Story emergence and development chess spans many centuries. Archaeological excavations indicate that games in which it was necessary to move chips on the board existed as early as approximately the 4th-3rd centuries. BC. According to an ancient legend, the game of chess was created by a certain Brahmin. In return for his invention, he asked the raja for a seemingly insignificant reward: as many grains of millet as would fit on a chessboard if one grain is placed on the first cell, two grains on the second, four grains on the third, etc. However, in fact, it turned out that there is no such amount of grain (1.845 × 10^ 19 grains, which can be stored in a storage with a volume of 180 km³) on the entire planet. It is not known whether everything happened in reality or otherwise, but, one way or another, India is considered the birthplace of chess. A story this once again emphasizes the fact that in chess the number of combinations is infinite, thanks to which this ancient and interesting game will never exhaust itself.

The oldest form of chess, the war game Chaturanga, appeared in the first centuries AD. e. In India, a type of army was called chaturanga, which included war chariots (ratha) - boats, elephants (hasti), cavalry (ashva) and foot soldiers (padati). The game symbolized the battle with the participation of four types of troops, which are controlled by the leader. The pieces were located at the corners of a square board (ashtapada) in 64 cells, 4 people took part in the game. The movement of the pieces was determined by throwing the dice. To win the game, it was necessary to destroy all the enemy troops. Chaturanga existed in India until the beginning of the 20th century, and its name changed over time to "chaturraja" - the game of four kings; the figures began to be painted in 4 colors - green, yellow, red and black. The successor of chaturanga was the game shatrang (chatrang), which arose in Central Asia at the end of the 5th - beginning of the 6th centuries. In this variation, the game had two "camps" of pieces and a new piece depicting the king's adviser - farzin; only 2 opponents began to take part in the game. The object of the game was to checkmate the opponent's king. Thus, the "game of chance" was replaced by the "game of the mind." In the VIII-IX centuries. shatrang penetrated from Central Asia to the East and West, which became known under the Arabic name shatranj. In shatranj (IX-XV centuries), the terminology and arrangement of the figures of the shatrang was preserved, but the appearance of the figures has changed. The fact is that religion was against the use of living beings to designate chess pieces, so the Arabs began to use abstract figures in the form of small cylinders and cones for this purpose. This greatly simplified their creation, which, in turn, contributed to the further spread of the game among the masses. The development of the game was rather slow, so only the rook, king and knight went according to modern rules, while the range of action of other pieces was extremely limited. For example, the queen moved only one square diagonally.

So, the use of abstract images to create chess pieces contributed to a change in the perception of chess - they were no longer perceived as a symbol of war, battle, but began to be associated with the ups and downs of life, which was reflected in the epic and treatises dedicated to the chess game (Omar Khayyam, Saadi, Nizami), opening new page in history of chess.

Development of chess.

In the period of the early Middle Ages (VIII-IX centuries), the Arabs, as a result of the conquest of Spain, moved shatranj to Spain. After that, this game began to spread in Western Europe, where the further transformation of the rules continued, which as a result turned shatranj into modern chess.

Chess acquired its modern look only by the 15th century, although due to the inconsistency of changes, for several centuries different countries had their own, sometimes quite bizarre, features of the rules. For example, in Italy until the 19th century, a pawn that reached the last rank could only turn into those pieces that had already been removed from the board, and it was not forbidden to move a pawn to the last rank in the absence of such pieces. In this case, the pawn remained a pawn and turned into the first piece captured by the opponent at the moment when the opponent captured it. Castling was also allowed if there was a piece between the rook and the king and when the king passed through a beaten field.

History of chess quite rich, and as they spread in Europe, chess and works of art began to appear telling about this game. The first poem about chess, written by Ezra, appeared in 1160. In 1283, the first chess book in Europe, a treatise by Alphonse X the Wise, was published. This book is of great interest in the study history of chess, since it contains a description of both new European chess and the already obsolete Shatranj. Approximately in 820, the Arabic shatranj under the Central Asian name "chess" appeared in Russia, in Russian acquiring the name "chess" already known to all of us, coming, as it is believed, either directly from Persia through the Caucasus and the Khazar Khaganate, or from the Central Asian peoples, through Khorezm. In any case, the Russian name of the game is inherited from Tajiks or Uzbeks, the names of the figures in Russia are also consonant or similar in meaning to Arabic or Central Asian ones. Changes in the rules, later introduced by the Europeans, penetrated Russia with some delay, gradually turning the old Russian chess into modern. The emergence of the so-called descriptive notation is also associated with the Arab period, thanks to which it became possible to record the games played.

