USCF Women's Program Director Jennifer Shahade stated that chess works well on the internet, since pieces do not need to be reset and matchmaking is virtually instant. ==Computer chess== The idea of creating a chess-playing machine dates to the 18th century; around 1769, the chess-playing automaton called The Turk became famous before being exposed as a [(2000) Serious trials based on automata, such as
There were correspondence matches between cities; for example, the London Chess Club played against the Edinburgh Chess Club in 1824.
The two most important French masters were François-André Danican Philidor, a musician by profession, who discovered the importance of pawns for chess strategy, and later Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais, who won a famous series of matches against Irish master Alexander McDonnell in 1834.
In 1843, von der Lasa published his and Bilguer's Handbuch des Schachspiels (Handbook of Chess), the first comprehensive manual of chess theory. The first modern chess tournament was organized by Howard Staunton, a leading English chess player, and was held in London in 1851.
In 1843, von der Lasa published his and Bilguer's Handbuch des Schachspiels (Handbook of Chess), the first comprehensive manual of chess theory. The first modern chess tournament was organized by Howard Staunton, a leading English chess player, and was held in London in 1851.
Morphy won against all important competitors (except Staunton, who refused to play), including Anderssen, during his short chess career between 1857 and 1863.
Morphy won against all important competitors (except Staunton, who refused to play), including Anderssen, during his short chess career between 1857 and 1863.
The first universally recognized World Chess Champion, Wilhelm Steinitz, claimed his title in 1886; Magnus Carlsen is the current World Champion.
In addition to his theoretical achievements, Steinitz founded an important tradition: his triumph over the leading German master Johannes Zukertort in 1886 is regarded as the first official World Chess Championship.
Steinitz lost his crown in 1894 to a much younger player, the German mathematician Emanuel Lasker, who maintained this title for 27 years, the longest tenure of any world champion. After the end of the 19th century, the number of master tournaments and matches held annually quickly grew.
In 1913, the chess historian H.J.R.
An average position typically has thirty to forty possible moves, but there may be as few as zero (in the case of checkmate or stalemate) or (in a constructed position) as many as 218. In 1913, Ernst Zermelo used chess as a basis for his theory of game strategies, which is considered as one of the predecessors of game theory.
(Some sources state that in 1914 the title of chess Grandmaster was first formally conferred by Tsar Nicholas II of Russia to Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Tarrasch, and Marshall, but this is a disputed claim.) Botvinnik started an era of Soviet dominance in the chess world, which mainly through the Soviet government's politically inspired efforts stood almost uninterrupted for more than a half-century.
Capablanca was undefeated in tournament play for eight years, from 1916 to 1924.
In 1927, the Women's World Chess Championship was established; the first to hold the title was Czech-English master Vera Menchik. A prodigy from Cuba, José Raúl Capablanca, known for his skill in endgames, won the World Championship from Lasker in 1921.
The first Olympiad was held in Paris in 1924, and FIDE was founded initially for the purpose of organizing that event.
Capablanca was undefeated in tournament play for eight years, from 1916 to 1924.
In 1927, the Women's World Chess Championship was established; the first to hold the title was Czech-English master Vera Menchik. A prodigy from Cuba, José Raúl Capablanca, known for his skill in endgames, won the World Championship from Lasker in 1921.
Academic studies of the relationship date back at least to 1927.
Alekhine briefly lost the title to Dutch player Max Euwe in 1935 and regained it two years later. Between the world wars, chess was revolutionized by the new theoretical school of so-called hypermodernists like Aron Nimzowitsch and Richard Réti.
His successor (1927) was the Russian-French Alexander Alekhine, a strong attacking player who died as the world champion in 1946.
FIDE is recognized by the International Olympic Committee, but the game of chess has never been part of the Olympic Games. FIDE's most visible activity is organizing the World Chess Championship, a role it assumed in 1948.
The winner of the 1948 tournament was Russian Mikhail Botvinnik. In 1950 FIDE established a system of titles, conferring the titles of Grandmaster and International Master on 27 players.
He won the world championship tournament in 1948 and retained the title in tied matches in 1951 and 1954.
Wood estimated the number, as of 1949, to be about 20,000.
The winner of the 1948 tournament was Russian Mikhail Botvinnik. In 1950 FIDE established a system of titles, conferring the titles of Grandmaster and International Master on 27 players.
He won the world championship tournament in 1948 and retained the title in tied matches in 1951 and 1954.
He won the world championship tournament in 1948 and retained the title in tied matches in 1951 and 1954.
In 1957, he lost to Vasily Smyslov, but regained the title in a rematch in 1958.
In 1957, he lost to Vasily Smyslov, but regained the title in a rematch in 1958.
