Adolf Anderssen’s Checkmating Skill

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Adolf Anderssen, winner of first International Chess Tournament in London, 1851, was the world’s best chess player in the mid-1800s. He also played two of the most famous games in the history of chess.

Free Evergreen Lesson

If you have yet to obtain Winning Chess Tactics: Free Lesson by Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan then that should be your first task of the day.

Yasser presents two sparkling attacking games in his inimitable style. One of the games is The Evergreen Game, in which Adolf Anderssen unleashes a memorable attack against Jean Dufresne. It is all well and good to play a game which is so impressive it receives a special name – and Adolf Anderssen did it twice. The Immortal Game was his other very famous win, this time against Lionel Kieseritzky.

Test Your Checkmating Skills

However, it would be a mistake to think Anderssen played only two memorable games. Today we offer five positions from Anderssen’s games and invite you to find the forced checkmates.

Can you play as well as the old master?

Adolf Anderssen

Carl Mayet – Adolf Anderssen
Berlin, 1851
Black to play
12 …Bxf2+ 13 Rxf2 Qd1+ 14 Rf1 Rh1+ 15 Kxf1 Qxf1 checkmate

Adolf Anderssen Checkmate

Adolf Anderssen – Daniel Harrwitz
Manchester, 1857
White to play
49 Nf7+ Kh7 50 Rxg7 checkmate (50 Qxg7 does the same job)

Checkmate the King

Carl Mayet – Adolf Anderssen
Berlin, 1862
Black to play

20 …Rxd1+ 21 Rf1 Qxg2+ 22 Qxg2 Rxf1 checkmate.

Adolf Anderssen on the Attack

James Robey – Adolf Anderssen
London, 1862
Black to play
38 …Ng4+ 39 Kh3 Rh1+ 40 Bxh1 Rh2 checkmate.

Adolf Anderssen

Adolf Schwarz – Adolf Anderssen
Vienna, 1873
Black to play
40 …Rxg1+ and White resigned, due to 41 Kxg1 Qb1+ 42 Qf1 Q(or R)x f1 checkmate.

Check your answers by highlighting the space beneath each position.

There are many more beautiful checkmate patterns in our course, The Checkmate Patterns Manual, by International Master John Bartholomew and CraftyRaf.

There is a shortened, free version of the course here.

Here is a handy guide to the episodes in our series of blog posts on Checkmate Patterns.

Checkmate Patterns: Six of the Best

Famous Checkmate Patterns

Historical Checkmate Patterns

Beautiful Checkmate Patterns

Essential Checkmate Patterns

Picturesque Checkmate Patterns

Checkmate Patterns in Action

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Check them on individual course pages