However, the Christian Church throughout history of chess took a sharply negative position, equating them with gambling and drunkenness. But, despite church prohibitions, chess spread both in Europe and in Russia, and among the clergy there was no less (if not more) passion for the game than among other classes. And already in 1393 in Europe, the Regenburg Cathedral removed chess from the list of prohibited games. Note that in Russia there is no information about the official abolition of the church ban on chess, but at least since the 17th-18th centuries this ban has not actually been in effect. Ivan the Terrible played chess. Under Alexei Mikhailovich, chess was common among the courtiers, the ability to play it was common among diplomats. Documents of that time have been preserved in Europe, which say that Russian envoys are familiar with chess and play it very well. Princess Sophia was fond of chess. Under Peter I, assemblies were held with indispensable chess games.

In the XIV-XV centuries. the traditions of Eastern chess in Europe were lost, and in the XV-XVI centuries. a departure from them became obvious after a series of changes in the rules for the moves of pawns, bishops and queens. But by the 15th-16th centuries, the chess rules had basically settled down, thanks to which the development of a systematic chess theory began. In 1561, the priest Ruy Lopez, the author of the popular opening "Spanish Game", published the first complete chess textbook, which dealt with the currently distinguished stages of the game - opening, middlegame and endgame. He was the first to describe a characteristic type of opening - "gambit", in which an advantage in development is achieved by sacrificing material.

A great contribution to the development of chess theory in the 18th century was made by the famous French musician Francois-Andre Danican Philidor, who had a huge impact on the development history of chess. He seriously revised the views of his predecessors, first of all, the Italian masters, who believed that the best style of play was an aggressive attack on the opponent's king with all available means and used pawns only as auxiliary material. Philidor developed the so-called positional style of play. He believed that the player should not rush into reckless attacks, but systematically build a strong, stable position, inflict precisely calculated blows on the weaknesses of the opponent’s position, if necessary, resort to exchanges and simplifications if they lead to a profitable endgame. The correct position, according to Philidor, is, first of all, the correct arrangement of pawns. According to Philidor, “Pawns are the soul of chess; only they create attack and defense, victory or defeat depends entirely on their good or bad location. Philidor developed the tactics of advancing the pawn chain, insisted on the importance of the pawn center and analyzed the struggle for the center, was the author of the well-known Philidor Defense. In many ways, his ideas formed the basis of the chess theory of the next century. Philidor's book "Analysis of a Chess Game" became a classic, it went through 42 editions only in the 18th century and was reprinted many times later.

Modern chess.

In 1886, the United States hosted the first official World Championship match in history of chess. The struggle unfolded between Steinitz and Zukertort. By winning this match, Steinitz became the first world champion. He was not only the strongest chess player, but also the founder of the school of positional play. Steinitz, as it were, decomposed the position into its constituent elements, singled out the most significant of them, allowing it to be objectively assessed and outline the most expedient, most effective plan of action. In fact, he proposed a fundamentally new approach to the game. The basis of his strategy was the gradual accumulation of small advantages, in maneuvering in order to strengthen his position and weaken the enemy.

The importance of the positional school for the development and dissemination of chess can hardly be overestimated. Instead of a game based only on a specific calculation, a purely scientific method was proposed, based on an objective assessment of the pluses and minuses of a position.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a new trend appeared in painting, sculpture and music - modernism. And at the same time, such a trend as "hypermodernism" or "neo-romanticism" was born in chess. Hypermodernists criticized a number of attitudes of the positional school. For example, they believed that the positional school overestimated the role of the pawn center and developed the concept of a piece-pawn center, when not only pawns, but also pieces control the central squares. This led to a number of new beginnings: the Reti Opening for White, the Nimzowitsch Defense, the Grunfeld Defense, the Queen's Indian and King's Indian Defenses, and the Alekhine Defense for Black.

In addition, the hypermodernists abandoned the positional school of playing black advocated by the supporters of the gradual redemption of the white initiative and the equalization of the game. They strove for counter active actions, for seizing the initiative, for counterplay.

Nimzowitsch, a representative of the hypermodernist chess school, is also credited with the development and practical application of various techniques of maneuvering in the middle of the game - tacking, prophylaxis, restriction of mobility, blockade, etc.

