MAIN CAMPUS

San Roque, Sogod, Southern Leyte

Email: president@southernleytestateu.edu.ph
Website: www.southernleytestateu.edu.ph

Excellence | Service | Leadership and Good Governance | Innovation | Social Responsibility | Integrity | Professionalism | Spirituality

CHESS

Submitted by:
Valshcariegn D. Balani BTLED 2-A

Submitted to:
Synamar P. Yuag, Ed.D

History of Chess

Chess has a long and storied history. The game has changed quite a bit from its earliest forms in
India. The modern iteration we enjoy today wasn't known until the 16th century. There were no
clocks, and the pieces were not standardized until the 19th century.
The official world championship title came into existence by the late 19th century, shortly after
the first big tournaments were held and multiple styles of play had begun to fully develop.
Although the first book on openings was published as early as 1843, theory as we know it didn't
truly evolve until the early/mid 20th century. Computer engines and databases didn't come into
play until the very late 20th century.

Chess, as we know it today, was born out of the Indian game chaturanga before the 600s AD.
The game spread throughout Asia and Europe over the coming centuries, and eventually
evolved into what we know as chess around the 16th century. One of the first masters of the
game was a Spanish priest named Ruy Lopez. Although he didn't invent the opening named after
him, he analyzed it in a book he published in 1561. Chess theory was so primitive back then that
Lopez advocated the strategy of playing with the sun in your opponent's eyes! Chess theory
moved at a snail's pace until the mid 18th century. In 1749, the French Master Francois-Andre
Philidor stepped onto the scene with his book titled Analyse du jeu des Échecs. This
book covered some new opening ideas (including the defense which still bears his name), and
also contained Philidor's famous defense in rook and pawn endgames - an endgame technique
that is still used today. Philidor's famous statement that "The pawns are the soul of chess" was
first introduced to the world in this book.

Chess continued to gain popularity throughout the world, and in the mid 19th century the
standardization of chess sets occurred. Before the 1850s, chess sets weren't uniform at all. In
1849, Jaques of London (a manufacturer of games and toys) introduced a new style of pieces
created by Nathaniel Cooke. These same pieces were endorsed by Howard Staunton, the
strongest player of his time. This new style of pieces, known as the Staunton pattern, became
instantly popular and were used in tournaments and clubs all over the world. The Staunton
pieces, and minor variations of it, are still considered to be the standard for tournament chess
sets.

Basic Terminologies

Check: A direct attack on the opponent's king. The player must respond to a check by either
moving the king out of check, capturing the checking piece, or blocking the check with another
piece.
Checkmate: A position in which the king is in check and there is no legal move that the player
can make to escape check. This results in the game being won by the opponent.
Stalemate: A position in which the player whose turn it is to move has no legal moves and their
king is not in check. The game ends in a draw.
En passant: A special pawn capture that can occur when a pawn moves two squares forward
from its starting position and lands next to an opponent's pawn. The opponent has the option to
capture the pawn as if it had only moved one square forward.
Castling: A special move involving the king and one of the rooks. The king moves two squares
towards a rook on its original square, and that rook moves to the square next to the king.
Castling is only allowed under certain conditions.
Pawn promotion: When a pawn reaches the opposite side of the board, it can be promoted to a
queen, rook, bishop, or knight, of the same color.
Fork: A move where one piece attacks two or more of the opponent's pieces simultaneously,
forcing the opponent to choose which piece to save.
Pin: A situation in which a piece cannot move without exposing a more valuable piece behind it
to capture.
Skewer: A tactic where a more valuable piece is attacked and forced to move, allowing a less
valuable piece behind it to be captured.
Discovered attack: A situation where a piece moves, revealing an attack by another piece
behind it.

Basic Skills

1. Visualization

Visualization is the ability to see in your mind the positions reached when certain moves are
made – without making them on the board – and seeing them so clearly you can accurately
consider the implications of each new position. Imagine how it must be to visualize any
combination of moves in your mind and being able to “see” the outcome of it.

The skill to visualize moves long before they actually appear on the board gives you a serious
advantage over any opponent who can’t do it. VISUALWIZE is a revolutionary visualization
training software that can dramatically improve your visualization skill in a matter of weeks.

2. Calculation

Calculation refers to your ability to calculate the consequences of your opponent’s move, as well
as the consequences of your intended move.

A well-developed calculation skill can have a big positive impact on your confidence. It is
humanly impossible to calculate all the moves in every position – you will quickly become
fatigued and start making blunders due to oversights. This means you need an effective and
efficient method to help you calculate the right moves.

I will show you the 4 elements of an effective calculation technique. It will take much of the
difficulty out of your calculation training.

3. Tactics

A chess tactic is a move (or a forced combination of moves) whereby you achieve an objective.
Such objectives mostly refer to winning material or giving checkmate, but can also refer to
strategic objectives, ie. using a tactic to secure a good square for your piece.

