By default

Serafino Dubois – Joseph Henry Blackburne
International Chess Congress; Grand Tournament; London, June 30, 1862
Owen Defence B00

Notes by Johann Jacob Löwenthal, “The Chess Congress of 1862”, London, Henry G. Bohn, 1864, pages 60-61.

1. e4 e6 2. d4 b6 3. Nf3 Bb7. Bringing out the Bishop to g7 and b7, in close games, has recently been in vogue. This double “Fianchetto” may perhaps be safely adopted, but it has not received much attention at the hands of analysts, and it would therefore be difficult to pronounce definitely on its merits. 4. Bd3 c5 5. c3 cxd4 6. cxd4 d6 7. 0-0 g6 8. Nc3 Bg7 9. Re1 Ne7 10. Bf4 a6. Necessary to prevent White from playing Nc3-b5. 11. Qb3 0-0 12. Rad1 Nbc6 13. e5 d5 14. Na4 Nc8 15. Rc1 Na5 16. Qc3

16. ... Bc6. Black had a very cramped game, the move in the text was perhaps his best. 17. Qb4 Bxa4 18. Qxa4 b5 19. Qb4 Ne7 20. Bg5 Nec6. This part of the game is played by Mr. Blackburne with uncommon skill. 21. Qc5 Qd7 22. b3 Rfc8 23. Qa3 Ra7 24. Bd2 Bf8 25. Qb2 Rac7 26. Bxa5 Nxa5 27. Rxc7 Qxc7 28. Qd2 Qc3 29. Qxc3 Rxc3 30. Rd1 Ba3 31. Kf1 Nc6 32. Ke2 Rc1 33. Rxc1 Bxc1 34. Bb1 Bb2 35. Ke3 h6 36. a4 bxa4 37. bxa4 Kf8 38. Bd3 Nb4 39. Ne1 Ke7 40. Nc2 Nxd3 41. Kxd3 ½ : ½. Drawn by mutual consent.

Timothy David Harding wrote in his book “Joseph Henry Blackburne A Chess Biography”, Jefferson, North Carolina, McFarland & Company, 2015, page 36:

This rather uneventful against the Italian champion, whose arrival in London had been delayed, was played on the first day of the public sessions in the St. James’s Hall. It should have been replayed next day, when Steinitz beat Barnes and some other games were also played, but only the 5 July article in the Illustrated News of the World says what happened: “Mr. Blackburne was announced to play against Signor Dubois but the latter gentleman was to unwell to attend”. The article was written by Löwenthal, the tournament manager, who evidently was satisfied with the excuse provided by Dubois, but presumably this postponement was not properly communicated to Blackburne or the press. Boden wrote in The Field of 26 July that “Mr. Blackburne scored one by default of Mr. Dubois”, but ultimately the committee disagreed with that view. Boden had already complained on 12 July that regulations had not been strictly followed in some cases and made recommendations for more strict observance in future tournaments. Then on 9 August, after the committee had made its decisions, Boden (while admitting that they had acted “with perfect impartiality”) stated more explicitly that the tournament manager had perhaps mislaid Blackburne’s claim document: In first place, Mr. Dubois is allowed to score a game by default of Mr. Blackburne, although Mr. Blackburne had the prior, and therefore the only claim to that game, he having, as we understood from himself, handed in its printed form at the expiration of the time of the first appointmemt to play, indicating that he claimed the game by default.

Joseph Henry Blackburne
Image courtesy of Westminster Papers, April 1876