The main achievement of the hypermodernists, which had the greatest impact on the future history of chess– they made chess interesting again, they brought back a tactical game full of sacrifices and combinations. While emphasizing the leading role of strategy, the positional school unwittingly belittled the role of tactics. Meanwhile, Nimzowitsch repeatedly emphasized that the combination should follow logically from the strategy itself. It is also significant that in their games the hypermodernists showed the beauty of strategy, demonstrated in practice that it, like tactics, is fertilized by inspiration, fantasy and intuition. Thus, they further expanded the idea of ​​chess as an art.

However, representatives of the positional school still dominated the chess Olympus, and in 1921 the Cuban Jose Raul Capablanca (1888-1942) became the third world champion. For understanding the position and technique of positional play, he was called a "chess machine" and was considered invincible. In 1927, having won a match against Capablanca, the Russian Alexander Alekhine (1892-1946) became the fourth world champion. In 1935, Alekhine, in a match held in various cities in Holland, lost to the Dutchman Max Euwe, who became the fifth world champion, but in 1937 he regained the title of champion by winning a rematch.

After the end of World War II, the USSR joined the chess federation - FIDE, and Soviet chess players began to dominate the world chess arena. Of the eight chess players who in the post-war years were crowned with the laurels of the world chess champion, seven grandmasters represented the USSR: Mikhail Botvinnik, Vasily Smyslov, Mikhail Tal, Tigran Petrosyan, Boris Spassky, Anatoly Karpov, Garry Kasparov. Soviet chess players Lyudmila Rudenko, Elizaveta Bykova, Olga Rubtsova, Nona Gaprindashvili, Maya Chiburdanidze became world champions among women.

General computerization and the Internet in the late 20th - early 21st centuries. greatly influenced the development of chess. In 1997, the computer (Deep Blue) already wins the match against the world champion. Thus, we have entered the 21st century - the century of computer chess programs.

Chess was invented many centuries ago, and it is still unknown who exactly invented it. Due to the remoteness of events, the appearance of this game has acquired many myths and legends.

Which country is the birthplace of chess? According to the legends, the game originates in India.

History of chess

India is the birthplace of chess. It is believed that they appeared in the first centuries of our era. Later, chess was transferred to different parts of the planet, and each nation added something of its own: they changed the name of the game, the shape of the pieces, but the rules remained unchanged - checkmate the king.

Chess historians are sure that the game was invented not by one specific person, but by a large team of different peoples, supplementing and transforming it at different times. The opinions of scientists agree on only one thing: India is the birthplace of chess.

However, there are some Chinese historians who do not believe that the Indian origin of chess has been fully proven. They are looking for evidence that the game came from China.

What is the birthplace of chess? There is no evidence to refute the Indian origin of the game, and the first mention of it in Chinese literature dates only to the 8th century AD. This only confirms that the birthplace of chess is India.

The legends of the origin of chess are very interesting and unusual, let's look at some of them.

Brothers Gav and Talhand

A description of this legend was found in the Persian poet Firdousi, who wrote the epic about a thousand years ago.

In one Indian kingdom lived a queen and her two twin sons Gav and Talhand. The time had come for them to reign, but the mother could not decide who to put as king, because she loved the sons of a lonely one. Then the princes decided to arrange a fight, the winner would become the ruler. The battlefield was chosen on the seashore and surrounded by a moat of water. They created such conditions that there was nowhere to retreat.

The condition of the tournament was not to kill each other, but to defeat the enemy army. A battle began, as a result of which Talhand died.

Upon learning of the death of her son, the queen fell into despair. She reproached the arrived Gav for the murder of his brother. However, he replied that he did not cause bodily harm to his brother, he died himself from exhaustion of the body.

The queen asked to tell in detail about how the battle took place. Gav, along with people from his entourage, decided to recreate the battlefield. To do this, they took a board, marked out the cells and placed on it the figures depicting the belligerents. The opposing troops were placed on opposite sides and placed in rows: infantry, cavalry and again infantry. In the middle row, in the center, stood the prince, next to him - his main assistant, then two figures of elephants, camels, horses and Rukh birds. Moving various figures, the prince showed his mother how the battle went.

Thus, it is clear that the ancient one had 100 cells and the figures on it stood in three lines.

The most famous legend about chess and grain

This legend tells how the Brahmin, who invented the game of chess, outwitted the king.

One day, a Brahmin living in India invented chess and clearly demonstrated how to play it to the ruling king, who liked it very much. For this, the king decided to fulfill his every wish. Then the brahmin asked to give him grain, while he said that he would not ask for much. It is only necessary to put one grain on the first cell, two on the second, four on the third, eight on the fourth, and twice the number of grains from the previous cell on each next cell.

