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Chess from Zero · Kapilash Chess Academy

The King

One step at a time, and never into danger

In this lesson you will learn

  • How the king moves
  • The king may not move into check
  • Kings never stand next to each other

Every board on this page is live. Move the pieces by tapping or dragging, click any move in the lines to see that position, and press ↺ to start again.

6.1 How the king moves

The king moves one square in any direction: up, down, sideways or diagonally. It captures the same way.

The king’s movesFrom e4 the king can step to the 8 squares around it.

6.2 Never into danger

The king is the most important piece. It may never move to a square that an enemy piece attacks. That would be moving into check, and that is not allowed.

The rook guards the d-fileThe black rook on d8 attacks the whole d-file, so the white king cannot step to d3, d4 or d5. Only five squares are left.

The two kings can never stand on squares next to each other, because each would be attacking the other.

Kings keep apartThe squares d5, e5 and f5 are next to the black king, so the white king cannot go there.
Diagram 6.1White to move

Diagram 6.1 · The king captures

The black knight on e3 is next to the white king and nothing protects it.

Capture the knight with the king.

Remember

  1. The king moves one square in any direction.
  2. It may never move onto an attacked square.
  3. The kings can never stand next to each other.

Exercises · Lesson 6

Move the white king. It may only go to squares that are not attacked.

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Capture with the king

Exercise 6.1Find the move
White to move

Capture the black piece that the king can safely take.

Exercise 6.2Find the move
White to move

Capture the black piece that the king can safely take.

Exercise 6.3Find the move
White to move

Capture the black piece that the king can safely take.

Exercise 6.4Find the move
White to move

Capture the black piece that the king can safely take.

Safe squares

Exercise 6.5Find the move
White to move

The king can only move to one rank. Move the king to a safe square.

Exercise 6.6Question
White to move

How many squares can the white king move to?

How many safe squares?

Exercise 6.7Question
White to move

Can the white king move to d5?

Is d5 allowed?