Adolf Andersen is an unofficial world champion from Wroclaw.

Adolf Andersen was an outstanding German chess player and problem gambler. In 1851, he won the first ever major international tournament in London, and from that time until 1958 he was generally recognized as the strongest chess player in the world in the chess world. He went down in history as a remarkable representative of the school of combinations, the romantic trend in chess. His great games - "Immortal" with Kizeritsky (1851) and "Evergreen" with Dufresne (1852) were distinguished by the skill of attack, far-sighted strategy and precise execution of combinations.

German chess player Adolf Anderssen he was associated with Wrocław throughout his life (1). There he was born (July 6, 1818), studied and died (March 13, 1879). Andersen studied mathematics and philosophy at the University of Wroclaw. After leaving school, he began working at the gymnasium, first as an instructor and then as a professor of mathematics and German.

He learned the rules of chess from his father at the age of nine, and at first he was not very good at it. He became interested in the chess world in 1842 when he began compiling and publishing chess problems. In 1846 he was hired as the publisher of the newly created magazine Schachzeitung, later known as the Deutsche Schachzeitung (German Chess Newspaper).

In 1848, Andersen unexpectedly drew with Daniel Harrwitz, then the widely recognized champion of rapid play. This success and Andersen's work as a chess journalist contributed to his appointment to represent Germany at the first major international chess tournament in 1851 in London. Anderssen then surprised the chess elite by superbly beating all his opponents.

immortal party

During this tournament, he played a winning game against Lionel Kieseritzky, in which he sacrificed first a bishop, then two rooks, and finally a queen. This game, although played as a friendly game at halftime in a London restaurant, is one of the most famous games in the history of chess and is called immortal.

2. Lionel Kizeritsky - Andersen's opponent in the immortal game

Andersen's opponent Lionel Kizeritsky (2) he spent most of his life in France. He was a regular visitor to the famous Café de la Régence in Paris, where he gave chess lessons and often played the forums (he gave opponents an advantage, such as a pawn or a piece at the very beginning of the game).

This game was played in London during a break in the tournament. The French chess magazine A Régence published it in 1851, and the Austrian Ernst Falkber (chief editor of the Wiener Schachzeitung) called the game "immortal" in 1855.

Immortal Party is a perfect example of the nineteenth century style of play, when it was believed that victory was primarily determined by rapid development and attack. At that time, various types of gambit and counter-gambit were popular, and material advantage was given less importance. In this game, White sacrificed a queen, two rooks, a bishop and a pawn in order to put a beautiful mate with white pieces in 23 moves.

Adolf Andersen - Lionel Kieseritzky, London, 21.06.1851/XNUMX/XNUMX

1.e4 e5 2.f4 The King's Gambit, very popular in the XNUMXth century, is less popular now because White's positional advantages do not fully compensate for the pawn sacrifice.

2…e:f4 3.Bc4 Qh4+ White loses castling, but Black's queen can be easily attacked too. 4.Kf1 b5 5.B:b5 Nf6 6.Nf3 Qh6 7.d3 Nq5 8.Sh4 Qg5 9.Nf5 c6 It would have been better to play 9…g6 to drive away White's dangerous jumper. 10.g4 Nf6 11.G1 c:b5?

Black gains a material advantage, but loses his positional advantage. Better was 11…h5 12.h4 Hg6 13.h5 Hg5 14.Qf3 Ng8 15.G:f4 Qf6 16.Sc3 Bc5 17.Sd5 H:b2 (diagram 3) 18.Bd6? Andersen donates both towers! White has a huge positional advantage, which can be realized in different ways, for example, by playing 18.E1, 18.Ge3, 18.d4, 18.Ed1. 18… G: g1?

3. Adolf Andersen – Lionel Kieseritzky, position after 17… R: b2

Wrong decision, should have played 18… Q: a1 + 19. Ke2 Qb2 20. Kd2 G: g1. 19.e5!

Consecration of the second tower. The e5-pawn cuts off the black queen from the king's defense and now threatens 20S: g7+Kd8 21.Bc7#. 19… R: a1 + 20.Ke2 Sa6? (diagram 4) The black knight defends itself against 21 Sc7+, attacking the king and rook, as well as against the bishop's move to c7.

