Vienna Game
Encyclopedia
The Vienna Game is a chess opening
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...

 that begins with the moves:
1. e4 e5
2. Nc3


White's second move is less common than 2.Nf3, and is also of more recent vintage; a book reviewer wrote in the New York Times in 1888 that "since Morphy
Paul Morphy
Paul Charles Morphy was an American chess player. He is considered to have been the greatest chess master of his era and an unofficial World Chess Champion. He was a chess prodigy...

 only one new opening has been introduced, the 'Vienna.

The original idea behind 2.Nc3 was to play a type of delayed 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...

 with f2–f4, but in modern play White often plays more quietly (for example by 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....

ing his king's bishop with g3 and Bg2). Black most often continues with 2...Nf6, but 2...Nc6 is also playable, as is the unusual 2...Bc5 3.Nf3 d6! The opening also harbours the notorious Frankenstein-Dracula Variation
Frankenstein-Dracula Variation
The Frankenstein–Dracula Variation is a chess opening, usually considered a branch of the Vienna Game, but can also be reached from the Bishop's Opening...

 (2...Nf6 3.Bc4 Nxe4), which can become ferociously complex.

Weaver W. Adams
Weaver W. Adams
Weaver Warren Adams was an American chess master, author, and chess opening theoretician. His greatest competitive achievement was winning the U.S. Open Championship in 1948. He played in the U.S...

, whom Grandmaster Larry Evans
Larry Evans
For the football player of the same name, see Larry Evans .Larry Melvyn Evans was an American chess grandmaster, author, and journalist. He won or shared the U.S. Chess Championship five times and the U.S. Open Chess Championship four times...

 described as having an "all or nothing" mentality, famously claimed that the Vienna Game led to a forced win for White. However, Grandmaster Nick de Firmian
Nick de Firmian
Nicholas Ernest de Firmian , is a chess grandmaster and three-time U.S. chess champion, winning in 1987 , 1995, and 1998. He also tied for first in 2002, but Larry Christiansen won the playoff...

, in the 15th edition of Modern Chess Openings
Modern Chess Openings
Modern Chess Openings is an important reference book on the chess openings, first published in 1911 by the British players Richard Clewin Griffith and John Herbert White...

(MCO-15), concludes that the opening leads to equality with best play by both sides. However, practical experience among NMs and higher would appear to contradict this view and show that White still has a clear edge, with White winning 4.8% more games than Black using this opening.

2...Nf6

White has three main options: 3.f4, 3.Bc4 and 3.g3. Also possible, but usually without independent significance, is 3.Nf3, when 3...Nc6 transposes to the Four Knights Game
Four Knights Game
The Four Knights Game is a chess opening that begins with the moves:The opening is fairly popular with beginners who strictly adhere to the opening principle: "Develop knights before bishops." It was one of the workhorses in the family of the Open Game, at even the highest levels, until World War...

.

3.f4

The move 3.f4, the Vienna Gambit, is best met by 3...d5, striking back in the centre, since 3...exf4 4.e5 Qe7 5.Qe2 forces Black's knight to retreat. After 4.fxe5 Nxe4, 5.Qf3 is well met by 5....Nc6, with the point 6.Nxe4 Nd4. 5.d3 is also possible, but the normal continuation is 5.Nf3. White obtains open lines and attacking chances, but Black can usually hold the balance with correct play.

3.Bc4

The move 3.Bc4 leads to a position which can also be reached from the Bishop's Opening
Bishop's Opening
The Bishop's Opening is a chess opening that begins with the moves:White attacks Black's f7-square and prevents Black from advancing his d-pawn to d5....

