves. Try to follow the moves below. 1. f3 e5 2. g4 Qh4# The notation for checkmate is #.
Stalemate occurs when there are no possible moves, but neither king is in check. Stalemate is a draw, even if one of the players has many more pieces on the board. A good example of stalemate occurs when one side ju...
Not all chess games are won or lost. Sometimes they end in a draw. These are the ways that can happen: 1. Stalemate. 2. Both players agree to a draw. 3. If the exact same position has repeated three times, either pla...
Castling is a special move to protect your king and activate your rook. It's the only time in chess you can move two pieces in one move. The king moves two squares to the right or left and the rook moves directly to t...
This is the most unusual rule in chess - make sure you learn it. En-passant occurs when a pawn has just moved two squares. It's possible the very next move for the opponent to capture that pawn with one of his or her...
There are dozens of possible chess moves at any time. How do you find the right one? Each turn you will want to consider your option and your opponent's options. You'll want to pay particular attention to checks, cap...
Watch a complete game of chess played with all moves explained, 1. e4 c6 Both sides move pawns towards the center. 2. d4 d5 Both sides place a 2nd pawn in the center and allow pieces out. 3. Nc3 dxe4 White defends a...
Now that you know how the pieces move, it's time to set up and start the game. Each player starts with a light square in the lower right-hand corner. Rooks are placed in the corners, with knights next to them, followe...
When a pawn reaches the end of the board it promotes, which means it turns into another piece. You can promote to a knight, bishop, rook or queen. Since queens are the most powerful piece, that is by far the most comm...
Typically pawns move one square forward each move. However, pawns have a couple of special features. A pawn can advance either one or two squares on its first move. Additionally, pawns don't capture the way that they...
The knight is the only chess piece that doesn't go in a straight line. The knight moves two squares in one direction and then turns and goes one in another direction. For example, a knight could move up two and one to...
The bishop can move diagonally like a queen, but not forward, backward or sideways. Each side starts with two bishops, one on a light square and one on a dark square.
The rook can move forward, backward and sideways like a queen. However, unlike the queen, the rook can't move diagonally.
The king is the most important piece in chess, but the queen is the most powerful. The queen can move forwards, backward, sideways and diagonally like a king. However, unlike the king, the queen can move as far as it...
Chess is an exciting game and easy to learn. It’s played on an 8x8 board with 64 squares and 32 pieces. The game is won by checkmating - trapping - the king. Although the king is the most important piece, it’s not the...
Check out the highlights of the five best chess games of 2019!
GM Georg Meier has already covered many of the attacking ideas in the Catalan. Now he covers one of the current main lines, where Black contests the center with an early c7-c5. While the pawn structure becomes symmetr...
See grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky's best ever game! It's a hard-fought win against Cuban grandmaster, Isan Reynaldo Ortiz Suárez, featuring two exchange sacrifices!
How do you defend tough positions in chess? One strategy is to simplify to a salvageable position. Look for stalemates, fortresses and other tricks to survive!
How do you defend tough positions in chess? One important way is to complicate the game, muddying the waters so your opponent has to work hard for the advantage. Learn how to defend by complication in this lesson.
