Immortal Game - Annotated Game

Annotated Game

White: Adolf Anderssen Black: Lionel Kieseritzky Opening: ECO C33

1. e4 e5 2. f4

This is the King's Gambit: Anderssen offers his pawn in exchange for faster development. Although this was a common opening in the nineteenth century, it is less common today, as defensive techniques have improved since Anderssen's time.

2... exf4

Kieseritzky accepts the gambit; this variant is thus called the King's Gambit Accepted.

3. Bc4 Qh4+

The Bishop's Gambit. Black's move will force White to move his king and White will not be able to castle, but this move also places Black's queen in peril, and White can eventually attack it with gain of tempo with Ng1–f3.

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

Position after 4...b5?!

4. Kf1 b5?!

This is the Bryan Counter-gambit, deeply analysed by Kieseritzky, and which sometimes bears his name. It is not considered a sound move by most players today.

5. Bxb5 Nf6 6. Nf3

This is a common developing move, but in addition the knight attacks Black's queen, forcing Black to move it instead of developing his own side.

6... Qh6 7. d3

With this move, White solidifies control of the critical center of the board. German grandmaster Robert Hübner recommends 7. Nc3 instead.

7... Nh5

This move threatens Ng3+, and protects the pawn at f4, but it also sidelines the knight to a poor position at the edge of the board, where knights are the least powerful.

8. Nh4 Qg5

Better was 8...g6, according to Kieseritzky.

9. Nf5 c6

This simultaneously unpins the queen pawn and attacks the bishop. However, some have suggested 9...g6 would be better, to deal with a very troublesome knight. Notice how the players of the time developed one or two pieces, then moved them again and again.

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

Position after 11.Rg1!

10. g4 Nf6 11. Rg1!

This is an advantageous passive piece sacrifice. If Black accepts, his queen will be moved away from the action, giving White a lead in development.

11... cxb5?

Hübner believes this was Black's critical mistake; this gains material, but loses in development, at a point where White's strong development is able to quickly mount an offensive. Hübner recommends 11...h5 instead.

12. h4!

White's knight at f5 protects the pawn, which attacks Black's queen.

12... Qg6 13. h5 Qg5 14. Qf3

White (Anderssen) now has two threats:

• Bxf4, trapping Black's queen (the queen having no safe place to go);
• e5, attacking Black's knight at f6 while simultaneously exposing an attack by White's queen on the unprotected black rook at a8.

14... Ng8

This deals with the threats, but undevelops Black even further—now the only black piece not on its starting square is the queen, which is about to be put on the run, while White has control over a great deal of the board.

15. Bxf4 Qf6 16. Nc3 Bc5

An ordinary developing move by Black, which also attacks the rook at g1.

17. Nd5

White responds to the attack with a counter-attack. This move threatens the black queen and also Nc7+, forking the king and rook. Richard Réti recommends 17.d4 followed by 18.Nd5, with advantage to White.

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

Position after 17...Qxb2

17... Qxb2

Black gains a pawn, and threatens to gain the rook at a1 with check.

18. Bd6!

With this move White offers to sacrifice both his rooks. Hübner comments that, from this position, there are actually many ways to win, and he believes there are at least three better moves than 18.Bd6: 18.d4, 18.Be3, or 18.Re1, which lead to strong positions or checkmate without needing to sacrifice so much material. The commercial version of the chess-playing computer program Junior recommends 18. Nc7+ followed by Re1. The strongest chess engine Houdini 2.0 (d=26) suggests the move 18.Be3. The Chessmaster computer program annotation says "the main point is to divert the black queen from the a1–h8 diagonal. Now Black cannot play 18...Bxd6? 19.Nxd6+ Kd8 20.Nxf7+ Ke8 21.Nd6+ Kd8 22.Qf8++." Garry Kasparov has pointed out that the world of chess would have lost one of its "crown jewels" if the game had continued in such an unspectacular fashion. The Bd6 move is unusual, because White is willing to give up so much material.

18... Bxg1?

The move leading to Black's defeat. Wilhelm Steinitz suggested in 1879 that a better move would be 18...Qxa1+; likely moves to follow are 19.Ke2 Qb2 20.Kd2 Bxg1.

19. e5!

This sacrifices yet another white rook. More importantly, this move blocks the queen from participating in the defense of the king, and threatens mate in two: 19.Nxg7+ Kd8 20.Bc7#.

19... Qxa1+ 20. Ke2

At this point, Black's attack has run out of steam; Black has a queen and bishop on the back rank, but cannot effectively mount an immediate attack on White, while White can storm forward. According to Kieseritzky, he resigned at this point. Hübner notes that an article by Friedrich Amelung in the journal Baltische Schachblaetter, 1893, reported that Kiesertizky probably played 20...Na6, but Anderssen then announced the mating moves. The Oxford Companion to Chess also says that Black resigned at this point, citing an 1851 publication. In any case, it is suspected that the last few moves were not actually played on the board in the original game.

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

Position after 22.Qf6+!

20... Na6

The black knight covers the c7 square as White was threatening 21.Nxg7+ Kd8 and 22.Bc7#. Another attempt to defend would be 20...Ba6 allowing the black king to flee via Kc8 and Kb7, although White has enough with the continuation 21.Nc7+ Kd8 and 22.Nxa6, where if now 22...Qxa2 (to defend f7 against Bc7+, Nd6+ and Qxf7#) White can play 23.Bc7+ Ke8 24.Nb4 winning; or if 22...Bb6 (stopping Bc7+) 23.Qxa8 Qc3 24.Qxb8+ Qc8 25.Qxc8+ Kxc8 26.Bf8 h6 27.Nd6+ Kd8 28.Nxf7+ Ke8 29.Nxh8 Kxf8 with a winning endgame for White.

21. Nxg7+ Kd8 22. Qf6+!

This queen sacrifice forces Black to give up his defense of e7.

22... Nxf6 23. Be7# 1–0

At the end, Black is ahead in material by a considerable margin: a queen, two rooks, and a bishop. But the material does not help Black. White has been able to use his remaining pieces—two knights and a bishop—to force mate.

Savielly Tartakower described this as "a beautiful game".