The king agreed, however, when he began to fulfill the promise, the grain of his kingdom ended, and there were still many cells left to the end of the board. Thus, the curse outwitted the king.

Chaturanga game

Since the birthplace of chess is India, the game of chaturanga is considered the progenitor of the modern chess game. The name denotes the presence of four components: infantry, cavalry, elephant, chariot. There must be four players. The board, consisting of 64 cells, was divided into 4 parts and each of them was placed: 4 pawns, one each of the bishop, knight, rook and king. The goal of the game is to defeat and destroy the enemy. The game used dice, by throwing which a move was made.

Chaturanga from India was transferred to other eastern countries and changed over time. The troops merged and made up two teams, each of which turned out to be two kings. Then one king was replaced by an adviser. The pieces began to move on their own, without using the king you can not kill, only block his movement on the board.

Shape transformation

The existing one, according to legend, was eventually transformed into a boat. This is due to the fact that Islam forbade making images of living beings. Therefore, when chess appeared in the Arab countries, the Rukh bird was changed, its wings were cut off: it turned out just small protrusions on the top of the quadrangle. This is how the bird was transformed into a boat.

Thus, the origin of the game itself is covered with many legends and tales, only one thing is known for sure that the birthplace of chess is India.

The game, which appeared in ancient times, has gained popularity around the world. From the military, it has turned into a cognitive, stimulating and developing memory, logic, attention, while requiring a certain perseverance.

According to archaeological excavations, games associated with the movement of chips on the board were known as early as the 3rd-4th centuries. BC e. The true age of the game known in the Western world as chess, shrouded in the darkness of mystery.

Al-Biruni in his book "India" tells a legend that attributes the creation of chess to a Brahmin mathematician around 1000 BC. When the ruler asked how to reward him for this wonderful game, the mathematician replied: “Let's put one grain on the first cell of the chessboard, two on the second, four on the third, and so on. So give me the amount of grain that will turn out, if you fill in all 64 cells. The ruler was delighted, believing that we are talking about 2-3 bags, but if you count 2 to the 64th degree, it turns out that this number is more than all the grain in the world.

According to another legend, chess was invented by an Eastern sage, whose name was Shishakh, and he lived in Babylon. Under him, the young king Amolni sat on the throne, who greatly oppressed the lower strata of society, especially the peasants. In the greatest desperation, the peasants turned to Shishah, who was highly respected at the royal court, and asked him for help. Basically, they persuaded him to convince the king that the peasant is also a person who benefits the state. To convince the king of this, Shishakh invented chess and taught the king how to play chess. Thus he proved to him that the peasants, i.e. the pawns on the board are still the king's best guard. The king understood in this way the main idea of ​​the chess game and stopped oppressing the peasants, and generously rewarded his adviser.

Based on another legend, chess was invented by the wife of King Ravan of Ceylon. When everyone in his besieged capital had already lost heart and lost all courage to continue the fight, the desperate king Ravan decided to give the city to the enemy. But the king had a wife, Queen Ranaliana, a heroic woman, and she invented the game of chess to prove to her husband that he should not surrender to the enemy until all means of defense were exhausted, until at least one pawn soldier remained on the board, until there is at least a faint hope of victory!

Scientific hypotheses push back the creation of chess even further, to 2-3 millennia BC, based on archaeological discoveries in Egypt, Iraq, and India. However, since there is no mention in the literature about this game before 570 AD, many historians recognize this date as the birthday of chess. The first mention of the game of chess was in a Persian poem from 600 AD, and in this poem the invention of chess is attributed to India.

Raja Krishna playing ancient chess chaturanga

The oldest form of chess, the war game Chaturanga, appeared in the first centuries AD. e. In India, the Chaturanga was the name given to the formation of an army, which included war chariots (ratha), elephants (hasti), cavalry (ashva) and foot soldiers (padati). The game symbolized the battle with the participation of four branches of the army, led by the leader. They were located at the corners of a 64-kopeck square board (shtapada), 4 people participated in the game. The movement of the pieces was determined by throwing the dice. Chaturanga existed in India until the early 20th century. and eventually became known as "chaturraja" - the game of four kings; at the same time, the figures began to be painted in 4 colors - black, red, yellow and green.

In the first centuries of our era, the game was so widespread in Persia that it was considered a shame when an intelligent person did not know how to play it. The game of chess left traces in the language of that time, in symbols and metaphors, as well as in the poetry of that time.

