Napoleon Opening
Encyclopedia
The Napoleon Opening is an irregular chess opening
starting with
It is a weak opening because it develops the queen
too early and subjects it to attack, and deprives the knight
of its best square.
As with the similar Parham Attack
(2.Qh5), White hopes for the scholar's mate
: 2.Qf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5?? 4.Qxf7#. In both cases, Black can easily avoid the trap. However, the Parham Attack is more forcing and stronger—first requiring Black to defend his e-pawn (usually with 2...Nc6), then after 3.Bc4 forcing Black to play a sub-optimal move (3...g6 virtually committing Black to a fianchetto
rather than a more aggressive placement of the bishop
; 3...Qe7 blocking the bishop; or 3...Qf6 taking away the knight's best square). 2.Qf3 places no such impediments on Black's development.
The Napoleon Opening is named after the French
general and emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who was said to be a fairly strong amateur chess player.
Napoleon played this opening in a game he lost to the supposed chess-playing automaton, called The Turk
. The name may also be a slighting reference to Napoleon's Empress, Josephine and her scandalous infidelities, hence Napoleon's inability to keep his Queen at home.
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...
starting with
- 1. e4 e5
- 2. Qf3
It is a weak opening because it develops the queen
Queen (chess)
The queen is the most powerful piece in the game of chess, able to move any number of squares vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. Each player starts the game with one queen, placed in the middle of the first rank next to the king. With the chessboard oriented correctly, the white queen starts...
too early and subjects it to attack, and deprives the knight
Knight (chess)
The knight is a piece in the game of chess, representing a knight . It is normally represented by a horse's head and neck. Each player starts with two knights, which begin on the row closest to the player, one square from the corner...
of its best square.
As with the similar Parham Attack
Parham Attack
The Parham Attack is an irregular chess opening beginning with the moves:The opening is named after American chess master Bernard Parham, the first master-level player known to have advocated it...
(2.Qh5), White hopes for the scholar's mate
Scholar's mate
In chess, Scholar's Mate is the checkmate achieved by the moves 1. e4 e5 2. Qh5 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6? 4. Qxf7#. The moves might be played in a different order or in slight variation, but the basic idea is the same—the queen and bishop combine in a simple mating attack on f7 .Sometimes Scholar's Mate is...
: 2.Qf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5?? 4.Qxf7#. In both cases, Black can easily avoid the trap. However, the Parham Attack is more forcing and stronger—first requiring Black to defend his e-pawn (usually with 2...Nc6), then after 3.Bc4 forcing Black to play a sub-optimal move (3...g6 virtually committing Black to a fianchetto
Fianchetto
In chess the fianchetto is a pattern of development wherein a bishop is developed to the second rank of the adjacent knight file, the knight pawn having been moved one or two squares forward....
rather than a more aggressive placement of the bishop
Bishop (chess)
A bishop is a piece in the board game of chess. Each player begins the game with two bishops. One starts between the king's knight and the king, the other between the queen's knight and the queen...
; 3...Qe7 blocking the bishop; or 3...Qf6 taking away the knight's best square). 2.Qf3 places no such impediments on Black's development.
The Napoleon Opening is named after the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
general and emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who was said to be a fairly strong amateur chess player.
Napoleon played this opening in a game he lost to the supposed chess-playing automaton, called The Turk
The Turk
The Turk, also known as the Mechanical Turk or Automaton Chess Player , was a fake chess-playing machine constructed in the late 18th century. From 1770 until its destruction by fire in 1854, it was exhibited by various owners as an automaton, though it was exposed in the early 1820s as an...
. The name may also be a slighting reference to Napoleon's Empress, Josephine and her scandalous infidelities, hence Napoleon's inability to keep his Queen at home.