Sacrificial Orgy

From the pre-Morphy periodA. Anderssen – Dr. M. Lange

Breslau Prussia - 1859

• This game is from “The Golden Treasury of Chess” by I. A. Horowitz. Here is what the author wrote to introduce this game:

• “It is difficult to imagine how one could concentrate more brilliancy, more inspired inventiveness, more sparkle into so short a game. Here is the distilled essence of the very best chess of the old masters: one thrill after another!”

• I have also decided to show the board from Black’s (Dr. Lange’s) side.

1. P-K4

1. P-K4 P-K4

2. N-KB3

2. N-KB3 N-QB3

3. B-N5 The Ruy Lopez

3. B-N5 N-Q5 Later named Bird’s Defense after Henry Bird who explored it in the late 19th century. MCO 13 (1990) says “…is experiencing a brief renaissance. The idea is to capitalize at once on 3. B-N5.”

4. NxN

4. NxN PxN

5. B-B4 This silly loss of a tempo will be punished severly.

5. B-B4 N-B3

6. P-K5

6. P-K5 P-Q4 White could capture this pawn en passant with his next move but that would only aid Black’s development.

7. B-N3

7. B-N3 B-KN5

8. P-KB3 This virtually forced weakening of the king side pawn structure leads to a powerful attack. The 3 kingside pawns should rarely be moved when the player plans on castling kingside.

8. P-KB3 N-K5! (! and other editorial notation is from the book)

9. 0-0 PxB , instead, allows 10. Q-R5+

9. 0-0 P-Q6 ! An amazing multi-purpose move. It blocks White’s development while opening up the black diagonal to White’s king.

10. PxB

10. PxB B-B4+

11. K-R1

11. K-R1 N-N6+ !

12. PxN Forced.

12. PxN Q-N4 Threatening mate.

13. R-B5 What you would do as Black here?

13. R-B5 P-KR4 !! Did this occur to you?

14. PxRP Forced.

14. PxRP QxR

15. P-N4 What would you play next as Black?

15. P-N4 RxP+ !! Did this occur to you? Black has a forced mate.

16. PxR Forced.

16. PxR Q-K5 ! Threatening Q-KR5 checkmate.

17. Q-B3 Forced. Black next plays a zwischenzug.

17. Q-B3 Q-KR5+ The zwischenzug, in-between move, which forces White’s queen to a less central position.

18. Q-R3 Forced.

18. Q-R3 Q-K8+ By using two moves to get here White’s Q is in a position to help Black achieve a checkmate.

19. Resigns but let’s see the continuation.19. K-R2 Forced. Can you see the forced mate at this point?

It involves the use of another zwischenzug.

19. K-R2 B-N8+ Another zwischenzug.

20. K-R1 Forced.

20. K-R1 B-B7+ The zwischenzug allowed Black to get the bishop here with no loss of a tempo. It was the same as if Black had played two moves in a row!

21. K-R2

21. K-R2 Q-N8# White’s queen displaced by the first zwischenzug helps in the checkmate.

• Dr. Max Lange’s profession was a music professor and composer. Many chessplayers are or were also amateur or professional musicians.

• I will be doing a future posting on Valentina Lisitsa, a concert pianist from Ukraine who initially intended to become a professional chessplayer. Look her up in YouTube and Wikipedia.