Gambit
Encyclopedia
A gambit is a chess opening
in which a player, most often White
, sacrifices
material, usually a pawn
, with the hope of achieving a resulting advantageous position. Some well-known examples are the King's Gambit
(1.e4 e5 2.f4), Queen's Gambit
(1.d4 d5 2.c4), and Evans Gambit
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4). A gambit used by Black may also be called a gambit (e.g. the Latvian Gambit
—1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f5 or Englund Gambit
—1.d4 e5), but is sometimes called a "countergambit" (e.g. the Albin Countergambit
—1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 and Greco Counter-Gambit, an old-fashioned name for the Latvian Gambit).
The word "gambit" was originally applied to chess openings in 1561 by Spanish
priest Rúy López de Segura, from an Italian expression dare il gambetto (to put a leg forward in order to trip someone). Lopez studied this maneuver, and so the Italian word gained the Spanish form gambito that led to French gambit, which has influenced the English spelling of the word. The broader sense of "opening move meant to gain advantage" was first recorded in English in 1855.
Gambits are often said to be 'offered' to an opponent, and that offer is then said to be either 'accepted' or 'declined.' If a player who is offered a gambit captures the piece (and thus gains material) the gambit is said to be accepted. If the player who was offered the gambit ignores it and instead continues his or her development, then the gambit is said to be declined.
In modern chess, the typical response to a moderately sound gambit is to accept the material and give the material back at an advantageous time. For gambits that are less sound, the accepting player is more likely to try to hold onto his extra material. A rule of thumb often found in various primers on chess suggests that a player should get three moves (see tempo
) of development for a sacrificed pawn, but it is unclear how useful this general maxim is since the "free moves" part of the compensation
is almost never the entirety of what the gambiteer gains. Of course, a player is not obliged to accept a gambit. Often, a gambit can be declined without disadvantage.
A good example of a sound gambit is the Danish Gambit
: 1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 dxc3 (3...d5 would be a way of declining the gambit) 4.Bc4 cxb2 5.Bxb2. White has sacrificed two pawns in exchange for a lead in development (his bishops are raking Black's kingside) and the possibility of a quick attack. A more dubious gambit is the so-called Halloween Gambit: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5?! Nxe5 5.d4. Here the investment (a knight for just one pawn) is too large for the moderate advantage of having a strong center.
Chess opening
A chess opening is the group of initial moves of a chess game. Recognized sequences of opening moves are referred to as openings as initiated by White or defenses, as created in reply by Black. There are many dozens of different openings, and hundreds of named variants. The Oxford Companion to...
in which a player, most often White
White and Black in chess
In chess, the player who moves first is referred to as "White" and the player who moves second is referred to as "Black". Similarly, the pieces that each conducts are called, respectively, "the white pieces" and "the black pieces". The pieces are often not literally white and black, but some...
, sacrifices
Sacrifice (chess)
In chess, a sacrifice is a move giving up a piece in the hopes of gaining tactical or positional compensation in other forms. A sacrifice could also be a deliberate exchange of a chess piece of higher value for an opponent's piece of lower value....
material, usually a pawn
Pawn (chess)
The pawn is the most numerous and weakest piece in the game of chess, historically representing infantry, or more particularly armed peasants or pikemen. Each player begins the game with eight pawns, one on each square of the rank immediately in front of the other pieces...
, with the hope of achieving a resulting advantageous position. Some well-known examples are the King's Gambit
King's Gambit
The King's Gambit is a chess opening that begins with the moves:White offers a pawn to divert the Black e-pawn so as to build a strong centre with d2–d4...
(1.e4 e5 2.f4), Queen's Gambit
Queen's Gambit
The Queen's Gambit is a chess opening that starts with the moves:The Queen's Gambit is one of the oldest known chess openings. It was mentioned in the Göttingen manuscript of 1490 and was later analysed by masters such as Gioachino Greco in the seventeenth century...
(1.d4 d5 2.c4), and Evans Gambit
Evans Gambit
The Evans Gambit is a chess opening characterised by the moves:The gambit is named after the Welsh sea Captain William Davies Evans, the first player known to have employed it. The first game with the opening is considered to be Evans - McDonnell, London 1827, although in that game a slightly...
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4). A gambit used by Black may also be called a gambit (e.g. the Latvian Gambit
Latvian Gambit
The Latvian Gambit is an aggressive but dubious chess opening, which often leads to wild and tricky positions. This opening is uncommon at the top level of over-the-board play, but some correspondence chess players are devoted to it...
—1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f5 or Englund Gambit
Englund Gambit
The Englund Gambit is a rarely played chess opening that starts with the moves:Black's idea is to avoid the traditional closed queen's pawn games and create an open game with tactical chances, but at the cost of a pawn. The gambit is considered weak; Boris Avrukh writes that 1...e5 "seems to me...
