Curious chess December 28, 2002
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Solutions

G. Bridgewater, Chess, 1936

White to play and mate in six moves

Solution: 1.Bb1! b2 2.Ra2 b3 3.Ra3 b4 4.Ra4 b5 5.Ra5 b6 6.Be4 mate. Now wasn't that fun?

Dr Karl Fabel, Deutsche Schachblätter, 1950

White to play and win

Solution: You are not going to believe this, but it actually takes 46 moves to force mate. 1.Ke2 Kb2 2.Kd2 Kb1 3.Bc2+ Kb2 4.Kd1 Ka1! 5.Kc1 Ka2 6.Bd1 Ka1 7.Kc2 Ka2 8.Be2 Ka1 9.Bf1 Ka2 10.Bh3 Ka1 11.Bg2 Ka2 12.Bf1 (to lose a tempo) 12...Ka1 13.Be2 Ka2 14.Bd1 Ka1 15.Kc1 Ka2 16.Bc2 c6! (16...Ka1? 17.Bb1 and 16...Ka3? 17.Kb1 both lead to faster mates) 17.Bd1 Ka1 18.Kc2 Ka2 19.Be2 Ka1 20.Bf1 Ka2 21.Bh3 Ka1 22.Bg2 Ka2 23.Bf1 Ka1 24.Be2 Ka2 25.Bd1 Ka1 26.Kc1 Ka2 27.Bc2 c5 28.Bd1 Ka1 29.Kc2 Ka2 30.Be2 Ka1 31.Bf1 Ka2 32.Bh3 Ka1 33.Bg2 Ka2 34.Bf1 Ka1 35.Be2 Ka2 36.Bd1 Ka1 37.Kc1 Ka2 38.Bc2 c4 39.dxc4 d3 40.c5 d2+ 41.Kxd2 Kb2 42.c6 Ka3 43.Kc1 Ka2 44.c7 Ka3 45.c8Q Ka2 46.Qa8 mate. If you couldn't follow all of this in your head you can replay it on our Javascript board below.

Dr Karl Fabel, Deutsche Schachblätter, 1950

Insert the black king so White can mate in one

Solution: The black king must be placed on f3, and White can mate with the move 1.0-0 (castles). You may have thought that it is also possible for the black king to be placed on c1, with the same move leading to mate. But there is a problem. We have to ask ourselves how the black king got to c1. It couldn't do so on the a-file, since the pawns b2 and c2 have never moves and always guarded the squares a3 and b3. So the only way would have been via d2. But that means that White must have moved his king, and so castling is not legal. This in turn means there is no mate in one, as 1.Ke2+ is met by 1...Kxc2. Did you notice all of this?

Frederic Friedel

 

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