Checkmate Fundamentals

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1.1 Three Ways Out of Check

A king is in check when an enemy piece attacks it. The player in check must get out of it at once, and there are only three ways to do that:

1. Move the king to a square that is not attacked.

2. Capture the checking piece, with the king or with any other

piece.

3. Block the check by putting a piece between the checker and the

king. (This is impossible against a knight or a pawn, and against a check from the very next square.)

Checkmate is simply a check where all three ways are closed. That is all. Every mating attack in this book, however complicated it looks, ends with a position where the king cannot move, the checker cannot be taken, and the check cannot be blocked.

1.2 The King's Box

Picture the squares around the king as a small box — up to eight squares, fewer on the edge of the board or in a corner. To mate, every square in the box must be either occupied by the king's own pieces or attacked by your pieces.

1.3 Check Every Check

When you are looking for a mate, do not trust the first check that looks promising. List every check and, for each one, ask the three questions. Most checks will fail, and the table tells you exactly why.

1.4 The Checker and the Guards

In every mating position the attacking pieces do two different jobs. One piece is the checker: it attacks the king. The others are guards: they cover the squares in the box that the checker does not reach, or they protect the checker so that the king cannot capture it.

When you plan a mate, think about both jobs. Ask: "Which piece will give the final check? Which squares will still be free? Which of my pieces can cover them?" Often the defender's own pawns and pieces are doing part of the guarding for you, as in Diagram 1.1.

1.5 Mating a Lone King

Every player must know how to mate a king that has nothing left but itself. With a queen or a rook, the method is the same: push the king to the edge, then bring your own king close to help, and give the final check along the edge.

The great danger in these endings is stalemate: the defender is not in check but has no legal move, and the game is a draw. In the position below Black is not in check, but the king has no free square. If it is Black's move, the game is over — a draw, even though White has a whole queen extra.

1.6 Worked Examples

In each example, list the checks before you read on.