150 years ago, from 21 June to 29 August 1873, the “First International Vienna Chess Congress” was held in Vienna. Some of the best players in the world accepted the invitation and played mini-matches against each other. In the end, Wilhelm Steinitz and Joseph Blackburne tied for first place. A play-off match decided the tournament’s winner.
In recent years there has been a revival of interest in the "old masters". Those who study the subject intensively, as Frank Hoffmeister does in his work "Chess Theory from Stamma to Steinitz, 1735-1894", will find that the ideas of the "old ones" are surprisingly young. Review and interview with the author.
Johannes Zukertort is one of the great but tragic figures of chess history. A former title contender, he was as brilliant as he was misunderstood. On the 137th anniversary of the first World Chess Championship Match, his life, career, and legacy are worth re-examining.
The term "malyutka" - "baby" - is used for endgame studies with up to five pieces. The art of such studies is very old, but some modern composers extensively researched such positions. Obviously, endgame tablebases made composing such endgame studies easier in the late 20th century, and it seems that there can't be much variety with only three pieces apart from the kings. Yet, even with so few pieces, some interesting ideas can be found.| Photos: Pixabay