Chaturanga was succeeded by the game shatrang (chatrang), which arose in Central Asia at the end of the 5th - beginning of the 6th centuries. It had two "camps" of figures and a new figure depicting the king's adviser - farzin; played by two opponents. The goal of the game is to checkmate the opponent's king. So the "game of chance" was replaced by the "game of the mind."

The penetration of chess from India to ancient Iran (Persia) during the reign of Chosroy I Anushiravan (531-579) is described in a Persian book from 650-750. The same book describes chess terminology and the names and actions of various chess pieces in great detail. Since there are no written references to chess in the literature before the 6th century AD before this book, many historians recognize this period as the birth of chess.

The game of chess is also mentioned in the poems of Firdusi, a Persian poet who lived in the 10th century AD. The poem describes the gifts presented by the messengers of the Indian rajah to the court of the Persian sheikh Chosroy I Anushiravan. Among these gifts, according to the poem, was a game depicting a battle between two armies. After the Persian Empire was conquered by the Muslim Arabs, the game of chess began to spread throughout the civilized world.

It is proved that in Byzantium in the 6th and 7th centuries AD the game of chess was very popular. The Byzantine emperor Nicophorus himself, in a letter to Caliph Harun al Rashid, makes a comparison between the queen on the board and his predecessor on the throne, Empress Irene.

In the 8th-9th centuries. shatrant spread from Central Asia to the East and West, where it became known under the Arabic name shatranj.

In shatranj (9th-15th centuries), the terminology and arrangement of the shatrang figures was preserved, but the appearance of the figures changed. In view of the prohibition of images of living beings by Islam, the Arabs used miniature abstract figures in the form of small cylinders and cones, which simplified their production and contributed to the spread of the game.

The strongest players of shatranj along with the Arabs - Al-Adli and others - were people from Central Asia - Abu Naim, al-Khadim, al-Razi, al-Supi, al-Lajlaj, Abu-Fath, etc. Among the patrons of the game were famous caliphs Harun-ar-Rashid, al-Amin, al-Mamun and others. The game developed slowly, since only the rook, king and knight moved according to modern rules, while the range of action of other pieces was extremely limited. For example, the queen moved only one square diagonally.

Thanks to abstract figures, the game gradually ceased to be perceived by the people as a symbol of a military battle and was increasingly associated with everyday ups and downs, which was reflected in the epic and treatises on the sacred game of chess (Omar Khayyam, Saadi, Nizami).

The emergence of the so-called descriptive notation is also associated with the Arab period, thanks to which it became possible to record the games played.

Shatranj was brought directly to the West of Europe during the early Middle Ages by the Arabs. Here chess became known in the X-XI centuries, after the Arabs conquered Spain and Sicily. The game had a pronounced military character, so it was very well received in the knightly countries of medieval Europe.

From Spain, the game reached France, where, for example, Charlemagne was a big fan of it.

Chess in medieval France

Also, from Spain and Sicily, chess gradually penetrated into Italy, England, Scandinavian and other European countries, despite the most severe persecution of the church, which forbade chess along with the game of "dice" and other "demonic obsessions".

Chess was brought to Spain by the Moors, and the first mention of chess in Christendom is in the Catalan Testament of 1010 AD. Although chess was known in Europe in earlier times. According to some legends, an expensive set of chess pieces was presented as a gift to Carloman (8th-9th century) from the famous Muslim ruler Harun al-Rashid.

There is a poem describing that chess existed in the court of the legendary King Arthur. Chess came to Germany in the 10th and 11th centuries, the earliest mention in literature was made by the monk Frumun von Tegermsee, in 1030-1050. It records that Svetoslav Shurin from Croatia defeated the Venetian Dodge Peter II in the game for the right to rule the Dalmatian cities. By the 10th and 11th centuries, chess was known in Scandinavia and later reached Bohemia from Italy at the end of the 11th century.

"Two Ladies Playing Chess"
illustration from the "Book of Games" by King Alfonso X of Castile the Wise, grandson of Frederick Barbarossa

Despite the fierce opposition of the originally Muslim and later Christian Church (which equated chess with gambling and dice and considered it a "demonic obsession", chess was banned in Europe for some time, since it was often used to play for money and it was claimed that they bear signs of paganism), nothing could stop the growing popularity of the game, which is confirmed by numerous literary evidence. The popularity of chess continues to grow and soon the whole world knows and plays this most popular game of the ancient world.

In the 14-15 centuries. the traditions of oriental chess in Europe were lost, and in the 15th-16th centuries. a departure from them became obvious after a series of changes in the rules for the moves of pawns, bishops and queens.