—1.d4 e5), but is sometimes called a "countergambit" (e.g. the Albin Countergambit
Albin Countergambit
The Albin Countergambit is a chess opening that begins with the moves:and the usual continuation is:The opening is an uncommon defense to the Queen's Gambit. In exchange for the gambit pawn, Black has a central wedge at d4 and gets some chances for an attack...
—1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 and Greco Counter-Gambit, an old-fashioned name for the Latvian Gambit).
The word "gambit" was originally applied to chess openings in 1561 by Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
priest Rúy López de Segura, from an Italian expression dare il gambetto (to put a leg forward in order to trip someone). Lopez studied this maneuver, and so the Italian word gained the Spanish form gambito that led to French gambit, which has influenced the English spelling of the word. The broader sense of "opening move meant to gain advantage" was first recorded in English in 1855.
Strategy
Gambits are often said to be 'offered' to an opponent, and that offer is then said to be either 'accepted' or 'declined.' If a player who is offered a gambit captures the piece (and thus gains material) the gambit is said to be accepted. If the player who was offered the gambit ignores it and instead continues his or her development, then the gambit is said to be declined.
In modern chess, the typical response to a moderately sound gambit is to accept the material and give the material back at an advantageous time. For gambits that are less sound, the accepting player is more likely to try to hold onto his extra material. A rule of thumb often found in various primers on chess suggests that a player should get three moves (see tempo
Tempo (chess)
In chess, tempo refers to a "turn" or single move. When a player achieves a desired result in one fewer move, he "gains a tempo" and conversely when he takes one more move than necessary he "loses a tempo"...
) of development for a sacrificed pawn, but it is unclear how useful this general maxim is since the "free moves" part of the compensation
Compensation (chess)
In chess, compensation refers to various advantages a player has in exchange for a disadvantage. The term normally refers to medium to long-term advantages as opposed to short-term advantages...
is almost never the entirety of what the gambiteer gains. Of course, a player is not obliged to accept a gambit. Often, a gambit can be declined without disadvantage.
Soundness
A gambit is said to be 'sound' if it is capable of procuring some concession from the opponent. There are three general criteria in which a gambit is often said to be sound:- Time gain: the player accepting the gambit must take time to procure the sacrificed material and possibly must use more time to reorganize his pieces after the material is taken.
- Generation of differential activity: Often a player accepting a gambit will decentralize his pieces or pawns and his poorly placed pieces will allow the gambiteer to place his own pieces and pawns on squares that may otherwise have been inaccessible. In addition, bishops and rooks can become more active simply because the loss of pawns often gives rise to open files and diagonals. Former world champion Mikhail TalMikhail TalMikhail Tal was a Soviet–Latvian chess player, a Grandmaster, and the eighth World Chess Champion.Widely regarded as a creative genius, and the best attacking player of all time, he played a daring, combinatorial style. His play was known above all for improvisation and unpredictability....
, one of the most extraordinary attacking players of the 20th century, once said that he had sacrificed a pawn just because "it was in his way."
- Generation of positional weaknesses: Finally, accepting a gambit may lead to a compromised pawn structurePawn structureIn chess, the pawn structure is the configuration of pawns on the chessboard. Since pawns are the least mobile of the chess pieces, the pawn structure is relatively static and thus largely determines the strategic nature of the position.-General observations:Weaknesses in the pawn structure, such...
, holes or other positional deficiencies.
A good example of a sound gambit is the Danish Gambit
Danish Gambit
The Danish Gambit, known as the in German, and the in Dutch, is a chess opening that begins with the moves:...
: 1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 dxc3 (3...d5 would be a way of declining the gambit) 4.Bc4 cxb2 5.Bxb2. White has sacrificed two pawns in exchange for a lead in development (his bishops are raking Black's kingside) and the possibility of a quick attack. A more dubious gambit is the so-called Halloween Gambit: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5?! Nxe5 5.d4. Here the investment (a knight for just one pawn) is too large for the moderate advantage of having a strong center.
Examples
- King's GambitKing's GambitThe King's Gambit is a chess opening that begins with the moves:White offers a pawn to divert the Black e-pawn so as to build a strong centre with d2–d4...
: 1.e4 e5 2.f4 - Queen's GambitQueen's GambitThe Queen's Gambit is a chess opening that starts with the moves:The Queen's Gambit is one of the oldest known chess openings. It was mentioned in the Göttingen manuscript of 1490 and was later analysed by masters such as Gioachino Greco in the seventeenth century...