In 1960, he lost the title to the 23-year-old Latvian prodigy Mikhail Tal, an accomplished tactician and attacking player who is widely regarded as one of the most creative players ever, hence his nickname the magician from Riga.
Kasparov became the dominant figure of world chess from the mid 1980s until his retirement from competition in 2005. ====Beginnings of chess technology==== Chess-playing computer programs (later known as chess engines) began to appear in the 1960s.
Botvinnik again regained the title in a rematch in 1961. Following the 1961 event, FIDE abolished the automatic right of a deposed champion to a rematch, and the next champion, Armenian Tigran Petrosian, a player renowned for his defensive and positional skills, held the title for two cycles, 1963–1969.
Botvinnik again regained the title in a rematch in 1961. Following the 1961 event, FIDE abolished the automatic right of a deposed champion to a rematch, and the next champion, Armenian Tigran Petrosian, a player renowned for his defensive and positional skills, held the title for two cycles, 1963–1969.
His successor, Boris Spassky from Russia (champion 1969–1972), won games in both positional and sharp tactical style.
Fischer modernized many aspects of chess, especially by extensively preparing openings. Karpov defended his title twice against Viktor Korchnoi and dominated the 1970s and early 1980s with a string of tournament successes.
In 1970, the first major computer chess tournament, the North American Computer Chess Championship, was held, followed in 1974 by the first World Computer Chess Championship.
In the late 1970s, dedicated home chess computers such as Fidelity Electronics' Chess Challenger became commercially available, as well as software to run on home computers.
However, the overall standard of computer chess was low until the 1990s. The first endgame tablebases, which provided perfect play for relatively simple endgames such as king and rook versus king and bishop, appeared in the late 1970s.
Until the dissolution of the Soviet Union, there was only one non-Soviet champion, American Bobby Fischer (champion 1972–1975).
Databases containing millions of chess games have since had a profound effect on opening theory and other areas of chess research. Digital chess clocks were invented in 1973, though they did not become commonplace until the 1990s.
In 1970, the first major computer chess tournament, the North American Computer Chess Championship, was held, followed in 1974 by the first World Computer Chess Championship.
In 1975, however, Fischer refused to defend his title against Soviet Anatoly Karpov when he was unable to reach agreement on conditions with FIDE, and Karpov obtained the title by default.
Beginning with Nona Gaprindashvili in 1978, a number of women have earned the open GM title. FIDE also awards titles for arbiters and trainers.
Some Muslim authorities prohibited it even recently, for example Ruhollah Khomeini in 1979 and Abdul-Aziz ash-Sheikh even later. During the Age of Enlightenment, chess was viewed as a means of self-improvement.
PGN files (suffix .pgn) can be processed by most chess software, as well as being easily readable by humans. Until about 1980, the majority of English language chess publications used descriptive notation, in which files are identified by the initial letter of the piece that occupies the first rank at the beginning of the game.
Fischer modernized many aspects of chess, especially by extensively preparing openings. Karpov defended his title twice against Viktor Korchnoi and dominated the 1970s and early 1980s with a string of tournament successes.
Kasparov became the dominant figure of world chess from the mid 1980s until his retirement from competition in 2005. ====Beginnings of chess technology==== Chess-playing computer programs (later known as chess engines) began to appear in the 1960s.
In the 1984 World Chess Championship, Karpov faced his toughest challenge to date, the young Garry Kasparov from Baku, Soviet Azerbaijan.
Kasparov won the 1985 rematch.
Kasparov and Karpov contested three further closely fought matches in 1986, 1987 and 1990, Kasparov winning them all.
Kasparov and Karpov contested three further closely fought matches in 1986, 1987 and 1990, Kasparov winning them all.
This set a precedent to the complete six- and seven-piece tablebases that became available in the 2000s and 2010s respectively. The first commercial chess database, a collection of chess games searchable by move and position, was introduced by the German company ChessBase in 1987.
Kasparov and Karpov contested three further closely fought matches in 1986, 1987 and 1990, Kasparov winning them all.
However, the overall standard of computer chess was low until the 1990s. The first endgame tablebases, which provided perfect play for relatively simple endgames such as king and rook versus king and bishop, appeared in the late 1970s.
Databases containing millions of chess games have since had a profound effect on opening theory and other areas of chess research. Digital chess clocks were invented in 1973, though they did not become commonplace until the 1990s.
By the 1990s, chess engines could consistently defeat most amateurs, and in 1997 Deep Blue defeated World Champion Garry Kasparov in a six-game match, starting an era of computer dominance at the highest level of chess.
A number of online learning resources are also available for players of all levels, such as online courses, tactics trainers, and video lessons. Since the late 1990s, it has been possible to follow major international chess events online, the players' moves being relayed in real time.
In 1991, Lewis Stiller published a tablebase for select six-piece endgames, and by 2005, following the publication of Nalimov tablebases, all six-piece endgame positions were solved.