On the territory of Russia, in Bulgaria the game became known around the 10th-12th centuries. Important archaeological finds in Novgorod testify that chess, which was mainly distributed by the Arabs, came to Russia directly from the Middle East. To this day, the names of chess pieces in Russia point to their Persian and Arabic roots.

A unique find has survived to our time - a chess piece made by Novgorod masters in the 14th century. The figurine was found near the Vladychnaya Chamber, the former residence of the Novgorod archbishop. The found figure is a king, it was made of strong wood, most likely from juniper (see on the right).

In old Russian folk poems, there are references to chess as a popular game. At a later time, European chess came to Russia from Italy, through Poland. There is an incorrect version that allegedly chess was brought to Russia during the Mongol-Tatar invasion, the Mongol-Tatars, in turn, learned about this game from the Persians and Arabs.

Peter I, going on campaigns, took with him not only chess, but also two permanent partners. Catherine II was also fond of chess. In 1796 Count A.S. Stroganov arranged for Catherine II and the Swedish king Gustav IV, who were visiting his country palace, a game of live chess. In a meadow where a “chessboard” was laid out with green and yellow turf, servants dressed in medieval clothes moved in accordance with the moves of the chess pargai.

Chess was widely spread among the Russian intelligentsia. In the library of A. S. Pushkin, a book by A. D. Petrov, published in 1824, who was the strongest chess player in Russia for half a century, - "Chess game, brought into a systematic order" with the author's inscription, has been preserved; Pushkin was a subscriber to the first chess magazine, Palamede, which began to appear in Paris in 1836.

Despite the fact that chess was a popular game, until the end of the 19th century, Russia lagged behind England, France, and Germany in terms of the level of development of chess. The first Russian chess club was opened in St. Petersburg only in 1853, and the first Russian chess magazine was published in 1859.

The situation changed at the beginning of the 20th century, when the St. Petersburg Chess Assembly, which arose from a private circle, was founded, whose activities in popularizing chess turned out to be very fruitful.

The club was opened on January 17, 1904, and in April 1914, the All-Russian Chess Union was established in the premises of the Assembly at 10 Liteiny Prospekt.

The club held professional and amateur tournaments, friendly matches between the teams of Moscow and St. Petersburg, simultaneous games, published special literature. Within the walls of the Assembly housed the richest chess library in the country.

Historical variants of chess

Historically, chess, in its original form, was a four-person game with four sets of pieces. This game was originally called Shatranj (in Sanskrit, Shatr means "four" and anga means "squad"). in the Persian literature of the Sassanid dynasty (242-651 centuries AD), a book was found written in Pahlavi (Middle Persian language), which was called "Chess Manual". In modern Persian, the same word shatranzh is used to designate modern chess. A popular historical theory is that shatranj (chess), according to Indian mysticism, represents the universe. The four sides display the four elements - earth, air, fire and water; as well as the four seasons and the four temperaments of man. It is also claimed that the word chess comes from the Persian "king" (shah) and the term chess comes from the Persian "The king is dead". Below is the evolution of the European names for chess pieces from their ancient names that are still used in India, Iran, and many other parts of the world.

It should be noted that although the names of chess pieces vary slightly in different parts of the world, their shape and movement rules are almost identical.

Muslim Arabs have probably made the greatest impact on the game of chess than any other culture. The word "chess" originally comes from the Persian Shah (king) and the Arabic word mat (died). Early Muslim contributions to the game include: the blind game mentioned as early as 700 CE, the first tournaments and qualifying tournaments, and the chess problems described in Al-Adli's first chess book. Al-Adli's books contain openings, the first "mansuba" chess problems, and discuss differences in Persian and Indian rules of the game. Unfortunately, this valuable book is now lost. However, a valuable Arabic manuscript from the beginning of the 9th century is kept in the Yugoslav library, which contains mansubs. This manuscript was discovered in 1958. Some of these mansubs (chess problems) were based on the legend "Mat Dilarama". According to legend, Dilaram was a chess player who gambled and lost all his possessions. In the last game, he put his wife on the line, but he played recklessly and almost lost this game. However, his wife remarked that he could checkmate his opponent if he sacrificed both of his rooks. His wife whispered this in his ear, and he won the game.

The following table lists some of the ancient Arabic names for the figures, and their meanings:

It was played on a round board, but the pieces and their movement were similar to Arabic chess of the same time period.

After the penetration of chess into Europe, many books appeared devoted to this game. Probably one of the most important and valuable of these books was written in the Middle Ages by the Spanish King Alfonso the Wise in 1283. This wonderful book contains 150 color miniatures based on the original Persian drawings. This book also includes a collection of endgames borrowed from Arabic literature. Chess has gone through the history of many cultures and has been influenced by them. The modern official rules of chess are perfectly preserved and differ little from those that were used 1430 years ago.