 (1.e4 e5 2.Bc4). Black has several choices here; 3...Bc5 can transpose to the King's Gambit Declined after 4.d3 d6 5.f4 Nc6 6.Nf3; after 3...Nc6 4.d3, 4...Na5, 4...Bc5 or 4...d6 are all playable; 3...Bb4 4.f4 Nxe4 5.Qh5 0-0 leads to wild but probably equal play, according to de Firmian in MCO-15. Also possible is 3...Nxe4, when 4.Nxe4 d5, fork
Fork (chess)
In chess, a fork is a tactic that uses a single piece to attack multiple pieces at the same time. The attacker usually hopes to gain material by capturing one of the opponent's pieces. The defender often finds himself in a difficult position in which he cannot counter all threats. The attacking...

ing bishop and knight, is fine for Black. The attractive-looking 4.Bxf7+ is weak; after 4...Kxf7 5.Nxe4 d5! (inferior is 5...Nc6 6.Qf3+, when Black cannot play 6...Kg8?? because of 7.Ng5! 1–0 Davids–Diggle
G. H. Diggle
Geoffrey Harber Diggle was a British chess player and writer. Diggle contributed articles to the British Chess Magazine from 1933 to 1981, and to the British Chess Federation's publications Newsflash and Chess Moves from 1974 to 1992. C.H.O'D. Alexander called Diggle "one of the best writers on...

, London Banks League 1949, while 6...Ke8 leaves the king awkwardly placed in the center) 6.Qf3+ (6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5? Bh6! wins for Black) Kg8 7.Ng5!? (hoping for 7...Qxg5?? 8.Qxd5+ and mate
Checkmate
Checkmate is a situation in chess in which one player's king is threatened with capture and there is no way to meet that threat. Or, simply put, the king is under direct attack and cannot avoid being captured...

 next move, Schottlaender–Ed. Lasker
Edward Lasker
Edward Lasker was a leading German-American chess and Go player. He was awarded the title of International Master of chess by FIDE. Lasker was an engineer by profession, and an author.-Background:...

, simultaneous exhibition, Breslau c. 1902) Qd7!, with a large advantage for Black in view of his bishop pair and pawn center. After 3...Nxe4, White usually continues instead 4.Qh5 (threatening Qxf7#) 4...Nd6 5.Bb3 when Black can either go for the relatively quiet waters of 5...Be7 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Nxe5 g6 8.Qe2 (or 8.Nxc6 dxc6 9.Qe5 0-0) Nd4 9.Qd3 Nxb3 10.axb3 Nf5 11.0-0 d6, which led to equality in Anand
Viswanathan Anand
V. Anand or Anand Viswanathan, usually referred as Viswanathan Anand, is an Indian chess Grandmaster, the current World Chess Champion, and currently second highest rated player in the world....

–Ivanchuk, Roquebrune
Roquebrune
Roquebrune may refer to the following communes in France:* Roquebrune, Gers, in the Gers département* Roquebrune, Gironde, in the Gironde département* Roquebrune, the former name for Roquebrune-Cap Martin, in the Alpes-Maritimes département...

 1992. or the complexities of 5...Nc6 6.Nb5 g6 7.Qf3 f5 8.Qd5 Qe7 9.Nxc7+ Kd8 10.Nxa8 b6, which the Irish correspondence chess player and theorist Tim Harding
Tim Harding (chess)
Timothy David Harding is a prolific chess player and author with particular expertise regarding correspondence chess. He published a correspondence chess magazine Chess Mail from 1996 to 2006 and has authored "The Kibitzer," a ChessCafe.com column from 1996...

 extravagantly dubbed "the Frankenstein-Dracula Variation
Frankenstein-Dracula Variation
The Frankenstein–Dracula Variation is a chess opening, usually considered a branch of the Vienna Game, but can also be reached from the Bishop's Opening...

."

3.g3

The move 3.g3, the Mieses Variation, is a quiet continuation in which White fianchettoes his king's bishop, a line played by Vasily Smyslov
Vasily Smyslov
Vasily Vasilyevich Smyslov was a Soviet and Russian chess grandmaster, and was World Chess Champion from 1957 to 1958. He was a Candidate for the World Chess Championship on eight occasions . Smyslov was twice equal first at the Soviet Championship , and his total of 17 Chess Olympiad medals won...

 on a few occasions, most notably in a win over Lev Polugaevsky
Lev Polugaevsky
Lev Abramovich Polugaevsky was an International Grandmaster of chess and frequent contender for the world chess championship, although he never achieved that title...

 in the 1961 USSR Championship. That game continued 3...d5 4.exd5 Nxd5 5.Bg2 Be6 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.0-0 Be7 8.Re1 Bf6 9.Ne4 0-0 10.d3 Be7 11.a3 Nb6 12.b4, resulting in a position which the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings
Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings
The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings is a classification system for the opening moves in a game of chess. It is presented as a five volume book collection describing chess openings...

 assesses as slightly better for White. The main line today, however, is considered to be 5...Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bd6 7.Nf3 0-0 8.0-0. A major alternative for Black is 3...Bc5 (3...Nc6 normally transposes into one of the other lines).

