The purpose of this term paper is to tell you Chess' history, its players and the different kinds of games played.
Chess is the oldest and greatest skill game ever invented. Chess has also entranced individuals in all classes.
The earliest date of chess is 1355 B.C. An explorer found an early form of chess in King Tutankhamen's tomb.
The first version of Chess was called Chaturanga. Almost all the pieces moved the same as today! The game also ended the same way! The word Chaturanga, in Sanskrit, means "army". However, the word also has two parts, Chatur meaning "four" and anga meaning "limbs". The Indian armies had four limbs - chariots, elephants, cavalry and infantry. An Ashtapada board of sixty-four squares, all squares same color, was used for Chaturanga. Some historians say Chaturanga was invented before 326 B.C., but others disagree. Chaturanga is played today under the modern name Chatranj. The Hindu inventor had great mathematical skills!!!
Some scholars think Chess was invented in India and then Persia (Iran) learned the game around the middle of the sixth century. Chess is from the Persian word shah meaning "king". Checkmate comes from the Persian word shah mat meaning, "the king is dead". The game was apparently popular in Mesopotamia (Iraq) thousands of years ago. Arabs learned Chess when they conquered Persia in the 600's A.D. Arabs brought the game to Spain and from there it went to Europe.
Chess, in its early stage, was played both with two and four hand. The early Chess was also played with dice. Then the two hand, without dice, gradually took over. Dice were not completely gone until the thirteenth century, but it went because a player wants to be more skillful than the other player. Chess was generally played on a board with alternating light and dark squares by the 1300's.
The modern Chess era dates from the 1400's, which is where the pieces get their name and shape. Pawns, or civilians, were the people who worked in the fields, to grow food, on the castle grounds. When the castle would be attacked, the civilians went inside the castle. They also became foot soldiers to attack the enemy. Also called pikemen, the foot soldiers carries long spears and a shield. The pikemen were often lost to protect more valuable pieces.
The knights are the only professional soldiers. They would fight for a king and get paid. The knights played Chess to help them plan fighting moves.
The castles are the refuge, forts and homes. Castles were damp and dirty. They were also cold in the winter and very hot in the summer. It was dark inside because there were not many windows. The windows they did have were just small holes in the walls covered with thick paper. In Chess, castles are most often called rooks. In Persian, rook means "cheek". Toward the end of the 1400's, the Queen and Bishop got the power they have today.
After a great Chess victory, King Ferdinand (Spain) was convinced, by his wife Queen Isabella, to make Columbus an Admiral. So Chess was at least partly responsible for the discovery of America.
Chess has been played by some very famous people. Among those were Frederick the Great, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, Robespierre, Ivan the Terrible, Charles XII of Sweden, Thomas Jefferson, Napoleon, Marx and Lenin all were Chess players. It was Benjamin Franklin who made Chess popular in the U.S.A. Surprised? I was. Ben must have done a good job! The first American Chess club was held in New York, in 1801. Abraham Lincoln was also reputed to be a good Chess player.
There have been a lot of famous Chess players in the past. Some of these are also Chess masters: Howard Staunton, Saint Amant, Philidor, Deschappelles, La Bowrdonnais, Mc Donnell, Kieseritzky, Anderssen, Harrwitz, Wilhelm Steinitz, Paul Morphy, Henry Thomas Buckle, Louis Paulsen, Emanuel Lasker, Jose Raoul Capablanca, Alexander Alekhine, and Bobby Fisher. Some players of unusual fame were: Samuel Reshevsky who mastered Chess at the age of eight!!! He earned the title "Grandmaster" from the International Chess Federation. Paul Morphy, at the age of 12, won a game and drew two games of Chess with Hungarian master J. J. Lowenthal. Later in life, Paul Morphy also played bind Chess setting a few records.
As for strategy, Wilhelm Steinitz declared, "The mere weakness of any square...very often will be fatal". Steinitz also said that if both sides have the same pieces and their strengths and weaknesses balance, if both sides play right a draw will occur. But if your opponent lets you have more squares to control than he does, even if both sides have the same pieces, your opponent will generally lose. Steinitz also said to exploit strengths and safeguard weaknesses.
Champion games are played different from friendly games. An official board for champion games can be made of wood, plastic, paper, cardboard, cloth, stone or vinyl. The king's height should be within 3 3/8 - 4 1/8 inches. The "Staunton" pattern should be used in tournament Chess, and you should be able to tell the pieces apart. The Chess clock, used in tournaments, has two knobs on top and two clocks, which are set for a certain time for playing the game. When you finish your turn, you push the knob nearest you, that stops your clock and starts your opponent's clock. Then if the flag goes down on your clock you lose, even if you have more pieces than your opponent. That is if the game is not over or you have not made the number of moves you should have.
Masters play different types of Chess games. One type is blindfolded Chess where a master plays games without sight of boards or pieces, memorizing the game board. In another type, a master challenges other people to a game of Chess. So the master usually has at least 15 opponents. He goes from board to board and makes his moves! Masters also play against each other for the World Chess Championship.
So Chess has a deep history, has its masters and can be played a few different ways. Chess, I think, is one of the best games ever invented.
© 1995 Michael Yarnell