Chess is a real mirror of culture. Countries have changed, the structure of society has changed - the rules have changed.

For example, the figure of a queen, "queen", appeared only in the Middle Ages, when a noble lady began to play an important role, and they began to pay honors to her at jousting tournaments. In the game, she took on the role of the king's adviser - the vizier in the Eastern version of chess. The current freedom of movement, independence, "emancipation" of the queen was unthinkable until the end of the 15th century.

The old versions of the game are generally less dynamic, like the ancient society. In traditional Chinese chess, the "master" is inactive, he maneuvers in a very small space - as if within the walls of the imperial palace. Indian "chaturanga" followed a strict division of figures into castes - priests, rulers, peasants, servants.

But in Japan, the military-aristocratic system from the 12th century allowed a person of noble birth, ready to apply due diligence, to achieve a quick take-off. And chess pieces were given the opportunity to raise their status. And in European chess, a pawn that has reached the opposite edge of the board turns into any piece - even a queen.

In modern times, they wanted to bring chess closer to the changing reality. During the Nazi era in Germany, they tried to turn the “game of kings” into a “game of the Fuhrers”: several leaders entered the battle, one of them had to be defeated. The game didn't catch on. Just like the Fuhrers.

A more diplomatic option was offered by the famous Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951). In the chess he invented, planes and submarines appeared on the board, but negotiations and alliances were allowed. Moreover, four "powers" played the game at once - one on each side of the board, as in the ancient Indian "four chess"

An engraving from 1909 allegedly depicts a chess game between Hitler and Lenin. It is even signed by both of them on the reverse side.

In the fifth grade, a classmate invited me to a chess club. Classes were held at the school after school, and we had a wonderful coach who loved his job very much. It was from him that I first heard the story of the invention " games of kings».

Where was chess invented

Chess was invented in India around the 5th-6th centuries. An interesting story is connected with this event. One brahmin, as a thank you for his game, asked the rajah to put so much grain on each cell of the chessboard that it equals a number equal to twice as much as on the previous cell. Raja agreed without thinking that such a quantity of grain simply does not physically exist.

First progenitor chess was a game chaturanga:

1. Were playing four people in pairs.
2. There was no queen(queen) and only 4 pawns, one king, knight, rook and bishop. There were 4 kings on the board at once: two white and two black.
3. The figures were arranged in a completely different way and walked too.
4. The movements of the figures were influenced dice.

Next, chess penetrated Arab territory, where they received their transformations and a new name − shatranj. After the game was distributed in Thailand, on the territory of Russia, in Europe. Exactly at Europe brought by the eastern conquerors, the game acquired a modern look and rules.

Chess in Russia

Russia has the only one in the world chess city. In fact, this is a district of a Russian city Elista located in Republic of Kalmykia. This area was built specifically for the 33rd Chess Olympiad 1998.

At the moment, it has even acquired a special status, has its own management. Personally, when I learned about such a city, I immediately remembered the book "The Glass Bead Game". There, too, there was a similar place, which had its own structure and government.

The Russian history of chess has a huge number of great chess players:

I advise everyone to master this game, which helps to think logically, build strategies and develop foresight.

Good day, dear friend!

Most experts believe that the history of the emergence of chess is rooted in Eastern cultures.

Origin

Many historians are of the opinion that the birthplace of the chess game is India. Others, more cautious, believe that chess is rather a product of the collective creativity of several peoples, and they developed in those ancient times, in parallel in several countries.

The most intelligible legend regarding the origin of chess is this:

At the turn of the fifth and sixth centuries, a game was born in India, which was called chaturanga. For the modern perception of chess, the game looks very strange:

Four are playing. Two for two. Each player has his own set of white or black pieces. The goal of the game is to destroy the "troops" of opponents.

Curious fact: in this game, it was not the players who came up with the moves. What the move should be was determined by throwing the dice.

Gradually, the game developed and spread. The white and black sets of pieces "united", instead of 4 players, two remained. Chaturanga gradually took on the contours of the game we know today as chess.

In general, most historians believe that chess, according to rules similar to modern ones, began to be played in sixth century. The first manuscripts related to the mention and description of chess date back to the sixth century.

Worldwide distribution

It is believed that a little later, a century in 7 , the game has spread to the Arab world, China and some other regions of the East. The game was gaining popularity and acquiring national features characteristic of these peoples.