4. Adolf Andersen - Lionel Kieseritzky, position 20 ... Sa6

However, White has one more decisive attack. Should have played 20… Ga6. 21.S: g7+ Kd8 22.Hf6+.

White also sacrifices a queen. 22… B: f6 23. Be7 # 1-0.

5. Adolf Andersen - Paul Morphy, Paris, 1858, source:

Since then, Anderssen has been considered the strongest chess player in the world. In December 1858, the German chess player went to Paris to meet those who then came to Europe. Paul Morphy (five). The brilliant American chess player beat Andersen smoothly (+5 -7 = 2).

Anderssen debuted three times with the unusual 1.a3 in the second half of the match, which was later called Andersen's opening. This opening did not bring any noticeable success to white players (1,5-1,5) and was very rarely used later in serious games, as it does not contribute to the development of pieces and control of the center. Black's most common responses include 1...d5, which directly attacks the center, and 1...g6, which is a preparation for the fianchetto, which consists in using white's already weakened queenwing.

For Morphy, this was the most important match, which was considered by many to be an unofficial world championship match. After this defeat, Anderssen remained in the shadow of the brilliant American chess player for three years. He returned to active play in 1861, winning the first international round-robin chess tournament in London. He then won twelve games out of thirteen, and on the field he won he left, among others, the later world champion Wilhelm Steinitz.

In 1865, Andersen received the highest academic title - the title of doctor honoris causa of the University of Wroclaw, awarded to him at the initiative of his native philosophical faculty. It happened on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Gymnasium. Frederick in Wroclaw, where Andersen worked as a teacher of German, mathematics and physics since 1847.

6. Adolf Andersen at the chessboard, Wroclaw, 1863,

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Andersen achieved great tournament success at the senior, for the leading chess players, age (6 years). He ended a series of very successful tournaments in the 1870s with a victory in a tournament with a very large number of participants in Baden-Baden in XNUMX, where he, among other things, overtook the World Champion Steinitz.

In 1877, after a tournament in Leipzig, where he finished second, Andersen practically withdrew from the tournament for health reasons. He died in Wrocław two years later as a result of a severe heart disease, on March 13, 1879. He was buried in the cemetery of the Evangelical Reformed community (Alter Fridhof der Reformierten Gemeinde). The tombstone survived the war and in the early 60s, thanks to the efforts of the Lower Silesian Chess Society, it was moved from the cemetery intended for liquidation to the Alley of the Merited at the Osobowice Cemetery in Wrocław (7). In 2003, a plaque was placed on the headstone, commemorating Andersen's merits.

7. Andersen's grave on the Alley of the Meritors at the Osobowice Cemetery in Wroclaw, source:

Since 1992, a chess tournament has been held in Wroclaw dedicated to the memory of this outstanding German chess player. This year's International Chess Festival Adolf Anderssen is scheduled for 31.07-8.08.2021, XNUMX - information about the Festival is available on the website.

Gambit Andersen

Adolf Andersen also played 2…b5?! in the bishop's debut. This gambit is currently not popular in classic chess tournament games, as Black does not get enough equalization for the sacrificed pawn. However, it sometimes occurs in blitz where Black can surprise an unprepared opponent.

8. Philatelic sheet issued on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Adolf Andersen.

Here is an example of romantic chess played by the famous Adolf Andersen.

August Mongredien by Adolf Andersen, London, 1851

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 b5 3.G: b5 c6 4.Ga4 Bc5 5.Bb3 Nf6 6.Sc3 d5 7.e: d5 OO 8.h3 c: d5 9.d3 Sc6 10.Sge2 d4 11.Se4 S : e4 12.d: e4 Kh8 13.Sg3 f5 14.e: f5 G: f5 15.S: f5 W: f5 16.Hg4 Bb4 + (diagram 9) 17.Kf1? It was necessary to quickly secure the king by playing 17.c3 d:c3 18.OO c:b2 19.G:b2 with an even position. 17… Qf6 18.f3 e4 19.Ke2? This leads to a quick loss, White could defend longer after 19.H: e4 Re5 20.Qg4. 19…e:f3+20g:f3 Re8+21.Kf2 N5 and White resigned.

