White to play and checkmate
49
Checkmate in 4 moves
(Henry Augustus Loveday - The Chess Player's Chronicle, Feb 1845)
Click to view solution
The Indian Problem is a chess composition , published in 1845 by Howard Staunton in his chess magazine The Chess Player's Chronicle. A whole genre of chess compositions, the so-called Indians.
The composition was enclosed with a letter from India to Staunton, in which it was said that this problem had scoffed at the ingenuity of all who had been shown it in India. Staunton published it in the Chess Player's Chronicle , noting that this was the toughest four-move he had ever seen and that some of the best English players couldn't have solved it. He then regularly used it as a cover illustration for the chess magazine.
It was not until years later that it turned out that Staunton had received the problem from a British clergyman living in India (Reverend) named Henry Augustus Loveday (1815-1848). According to today's standards, this “original Indian” is incorrect having 9 solution
1. Bg5! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bc1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. Be3! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bc1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. Bc1! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bh1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. ... b4 2. Kb1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. ... b4 2. Kb2 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. ... b4 2. Rd2 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Bh1 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
2. ... b5 3. Kb1 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
2. ... b5 3. Kb2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. ... b4 2. Rd6 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. ... b4 2. Rd7 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. ... b4 2. Rd8 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. Bh1! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bc1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. Kb1! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bc1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. Kb2! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bc1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. Rd6! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bc1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. Rd7! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bc1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
1. Rd8! waiting
1. ... b4 2. Bc1 waiting
2. ... b5 3. Rd2 waiting
3. ... Kf4 4. Rd4#
compare to #50
Date added: 10/1/2022
50
Checkmate in 4 moves
((Henry Augustus Loveday - The Illustrated London News, 10 Mar 1855)
Click to view solution
1.Kb1! b4
2.Kc2 b5
3.Rd3 b6
4.Bxf3#
compare to #49
Date added: 10/1/2022
51
Checkmate in 7 moves
Click to view solution
1. Bf4!+ Kd5
2. Re3 Nf7
3. Bc7 Nxd4
4. d8=Q+ Kc6
5. Qxd4+ Kxb5
6. Qd5+
7. ... Ka4 2. Qc4, Re4#
7. ... Ka6 2. Qa5#
Date added: 2/3/2022
52
Checkmate in 6 moves
(Ralph Herbert Bridgewater - Chess, 14 Nov 1936)
Click to view solution
1. Bb1! waiting
1. ... b2 2. Ra2 waiting
2. ... b3 3. Ra3 waiting
3. ... b4 4. Ra4 waiting
4. ... b5 5. Ra5 waiting
5. ... b6 6. Be4#
Date added: 12/3/2022
53
Checkmate in 4 moves
(Nikolaj Mihajlovich Gerasimenko - Schach, Aug 1966)
Click to view solution
1. Bd8! waiting
1. ... Kxd8 2. Kd6 waiting
2. ... Kc8 3. Rb2 waiting
3. ... Kd8 4. Rb8#
2. ... Ke8 3. Rf2 waiting
3. ... Kd8 4. Rf8#
1. ... Kc8 2. Kc6 waiting
2. ... Kb8 3. Bb6 [4. Rd8#]
3. ... Ka8/c8 4. Rd8#
1. ... Ke8 2. Ke6 waiting
2. ... Kf8 3. Rg2 waiting
3. ... Ke8 4. Rg8#
Date added: 23/6/2022
54
Checkmate in 16 moves
(Otto Titusz Blathy - The Chess Amateur, Sep 1922)
Click to view solution
1.K×e1 Qa1
2.h3! (tempo!) Qa2 3.h4 Qa1 4.h5 Qa2 5.h6 Qa1 6.h7 Qa2 7.h8=S! Qa1 8.Sf7 Qa2 9.Sd8 Qa1 10.Se6 Qa2 11.S×c5 Qa1 12.Se4 Qa2 13.Sd6 Qa1 14.S×c4 Qa2 15.Sa5 Qa1 16.S×b3#
2.h4? Qa2 3.h5 Qa1 4.h6 Qa2 5.h7 Qa1 6.h8=S Qa2 7.Sf7 Qa1 8.Sd8 Qa2 9.Se6 Qa1 10.S×c5 Qa2 11.Se4 Qa1 12.Sd6 Qa2 13.S×c4 Qa1 14.Sa5 Qa2
Date added: 5/1/2023
55
Checkmate in 4 moves
(Lorenzos Mavillis - Schachclub Altmünchen, 1891)
Click to view solution
1. Bh7! [2. Ke7 [3. Re6, Rc5#]
2. ... Bf3 3. Re6, Nxf3#
2. ... Bg4 3. Rc5#]
1. ... Be2 2. Ke7 [3. Re6, Rc5#]
2. ... Bxc4 3. Rc5+
3. ... Bd5 4. Nf3#
1. ... Bg4 2. Ke7 [3. Rc5#]
2. ... Bf5 3. Re6+
3. ... Bxe6 4. Nf3#
1. ... Bh5+ 2. Ke7 [3. Re6, Rc5#]
2. ... Bg6 3. Rxg6 [4. Re6, Rg5#]
3. ... Kf5 4. Rg5#
3. ... Ke4 4. Re6#
Date added: 5/1/2023
56
Checkmate in 4 moves
(Alessandro Salvio - Trattato dell'Inventione et Arte Liberale del Gioco di Scacchi, 1634)
Click to view solution
1. Nf6! waiting
1. ... g5 2. Ng4+
2. ... Kh1 3. Kf1 waiting
3. ... h2 4. Nf2#
1. ... Kh1 2. Ng4 waiting
2. ... g5 3. Kf1 waiting
3. ... h2 4. Nf2#
2. ... h2 3. Kf1 ad lib 4. Nf2#
Date added: 12/1/2023
57
Checkmate in 6 moves
(Giambattista Lolli, 1763)
Click to view solution
1. b5!
