CHAPTER IV
THE MOVES
In learning the moves of the various Pieces and Pawns, the beginner is advised to have a board before him and to secure the assistance of an experienced player if available; for while they are very simple to understand when demonstrated, their description in words may sound complicated. The diagrams, however, should be carefully studied.
The King’s Move.
The King may move one square at a time in any direction. Thus, when the Black King, for example, stands on Q5 he “commands,” or may move, to any one of the eight adjacent squares as indicated in diagram iii. Should one of these squares be occupied, however, by one of his own men, he could not move to it, or should his adversary, the White King, be near, his move would be further restricted.
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DIAGRAM III.
The King's Move.
For example: Suppose the Black King stands on Q5, a Black Pawn stands on K6 and the White King stands on K2. Now the Black King commands all of the adjoining squares, but he can only move to one of six of them and not to any one of the eight, as he could in diagram iii. He cannot move to K6 because his own Pawn occupies it and also because the White King could move into it were he alone on the board. Nor can the Black King move into Q6, because that also is a square within the range of movement of his adversary, or one of the eight squares commanded by the White King were he alone upon the board. Thus, the sphere of influence of the two Kings overlaps at K6 and Q6 with the result that those two squares are neutral territory, forbidden to both by the fundamental laws of Chess, for the Kings must always have an interval of at least one square between them.
As the object of the game is to capture or checkmate the adversary's King, it is readily seen that he is of paramount importance, and that the moves of all the other Pieces and Pawns are made with reference to him.
The Queen's Move.
The Queen moves in any direction, like the King, but she is not restricted to
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DIAGRAM IV.
The Queen's Move.
distance and may cover any number of unoccupied squares to the limits of the board in a horizontal, vertical and diagonal line. Thus, a Queen on Q4, as shown in diagram iv, commands twenty-seven squares. Owing to the squares at her command, she is the most powerful of the Pieces, but her power would be disproportionally great were it not that she can be exchanged only for the opposing Queen without material loss. When the Queen occupies a side square, the sum of the diagonal moves possible to her is always seven.
The Bishop's Move.
The Bishop moves over any number of unoccupied squares in a diagonal line, from which it will be seen that he always occupies squares of the same color as the one on which he stands at the beginning of the game. As the King's Bishop is on a square of one color and the Queen's Bishop on a square of another color, at the opening of the game, it will be seen that the two Bishops are easily distinguished and never interfere with each other. From a center square, Q4, for example as shown on diagram v, the Bishop commands thirteen squares. When he occupies a side square, however, the sum
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DIAGRAM V.
The Bishop's Move.
of the diagonals to which he can move is always seven, the same as the Queen.
The Knight's Move.
The Knight's move is L shaped and more difficult to explain than any of the
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DIAGRAM VI.
The Knight's Move.
others. He moves horizontally or vertically in any direction, two squares ward, and one square to either the right or the left, leaping over the intervening squares whether they are occupied or not. Thus the Knight on Q4 commands eight squares as shown on diagram vi. By placing the Knight on any of the center squares the student will see that his move appears to be a leap from the square on which he stands to the next but one of a different color. From a mathematical point, the Knight's move is the diagonal of a rectangle of six squares and is as regular as that of any of the other Pieces. Owing to the character of his move he is less liable to resistance than any of the other Pieces.
The Rook's Move.
The Rook moves in four directions—parallel to the sides of the board, and over any number of unoccupied squares. Thus, a rook standing on Q4 commands fourteen squares as shown in diagram vii and is next in power to the Queen.
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DIAGRAM VII.
The Rook's Move.
The Pawn's Move.
The Pawn moves forward only, one square at a time; excepting in the first move when it may move one or two squares at the option of the player. In moving two squares, however, if the Pawn passes an adverse Pawn, it may be taken in passing by the adversary. When a Pawn has advanced eight squares in any file, it must immediately be exchanged for a Piece of its own color, at the choice of its owner, after which it acts as if it were an original Piece just moved into that square by the player.
From this it will be seen that there may be three or more Queens, Bishops, Knights or Rooks on the board at the same time belonging to the same player, though the number of Chessmen belonging to each player can never exceed sixteen. This power of the Pawn to become a Piece increases its importance, in spite of its slow progress across the board and makes it of more value than would at first be imagined. A fine player may always be identified by his judicious handling of the Pawns.
While the Pawn's move is forward in a vertical line, its power of capturing radiates forward diagonally. Thus if a White Pawn occupies QB3 and a Black Pawn stands on Q5, the White Pawn moves diagonally from its QB3 to Q4 and captures the Black Pawn. If there were no adverse Piece to capture, the White Pawn would move to QB4.