Exercise 1.1Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 2.
1
Endgame Essentials · Kapilash Chess Academy
The Basic Checkmates
Queen and rook against a lone king
In this lesson you will learn
- How to mate with king and queen against king
- How to mate with king and rook against king
- The stalemate traps you must avoid
- Why the king must help: no piece mates alone
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.
1.1 Why Start Here?
Every endgame plan ends with a new queen and a checkmate. If you cannot mate quickly and safely with a queen or a rook, all your good work earlier in the game can end in a draw by stalemate or by the fifty-move rule. These mates are short, they never change, and you only have to learn them once.
There is one big idea in both mates: the piece builds a box around the enemy king, and your own king comes up to help. A queen or rook alone can push the king to the edge, but it can never give mate without the king's support.
1.2 King and Queen against King
The method is simple. Place the queen a knight's move away from the enemy king, then follow it: every time the king steps, the queen steps too and keeps the same knight's-move distance. The box gets smaller and smaller until the king is on the edge. Then you stop moving the queen and bring your own king close.
Diagram 1.1White to move
Example 1.1 · Mate on the edge
The black king is in the corner and the white king stands on b6, covering a7, b7 and c7. White mates in one move.
1.♕c8# is mate because the queen checks along the eighth rank and the king covers every flight square. Now look at 1.♕c7?: Black is not in check, but the king has no legal move, so the game is drawn by stalemate. When the enemy king has only a few squares left, always ask: after my move, does my opponent have a legal move?
Diagram 1.2White to move
Example 1.2 · King first, then mate
The queen on b1 has already locked the black king on a7, a8 and b8 is covered. Now the white king must come closer.
After 1.♔c6 the black king has only one square, a7, and 2.♕b7# follows, with the queen protected by the king. The natural-looking 1.♕b6? takes away every square and gives stalemate. Remember: once the king is on the edge and boxed in, stop squeezing with the queen and bring the king.
TipWith king and queen against king you can always mate in ten moves or fewer from any position. If it takes you longer, you are probably checking too much. Quiet queen moves that shrink the box are usually stronger than checks.
1.3 King and Rook against King
The rook cannot cover diagonal squares, so the king has a bigger role. The method: the rook cuts the enemy king off along a rank or file; your king walks towards it; when the two kings stand opposite each other (the opposition), a rook check drives the enemy king back one more line. When the enemy king is on the edge and the kings face each other, the rook check is mate.
Diagram 1.3White to move
Example 1.3 · The final picture
The kings stand opposite each other on the c-file. Black's king cannot go to the seventh rank.
1.♖h8# — the rook checks along the back rank and the white king covers b7, c7 and d7. This is the picture you are aiming for in every rook mate.
Diagram 1.4White to move
Example 1.4 · Making the opposition
The black king is in the corner, but the kings do not face each other yet: a check now would let the king escape to a7.
1.♔b6! leaves Black only one move, 1...♔b8, and now the kings are opposite: 2.♖h8#. When the enemy king is not opposite yours, you either move your king to face it, or make a quiet rook move and let the enemy king step in front of your king.
Diagram 1.5White to move
Example 1.5 · Two rooks: the ladder
With two rooks you do not need the king at all. The rooks take turns: one cuts off a rank, the other gives check on the next one.
1.♖a7 takes the whole seventh rank, and 2.♖b8# follows wherever the king goes. In a real game the rooks climb the board like a ladder, one rank at a time. If the enemy king comes close to a rook, move that rook to the far side of the board and continue.
Remember
- The king must help: neither the queen nor one rook can mate alone.
- Queen mate: keep a knight's-move distance, shrink the box, then bring the king.
- Rook mate: cut the king off, bring your king opposite, then check.
- Before every move near the edge, ask: does my opponent still have a legal move? If not, it is stalemate.
Exercises · Lesson 1
Every exercise has been checked with a chess engine: exactly one move keeps the best result. Find it and play it on the board.
Exercise 1.2Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 3.
Exercise 1.3Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 2.
Exercise 1.4Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 3.
Exercise 1.5Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 2.
Exercise 1.6Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 3.
Exercise 1.7Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 2.
Exercise 1.8Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 2.
Exercise 1.9Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 2.
Exercise 1.10Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 2.
Exercise 1.11Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 2.
Exercise 1.12Find the move
White to move
White to move. Mate in 3.