1. ... Ka8 2. b6 waiting
2. ... Kb8 3. b7 waiting
3. ... Ka7 4. Be5 waiting
4. ... Ka6 5. b8=Q [6. Qa8, Qb6#]
5. ... Ka5 6. Qb5#
1. ... Kb8 2. b6 [3. b7 waiting
3. ... Ka7 4. Be5 waiting
3. ... Ka6 4. b8=Q [6. Qa8, Qb6#]
5. ... Ka5 6. Qb5#]
2. ... Ka8 3. b7+
3. ... Kb8 4. Be5+
4. ... Ka7 5. b8=Q+
5. ... Ka6 6. Qa8/b6#
4. ... Ka7 5. b8=R waiting
5. ... Ka6 6. Ra8#
3. ... Ka7 4. Be5 waiting
4. ... Ka6 5. b8=Q [6. Qa8, Qb6#]
5. ... Ka5 6. Qb5#
2. ... Kc8 3. b7+
3. ... Kb8 4. Be5+
4. ... Ka7 5. b8=Q+
5. ... Ka6 6. Qa8/b6#
4. ... Ka7 5. b8=R waiting
5. ... Ka6 6. Ra8#
3. ... Kd8 4. Kd6 [5. b8=Q, b8=R#]
4. ... Ke8 5. Ke6 [6. b8=Q, b8=R#]
5. ... Kd8 6. b8=Q#
5. ... Kf8 6. b8=Q/R#
Date added: 12/1/2023
58
Checkmate in 5 moves
(Domenico Ercole del Rio - Sopra il Giuoco degli Scacchi, Osservazioni Pratiche d'Anonimo Autore Modenese, 1750)
Click to view solution
1. Nf3! waiting
1. ... Ka1 2. Nd4 waiting
2. ... Ka2 3. Ne2 waiting
3. ... Ka1 4. Nc1 waiting
4. ... a2 5. Nb3#
1. ... Ka1 2. Ne1 waiting
2. ... Ka2 3. Nd3 waiting
3. ... Ka1 4. Nc1 waiting
4. ... a2 5. Nb3#
Date added: 12/1/2023
59
Checkmate in 6 moves
(Philippe Stamma - Essai sur le Jeu des Echecs, 1737)
Click to view solution
1. Re8!+
1. ... Ne6 2. Ng4+
2. ... Kf5 3. Nh6+
3. ... Ke5 4. Nf7+
4. ... Kf5 5. Rxd5+
5. ... Rxd5 6. e4#
3. ... Kg5 4. Nf7+
4. ... Kf5 5. Rxd5+
5. ... Rxd5 6. e4#
2. ... Kf5 3. Rxd5+
3. ... Rxd5 4. e4+
4. ... Kg5 5. h4+
5. ... Kh5 6. Rh8#
Date added: 12/1/2023
60
Checkmate in 7, white to move
(Jean Bertin - The Noble Game of Chess, 1735)
Click to view solution
1.Qd7+! Kxd7
2.Nxc5+
2...dxc5 3.Nxc5+ Kd8 4.Ne6+ Kd7 5.Ba4+ Bc6 6.Bxc6+ Kxe6 7.d5#
2...Kd8 3.Ne6+ Kd7 4.Nc5+ dxc5 5.Ba4+ Bc6 6.Bxc6+ Kxe6 7.d5#
2.Nxc5+
2...dxc5 3.Nxc5+ Kd8 4.Ne6+ Kd7 5.Ba4+ Bc6 6.Bxc6+ Kxe6 7.d5#
2...Kd8 3.Ne6+ Kd7 4.Nc5+ dxc5 5.Ba4+ Bc6 6.Bxc6+ Kxe6 7.d5#
Date added: 12/1/2023