9. August Montgredien - Adolf Andersen, London 1851, position after 16… G: b4 +

Hourglass

In 1852, English chess champion Howard Staunton suggested using an hourglass to measure time during a game. The hourglass for timing chess games was first officially used in 1861 in a match between Adolf Anderssen a Ignatius Kolishsky (10)

Each player had 2 hours to make 24 moves. The device consisted of two rotating hourglasses. When one of the players made his move, he set his hourglass to a horizontal position, and the opponent to a vertical position. In later years, the hourglass was increasingly used in chess games. In 1866, during a match between Adolf Andersen and Wilhelm Steinitz, two ordinary clocks were used, which alternately started and stopped after a move was made. At a tournament in Baden-Baden in 1870, the opponents played at a pace of 20 moves per hour with a choice of hourglasses and chess clocks.

10. A set of two rotating hourglasses for measuring time in chess games,

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Both the hourglass and the two separate clock method were widely used until 1883 when they were replaced by the chess clock.

Chess alphabet

In 1852 Andersen played the famous game against Jean Dufresne in Berlin. Although it was only a friendly game, the first official world chess champion Wilhelm Steinitz called it "evergreen in Andersen's laurel wreath" and the name became commonplace.

Evergreen game

Andersen's opponent in this game is Jean Dufresne, one of the strongest Berlin chess players, the author of chess textbooks, a lawyer by profession, and a journalist by profession. Dufresne repaid Anderssen for losing the evergreen game by winning an unofficial match against him in 1868. In 1881, Dufresne published a chess handbook: Kleines Lehrbuch des Schachspiels (Mini Chess Handbook), which, after subsequent additions, was published under the title Lehrbuch des Schachspiels (13). The book was and continues to be very popular.

13. Jean Dufresne and his famous chess textbook Lehrbuch des Schachspiels,

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Here is one of the most beautiful games in the history of chess.

Adolf Andersen - Jean Dufresne

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 (diagram 14) Andersen chooses the Evans Gambit in the Italian game, a very popular opening in the 1826th century. The name of the gambit comes from the name of the Welsh chess player William Evans, who was the first to present his analyses. In '4 Evans used this gambit in a winning game against the greatest British chess player, Alexander McDonnell. White sacrifices the b-pawn to gain advantage in developing pieces and build a strong center. 4… G: b5 3.c5 Ga6 4.d4 e: d7 3.OO d8 3.Qb6 Qf9 5.e15 (diagram 9) 6… Qg5 Black cannot take the pawn on e9, because after 5… N: e10 1 Re6 d11 4.Qa10+ White gets the black bishop. 1.Re7 Sge11 3.Ga16 (diagram 11) White bishops facing black king is a common tactical motif in Evans Gambit 5…bXNUMX? Black unnecessarily offers a piece, planning to activate the tower.

14. Adolf Andersen - Jean Dufresne, position after 4.b4

15. Adolf Andersen - Jean Dufresne, position after 9.e5

16. Adolf Andersen - Jean Dufresne, position after 11. Ga3

It was necessary to play 11.OO to protect the king from the opponent's attack 12.H: b5 Rb8 13.Qa4 Bb6 14.Sbd2 Bb7 15.Se4 Qf5? Black's mistake is that he is still wasting time instead of protecting the king. 16.G: d3 Hh5 17.Sf6+? Instead of sacrificing a knight, one should have played 17.Ng3 Qh6 18th Wad1 with a huge advantage and many threats, such as Gc1 17… g:f6 18.e:f6 Rg8 19.Wad1 (diagram 17) 19… Q: f3? This leads to black's defeat. It was better to play 19…Qh3, 19…Wg4 or 19…Bd4. 20.B: e7+! The beginning of one of the most famous combinations in the history of chess. 20… R: e7 (diagram 18) 21.Q: d7+! K: d7 22.Bf5 ++ Double check forcing the king to move. 22… Ke8 (If 22… Kc6 equals 23.Bd7#) 23.Bd7+Kf8 24.G: e7# 1-0.

17. Adolf Andersen - Jean Dufresne, position after 19th. Wad1

18. Adolf Andersen - Jean Dufresne, position after 20… N: e7