3.a3

In addition to these lines, the late American master
Chess master
A chess master is a chess player of such skill that he/she can usually beat chess experts, who themselves typically prevail against most amateurs. Among chess players, the term is often abbreviated to master, the meaning being clear from context....

 Ariel Mengarini advocated the whimsical 3.a3, sometimes called Mengarini's Opening. It is not a serious try for advantage, but is essentially a useful waiting move that gives White an improved version of Black's position after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6. First, the "Reversed Ruy Lopez
Ruy Lopez
The Ruy Lopez, also called the Spanish Opening or Spanish Game, is a chess opening characterised by the moves:-History:The opening is named after the 16th century Spanish priest Ruy López de Segura, who made a systematic study of this and other openings in the 150-page book on chess Libro del...

" with 3...Bb4 is ruled out. Second, after 3...d5, 4.exd5 Nxd5 5.Qh5!? gives White an improved version of the Steinitz
Wilhelm Steinitz
Wilhelm Steinitz was an Austrian and then American chess player and the first undisputed world chess champion from 1886 to 1894. From the 1870s onwards, commentators have debated whether Steinitz was effectively the champion earlier...

 Variation of the Scotch Game
Scotch Game
The Scotch Game is a chess opening that begins with the movesWhite aims to dominate the centre by exchanging his d-pawn for Black's e-pawn. Black usually plays 3...exd4, as he has no good way to maintain his pawn on e5...

, since Black can never play ...Nb4, an important idea for White in the mirror-image position. Third, after 3...Bc5, 4.Nf3 gives a reversed Two Knights Defense
Two Knights Defense
The Two Knights Defense is a chess opening that begins with the moves: in the late 16th century, this line of the Italian Game was extensively developed in the 19th century....

. Then the typical 4...Ng4 may be met by 5.d4 exd4 6.Na4, when 6...Bb4+, White's usual move in the mirror-image position, is impossible. After 4...Ng4, White may also play improved versions of the Ulvestad Variation (6.b4 in the above line) and Fritz Variation (6.Nd5 c6 7.b4), since when White plays b4 his pawn is protected, unlike in the mirror-image position. If Black plays more quietly with 3...Bc5 4.Nf3 Nc6, then 5.Nxe5! Nxe5 6.d4 gives White some advantage. The best line for Black may be 3...Bc5 4.Nf3 d5 5.exd5 0-0 (better than 5...e4 6.d4, when the normal 6...Bb4 is impossible), and if 6.Nxe5, 6...Re8 7.d4 Bxd4! 8.Qxd4 Nc6, as in the mirror-image line. Also possible is 3...Bc5 4.Nf3 d6, when Black stands well after 5.Bc4 Be6, while 5.d4 cxd4 6.Nxd4 gives White little or no advantage.

2...Nc6

White again has the possibility of 3.f4, with a type of 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...

, or 3.g3. Most often, White plays 3.Bc4, when the solid 3...Nf6 transposes to the 2...Nf6 3.Bc4 Nc6 line. Weaker is 3.Bc4 Bc5, when 4.Qg4! is awkward to meet. 4...Kf8 and 4...g6 are thought the best moves, but neither is too appealing for Black. The natural 4...Qf6?? loses to 5.Nd5! Qxf2+ 6.Kd1, when White's king is in no real danger, and White has multiple threats: 7.Qxg7; 7.Nxc7+; and 7.Nh3 Qd4 8.d3 threatening to trap Black's queen with 9.c3.

Hamppe–Muzio Gambit





The Hamppe–Muzio Gambit (or Vienna Hamppe–Muzio Gambit) is characterised by the moves: 1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 exf4 4.Nf3 g5 5.Bc4 g4 6.0-0 gxf3 7.Qxf3 (diagram).

