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A Beginners Guide To Chess

If you have never played chess before you may think that it is a very difficult game to learn. However, once you understand the object of the game and learn the moves that each chess piece can make, you will realise that it learning to play chess is not so difficult after all.

Chess is a board game which is played by 2 players on a board of 64 squares alternating black and white. The object of the game is to force the king of your oppenent into such a position that he can neither move nor remain where he is without the danger of being taken by some other piece - this is called being in check. If the king cannot be moved out of check, the game is over.

Note the board and chess pieces are not always black and white.

The board is setup so that each player has a light colored square at his right hand corner. In setting up the pieces, the rule is "give the queen her colour," that means, you always place the white queen on a white (light colored) square and the black queen on a black (dark colored) square.

Each player starts the game with 16 chess pieces, one player has the white (light color) pieces and his opponent has the black (dark colored) pieces. The sixteen pieces consist of :- one king, one queen, two bishops, two knights, two rooks (also called castles) and eight pawns.

King	Queen	Bishop
Knight	Rook (castle)	Pawn

For starting the game, these pieces are placed in the positions shown in the following diagram; and, (reading from the light colored square on the player's right), they are:- king's rook (or castle), king's knight, king's bishop, king, queen, queen's bishop, queen's knight, queen's rook. In front of these is a line of pawns.

Players take it in turn to move, white making the first move, and the players swop colours for every new game.

Each type of piece has its own special sort of move, but none (except the knight) can pass over another piece, whether the player's or the opponent's.

The king is able to move in any direction, but only one square at a time, except when 'castling'. In this manoeuvre, the king moves two squares towards one or other rook, and the rook simultaneously moves past the king to the adjacent square. This move is used to bring the king into a safer position, and is not permitted if either king or the relevant rook has previously moved, or if the king is in check or would pass through or into check when making the move.

The queen can move in any direction, and any number of squares at a time.

Bishops are only able to move diagonally, but can move any number of squares at a time.

The knight's move consists of two parts: first, a step of two squares either vertically or horizontally and then a further step of one square at right angles to this (the move is L-shaped).

Rooks may move either horizontally or vertically, any number of squares at a time.

Pawns have only the simplest of moves; they can only move forward one square at a time. This move must also be straight ahead, except when they can capture an opponent's piece by a diagonal move forward. A pawn cannot capture an opponents piecec except by a diagonal move. In the first move of a pawn it may also advance two squares if it wishes. If a pawn succeeds in reaching the eighth rank (the end of the board) it can be promoted to any other piece, usually a queen.