: 1.d4 d5 2.c4 - Evans GambitEvans GambitThe Evans Gambit is a chess opening characterised by the moves:The gambit is named after the Welsh sea Captain William Davies Evans, the first player known to have employed it. The first game with the opening is considered to be Evans - McDonnell, London 1827, although in that game a slightly...
: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 - Rousseau GambitRousseau GambitThe Rousseau Gambit is a chess opening characterised by the moves:Key themes for White are to attack Black's kingside and to avoid attempts by Black to simplify the position...
: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 f5 - Smith-Morra GambitSmith-Morra GambitIn chess, the Smith–Morra Gambit is an opening gambit against the Sicilian Defence distinguished by the moves:The Smith–Morra is not common in grandmaster games, but at club level chess it can be an excellent weapon.-History:...
: 1.e4 c5 2.d4 intending 2. ..cxd4 3.c3 dxc3 4.Nxc3 - Two Knights Defence: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 with 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 likely to follow.
- Blackmar-Diemer GambitBlackmar-Diemer GambitThe Blackmar–Diemer Gambit is a chess opening characterized by the moves:- History :The Blackmar–Diemer Gambit arose as a development of the earlier Blackmar Gambit, named after Armand Blackmar, a relatively little-known New Orleans player of the late 19th century who popularized its...
(BDG): 1.d4 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.Nc3 followed by 4.f3 - From's Gambit: 1.f4 e5
- Staunton GambitStaunton GambitThe Staunton Gambit is a chess opening characterized by the moves:Black can decline the gambit with 2...d6, transposing to the Balogh Defence; or 2...e6, transposing to the Kingston Defence...
: 1.d4 f5 2.e4 - Budapest Gambit: 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5
- Scotch Gambit: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4
- Latvian GambitLatvian GambitThe Latvian Gambit is an aggressive but dubious chess opening, which often leads to wild and tricky positions. This opening is uncommon at the top level of over-the-board play, but some correspondence chess players are devoted to it...
: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f5 - Blackburne Shilling GambitBlackburne Shilling GambitThe Blackburne Shilling Gambit is the name facetiously given to a dubious chess opening, derived from an offshoot of the Italian Game, that begins 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4?!...
: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4?!
- This is not a true gambit by Black, since after 4.Nxe5!? Qg5! Black wins material. White can (and from this position should) play a gambit himself with 5.Bxf7+! Ke7 6.0-0! Qxe5 7.Bxg8 Rxg8 8.c3 Nc6 9.d4, when White's two pawns and rolling pawn center, combined with Black's misplaced king, give White strong compensation for the sacrificed bishop.
- Elephant GambitElephant GambitThe Elephant Gambit is a rarely played chess opening beginning with the moves:...
: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d5!? - Englund GambitEnglund GambitThe Englund Gambit is a rarely played chess opening that starts with the moves:Black's idea is to avoid the traditional closed queen's pawn games and create an open game with tactical chances, but at the cost of a pawn. The gambit is considered weak; Boris Avrukh writes that 1...e5 "seems to me...
: 1.d4 e5?! - Italian GambitItalian GambitThe Italian Gambit is a chess opening characterized by the movesAfter 4...Bxd4 5.Nxd4 Nxd4, George Koltanowski favoured 6.0-0, which transposes to the related gambit line 4.0-0 Nf6 5.d4 following 6...Nf6, when 7.f4 and 7.Bg5 are the main possibilities for White. However, 6...d6!? is an independent...
: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. d4 - Fried Liver AttackFried Liver AttackThe Fried Liver Attack, also called the Fegatello Attack , is a chess opening. This colourfully named opening is a variation of the Two Knights Defense in which White sacrifices a knight for a superficially impressive attack on Black's king...
: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 Nxd5 6. Nxf7 Kxf7 - Albin Counter-Gambit: 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e5
- Benko GambitBenko GambitThe Benko Gambit is a chess opening characterised by the move 3...b5 in the Benoni Defense arising after:- Origin and predecessors :The idea of sacrificing a pawn with ...b5 and ...a6 is quite old. Karel Opočenský applied the idea against, among others, Gideon Ståhlberg at Poděbrady 1936, Paul...
: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5
- Elephant Gambit
External links
- Guide to Chess Gambits (Part 1)
- Guide to Chess Gambits (Part 2)
- Emil Diemer (1908–1990) et les gambits sur le site Mieux jouer aux échecs
- Le gambit letton sur le site Mieux jouer aux échecs
- Le gambit Humphrey Bogart sur le site Mieux jouer aux échecs
- Le gambit Fajarowicz sur le site Mieux jouer aux échecs
- Le gambit Boden sur le site Mieux jouer aux échecs
- David Gedult (1897-1981) et les gambits sur le site Mieux jouer aux échecs
- Scacchi: Enciclopedia pratica dei Gambetti