As with its close relative, the sharp Muzio Gambit, White sacrifices the knight on f3 in return for a powerful attack against the black king. It is named after Austrian theoretician Carl Hamppe
Carl Hamppe
Carl Hamppe was a senior government official in Vienna as well as a Swiss–Austrian chess master and theoretician....

 and classified under ECO
Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings
The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings is a classification system for the opening moves in a game of chess. It is presented as a five volume book collection describing chess openings...

 code C25.

The Dubois
Serafino Dubois
Serafino Dubois was an Italian chess player. He was known for his writings on the game and for his promotion of chess in Italy.-Chess career:Serafino Dubois was born in Rome...

 variation continues 7...Ne5 8.Qxf4 Qf6.

Steinitz Gambit

The Steinitz Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 exf4 4.d4, was a favorite of Wilhelm Steinitz
Wilhelm Steinitz
Wilhelm Steinitz was an Austrian and then American chess player and the first undisputed world chess champion from 1886 to 1894. From the 1870s onwards, commentators have debated whether Steinitz was effectively the champion earlier...

, the first World Champion
World Chess Championship
The World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the board game chess. Men and women of any age are eligible to contest this title....

. White allows Black to misplace White's king with 4...Qh4+ 5.Ke2 (diagram), hoping to prove that White's pawn center and the exposed position of Black's queen are more significant factors. Unlike Steinitz, who famously opined that, "The King is a fighting piece!", few modern players are willing to expose their king this way. The Steinitz Gambit is thus rarely seen today.

2...Bc5

This is an offbeat but playable alternative, as played (for example) by former world champion Capablanca against Ilya Kan
Ilya Kan
Ilya Abramovich Kan , was a Russian / Soviet International Master of Chess.He played ten times in Soviet Championships. In 1929, he took 3rd in Odessa . In 1931, he took 7th in Moscow . In 1933, he took 9th in Leningrad...

 at Moscow 1936. Now 3.f4 d6 leads to the King's Gambit Declined. Weak is 3.Qg4 Nf6! 4.Qxg7 Rg8 5.Qh6 Bxf2+ when Black had a large advantage in Tsikhelashvili–Karpov
Anatoly Karpov
Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov is a Russian chess grandmaster and former World Champion. He was the official world champion from 1975 to 1985 when he was defeated by Garry Kasparov. He played three matches against Kasparov for the title from 1986 to 1990, before becoming FIDE World Champion once...

, USSR 1968, since 6.Kxf2?? Ng4+ would win White's queen. Another offbeat possibility is 3.Na4, when 3...Bxf2+!? 4.Kxf2 Qh4+ 5.Ke3 Qf4+ 6.Kd3 d5 leads to wild complications, as in the famous game Hammpe–Meitner, Vienna 1872. However, the quiet 3...Be7 leaves Black with a good game.

Instead of these third moves, White usually continues with 3.Nf3, when 3...Nc6?! (transposing to the Three Knights Game) 4.Nxe5! Nxe5 5.d4 Bd6 6.dxe5 Bxe5 7.Bd3 leads to a large advantage for White. Stronger is 3...d6! Then 4.Na4 Nd7 5.d3 Ngf6 6.Be2 0-0 7.0-0 c6 8.Nxc5 Nxc5 9.Ne1 Ne6 10.c3 d5 is about even. The main line runs 4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4 Nf6 6.Bg5 (6.Be2 d5 7.e5 Ne4 8.0-0 Nxc3 leads to equality) h6 7.Bh4 0-0 8.Nb3 and now de Firmian in MCO-15
Modern Chess Openings
Modern Chess Openings is an important reference book on the chess openings, first published in 1911 by the British players Richard Clewin Griffith and John Herbert White...

gives 8...Bb4 9.Bd3 Re8 10.0-0 Bxc3 11.bxc3 g5! 12.Bg3 Nxe4, when Black's "chances are at least equal".

See also


Literature

  • László Jakobetz, László Somlai: Die Wiener Partie. Dreier, 1994, ISBN 3929376121
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