Many players train tactics by simply trying to solve hundreds of chess tactics puzzles. This is
not the best way to improve your chess tactics skill. On this site you will find the tools and
methods to really make a big difference in your results.

4. Evaluation / Analysis

Evaluation refers to your ability to tell who has a better position and to specify which aspects of
the position favors you, which aspect favours your opponent, and make a call to say which side
has favourable winning chances, drawing chances, or whether the position is dynamic
(evaluation can easily change) or unbalanced (factors are difficult to compare) or unclear
(difficult to say – things appear messy).
5. Strategy

So what is the plan? That is what strategy is all about. Bobby Fischer said “tactics flow from a
superior position.” If you cannot reach superior positions you won’t get the opportunity to
demonstrate your tactical powers! The purpose of your strategy is to achieve a superior
position.

How often in your chess games do you reach the point where you feel: “Now I am not sure what
I should do next”? The plan you finally decide on, reflect the level of your positional
understanding. Thus the first step in deciding on your chess strategy, is to evaluate the position
and find a suitable plan based on your understanding of the relevant elements in the position.

6. Openings

All serious chess players have their favorite openings which they know in-depth. That said, you
have probably heard many times that beginner or amateur players shouldn’t spend much time
memorizing opening variations and that you should just apply the opening principles. This is
only partly true, because even though you can do fairly well by applying the basic strategic
principles to your opening moves, you will get significant benefit from knowing a few good
openings. A good start to the game will have a huge impact on your overall performance.

7. Endgames

The endgame starts when most of the pieces has been exchanged and it is safe for the kings to
join the action. The endgame is very different to the opening and middle-game mainly because
the issue of king-safety totally changes, pawns increase in value, weaknesses in the pawn-
structure become much more vulnerable.

How The Chess Pieces Move

 King - Moves one square in any direction.

 Queen - Moves any number of squares diagonally, horizontally, or
vertically.
 Rook - Moves any number of squares horizontally or vertically.
 Bishop - Moves any number of squares diagonally.
 Knight - Moves in an ‘L-shape,’ two squares in a straight direction, and
then one square perpendicular to that.
 Pawn - Moves one square forward, but on its first move, it can move two
squares forward. It captures diagonally one square forward.
 The Pawn

When a game begins, each side starts with eight pawns. White's pawns are located on the
second rank, while Black's pawns are located on the seventh rank.

The pawn is the least powerful piece and is worth one point. If it is a pawn's first move, it can
move forward one or two squares. If a pawn has already moved, then it can move forward just
one square at a time. It attacks (or captures) each square diagonally to the left or right. In the
following diagram, the pawn has just moved from the e2-square to the e4-square and attacks
the squares d5 and f5.

The Bishop

Each side starts with two bishops, one on a light square and one on a dark square. When a game
begins, White's bishops are located on c1 and f1, while Black's bishops are located on c8 and f8.

The bishop is considered a minor piece (like a knight) and is worth three points. A bishop can
move diagonally as many squares as it likes, as long as it is not blocked by its own pieces or an
occupied square. An easy way to remember how a bishop can move is that it moves like an "X"
shape. It can capture an enemy piece by moving to the occupied square where the piece is
located.
 The Knight

Each side starts with two knights—a king's knight and a queen's knight. When a game starts,
White's knights are located on b1 and g1, while Black's knights are located on b8 and g8.

The knight is considered a minor piece (like a bishop) and is worth three points. The knight is
the only piece in chess that can jump over another piece! It moves one square left or right
horizontally and then two squares up or down vertically, OR it moves two squares left or right
horizontally and then one square up or down vertically—in other words, the knight moves in an
"L-shape." The knight can capture only what it lands on, not what it jumps over!

The Rook

Each side starts with two rooks, one on the queenside and one on the kingside. All four rooks
are located in the corners of the board. White's rooks start the game on a1 and h1, while Black's
rooks are located on a8 and h8.

The rook is considered a major piece (like the queen) and is worth five points. It can move as
many squares as it likes left or right horizontally, or as many squares as it likes up or down
vertically (as long as it isn't blocked by other pieces). An easy way to remember how a rook can
move is that it moves like a "+" sign.
 The Queen

The queen is the most powerful chess piece! When a game begins, each side starts with one
queen. The white queen is located on d1, while the black queen is located on d8.

The queen is considered a major piece (like a rook) and is worth nine points. It can move as
many squares as it likes left or right horizontally, or as many squares as it likes up or down
vertically (like a rook). The queen can also move as many squares as it likes diagonally (like a
bishop). An easy way to remember how a queen can move is that it moves like a rook and a
bishop combined!

The King

The king is the most important chess piece. Remember, the goal of a game of chess is to
checkmate the king! When a game starts, each side has one king. White's king is located on e1,
while Black's king starts on e8.

The king is not a very powerful piece, as it can only move (or capture) one square in any
direction. Please note that the king cannot be captured! When a king is attacked, it is called
"check."