The first such server, known as Internet Chess Server or ICS was developed at the University of Utah in 1992.
ICS formed the basis for the first commercial chess server, the Internet Chess Club, which was launched in 1995, and for other early chess servers such as FICS (Free Internet Chess Server).
In 1997, Deep Blue became the first computer to beat the reigning World Champion in a match when it defeated Garry Kasparov.
By the 1990s, chess engines could consistently defeat most amateurs, and in 1997 Deep Blue defeated World Champion Garry Kasparov in a six-game match, starting an era of computer dominance at the highest level of chess.
This set a precedent to the complete six- and seven-piece tablebases that became available in the 2000s and 2010s respectively. The first commercial chess database, a collection of chess games searchable by move and position, was introduced by the German company ChessBase in 1987.
Kasparov lost his PCA title in 2000 to Vladimir Kramnik of Russia.
Kasparov became the dominant figure of world chess from the mid 1980s until his retirement from competition in 2005. ====Beginnings of chess technology==== Chess-playing computer programs (later known as chess engines) began to appear in the 1960s.
In 1991, Lewis Stiller published a tablebase for select six-piece endgames, and by 2005, following the publication of Nalimov tablebases, all six-piece endgame positions were solved.
Despite this, he continued to dominate in top level tournaments and remained the world's highest rated player until his retirement from competitive chess in 2005. The World Chess Championship 2006, in which Kramnik beat the FIDE World Champion Veselin Topalov, reunified the titles and made Kramnik the undisputed World Chess Champion.
From then until 2006, there were two simultaneous World Championships and respective World Champions: the PCA or "classical" champions extending the Steinitzian tradition in which the current champion plays a challenger in a series of games, and the other following FIDE's new format of many players competing in a large knockout tournament to determine the champion.
Despite this, he continued to dominate in top level tournaments and remained the world's highest rated player until his retirement from competitive chess in 2005. The World Chess Championship 2006, in which Kramnik beat the FIDE World Champion Veselin Topalov, reunified the titles and made Kramnik the undisputed World Chess Champion.
In September 2007, he lost the title to Viswanathan Anand of India, who won the championship tournament in Mexico City.
Anand defended his title in the revenge match of 2008, 2010 and 2012.
This set a precedent to the complete six- and seven-piece tablebases that became available in the 2000s and 2010s respectively. The first commercial chess database, a collection of chess games searchable by move and position, was introduced by the German company ChessBase in 1987.
In the 2010s, engines of superhuman strength became accessible for free on a number of PC and mobile platforms, and free engine analysis became a commonplace feature on internet chess servers.
In the mid-to-late 2010s ─ and especially following the 2020 online boom ─ it became commonplace for supergrandmasters, such as Hikaru Nakamura and Magnus Carlsen, to livestream chess content on platforms such as Twitch.
Anand defended his title in the revenge match of 2008, 2010 and 2012.
In 2012, Lomonosov tablebases were published which solved all seven-piece endgame positions.
Anand defended his title in the revenge match of 2008, 2010 and 2012.
In 2013, Magnus Carlsen of Norway beat Anand in the 2013 World Chess Championship.
The addition of the fivefold repetition rule in 2014 requires the arbiter to intervene immediately and declare the game a draw after five occurrences of the same position, consecutive or otherwise, without requiring a claim by either player.
The addition of the seventy-five-move rule in 2014 requires the arbiter to intervene and immediately declare the game drawn after 75 moves without a pawn move or capture, without requiring a claim by either player.
An average club player has a rating of about 1500; the highest FIDE rating of all time, 2882, was achieved by Magnus Carlsen on the March 2014 FIDE rating list. Players may be awarded lifetime titles by FIDE: Grandmaster (shortened as GM; sometimes International Grandmaster or IGM is used) is awarded to world-class chess masters.
In 2017, AlphaZero ─ a neural network also capable of playing shogi and go ─ was devised, which changed the way that chess-playing programs are coded: while in the past chess engines employed primarily brute-force methods such as minmax search with a static evaluation function, in TCEC Season 20, all but the bottom-placing of the Premier Division engines used a neural-network-based evaluation function.
FIDE's rules were most recently revised in 2018. ===Setup=== Chess pieces are divided into two different colored sets.
In the mid-to-late 2010s ─ and especially following the 2020 online boom ─ it became commonplace for supergrandmasters, such as Hikaru Nakamura and Magnus Carlsen, to livestream chess content on platforms such as Twitch.
Also following the boom, online chess started being viewed as an e-sport, with e-sport teams signing chess players for the first time in 2020. ====Growth==== Organized chess even for young children has become common.
This can be attributed to both isolation and the popularity of Netflix miniseries The Queen's Gambit, which was released in October 2020.
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