The names that have survived to this day have also changed. Shatrang, shatranzh, such Arabic and Persian names are unusual for us, modern chess players. In Japan - shogi, among the Chinese - xiangqi, still occupy a prominent place in the cultures of these peoples.

Over time, the Arab shatranzh "penetrated" into Spain. According to historians, this happened in 8 century.

V 9 century in line France, a little later, "under the pressure" of an attractive game, other European nations could not resist.

At the same time, in 9 century, chess appeared on Russian earth. And directly from the East. However, cultural ties with Europe played a role. Gradually, chess in Russia took on a European look and by the end of the 10th century was completely “Europeanized”.

Gradually the rules changed. In different countries with their own characteristics

Curious fact:

“In Italy in the eighteenth century, there was a rule: a pawn, upon reaching the promotion square, can only become a piece that is not on the board at the moment. A pawn on the last rank could remain a pawn. The transformation took place at the moment of capture of any figure by the opponent. The pawn became this captured piece."

Period of persecution

At some point in history, a century in 15-16 , chess was divided into two branches - the version we are used to and " gambling". In the gambling version of the game, the rules were similar to chaturanga, and the move was made by throwing the dice .

Not surprisingly, this version was perceived more as a game of chance, since it looked a lot like a game of dice. Gambling even then did not particularly complain and was often persecuted by the church and the state. Chess as a whole also fell under this image.

Not particularly understanding the nuances, church and state officials enthusiastically used their right to “keep and not let go”, considering chess one of the types of idle pastime.

However, sprouts appear on the stones and trees grow. Forbidden fruit, you know... The game spread and became more and more prominent in European culture.

By the way, during excavations, chess was also found in church institutions, not to mention just estates and houses of people of different classes.

Prohibitions, as is often the case, were ignored "by default". Furthermore, the ability to play chess well has become fashionable and almost obligatory for people of an intellectual kind of activity.

Development of game theory

So far, servicemen have been breaking spears, the rules of the game in various countries have gradually been shaken, unified and it has become possible to communicate on a common basis.

V 16 and 17 century began to appear various theoretical models. One of the founders of this approach was Philidor. He introduced the concept of the struggle for the center, countergabit ideas.

Philidor believed, and found quite a few supporters, that the key factor around which the game is built is location. 1585 The 1st international tournament dates back to the year. It took place in Spain.

Chess as a sport

Curious fact: Chess maestro from Itlia Lorenzo Busnardo amassed, according to unconfirmed reports, a fortune by organizing and playing matches and tournaments.

National championships have also been held since the eighteenth century. International tournaments have become regular.

The logical continuation was the establishment of an unofficial world championship. First carrier informal champion's crowns Adolf Andersen, who won the London tournament 1851 of the year.

V 1886 the first official match took place. championship crown. Wilhelm Steinitz who won over Johann Zuckertortand became the ownerchampionship title.

The next fateful event for chess is the introduction of control. First an hourglass, then they came up with and designed ( T. Wilson) special chess clock.

It was the control of the time spent on thinking that became the starting point in the recognition of chess by the world sports community as one of the sports.

Curious facts

• The record holder for thoughtfulness is a chess player from Brazil F. Trois. One day he thought about his move 2 hours 20 minutes.
• By the duration of the party record 20 full hours and fifteen minutes. Total has been done 268 moves. The party ended in a draw. Perhaps after that the rule was adopted 50 moves, when in the absence of capturing pieces or moving pawns, a draw is declared.

At the turn of the millennium

In the twentieth century, chess developed by leaps and bounds. However, like other types of human activity. In Russia, and especially in the USSR, chess was actively supported and was on a par with the most popular sports.

Still, let's be objective, chess is specific in terms of entertainment, and, accordingly, profitability, cannot compete with football or tennis.

And yet the chess niche is strong enough. It is impossible to replace chess with football in the heart . For example, I have them quite coexist with each other.

Recently, there has been a tendency to increase the entertainment of tournaments and matches. In my opinion, positive. Mostly in terms of playing and using knockout tournaments and matches.

Another objective trend is computerization. . Everyone has already come to terms with the fact that the computer beats the person.

Hence the desire of leading grandmasters to discover new paths in theory, the growing popularity of rare game formats, for example,

Interest in chess is resurgent. People understand that this is not only a game, a sport or a science, which has been arguing for many years with foam at the mouth.

Chess - personal development tool. No more and no less . I hope this understanding in the minds of people will only grow stronger.

Thank you for your interest in the article.

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