Lost in the Weekend

Paul Charles Morphy – James Freeman
Eight-board blindfolded simultaneous exhibition; Birmingham, August 27, 1858
Bishop’s Opening C23

1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. b4!? Bb6 4. Nf3 d6 5. d4!? Wilhelm Steinitz regards 5. c3 followed by d2-d3 as a sounder contnuation. 5. ... exd4 6. Nxd4 Nf6 7. Nc3 0-0 8. 0-0. Steinitz recommends 8. f3, but, in that case, 8. ... d5! would be very strong. 8. ... Nxe4. This bold move has been criticized, but it’s perfectly playable. 9. Nxe4 d5 10. Bg5 Qe8? Here’s Black’s real mistake. Both 10. ... Qd7 (Steinitz) and 10. ... f6 (Max Lange) would have given Black a satisfactory play. 11. ... c6 12. Re1 Qd7 13. Nf6+! Beautifully played. 13. ... gxf6 14. Bxf6 Qd6. If 14. ... Qxd5 then 15. Re5 wins. And if 14. ... cxd5 then 15. Re5 h6 16. Rg5+! Kh7 (16. ... hxg5 17. Qh5 and mate in two moves) 17. Rg7+ Kh8 18. Qh5 and mate in two moves.

15. Ne6!! “The beauty of Mr. Morphy’s play throughout the entire conduct of the attack now culminating, is beyond all praise. And when we consider the circumstances under which the game was played, all we can say is, that such efforts and such successes are more inconceivable to us than to the merest tyro among our Readers”, writes Charles Henry Stantley in his book “Morphy’s Match Games: Being a Full and Accurate Account of His Most Astounding Successes Abroad, Defeating, in Almost Every Istance, the Chess Celebrities of Europe, 1859, Robert M. De Witt Publisher, New York, pp. 89-90. It should be noted, however, that also 15. Be6!! (Steinitz) would have led to the same result: 15. ... Bxe6 (or 15. ... fxe6 16. Qg4+ Kf7 17. Qg7+ Ke8 18. Nxe6 Bxe6 19. Rad1 and wins) 16. Qd2 Bf5 17. Qf5+ Bg6 18. Nf5 and wins. 15. ... Bxe6. Not 15. ... fxe6 on account of 16. Qg4+ Kf7 17. Bxe6+! Bxe6 (or 17. ... Kxf6 18. Bxc8 winning easily) 18. Qg7+ Ke8 19. Rad1 and wins. 16. Qh5? Géza Maróczy rightly commends 16. Qd2! which would have prevented Black’s ... Qd6-f4; for instance: 16. ... Bxf2+ 17. Kh1 Bh4!? 18. Qh6 Bxf6 19. Be4 Rd8 20. Bxh7+ Kh8 21. Bg6+ Kg8 22. Rxe6! Qxe6 23. Bh7+ Kh8 24. Bf5+ and wins. 16. ... Bxf2+? Luckily for Morphy, Dr. Freeman misses his great chance: 16. ... Qf4! 17. Rxe6 Nd7 would have left White without resource. 17. Kh1. Not 17. Kxf2? because of 17. ... Qxd5! 18. Re5 Qd4+ 19. Kg3 Qc3+ with perpetual check. 17. ... Qf4 18. Rxe6! “The Old Guard dies but never surrenders!”. 18. ... Nd7. On 18. ... cxd5 19. g3 wins. 19. Bb2!? Threatening 20. Rg6+ hxg6 21. Qxg6 mate. More energetic was, however, 19. Bg5 Qd4 20. Rd1 (Maróczy) 20. ... Qg7 21. Bh6 Nf6 22. Qf3 with a huge advantage. 19. ... Bd4? The last mistake. After 19. ... fxe6 20. Bxe6+ Rf7 White should have contented himself with 21. Rd1 Nf8 22. Bxf7+ Qxf7 23. Qxf7+ Kxf7 24. Rf1 regaining the piece a Pawn ahead. 20. g3. 20. Re4 is even simpler. 20. ... Nf6. Both 24. ... Qf2 and 24. ... Qd2 are met by 25. Qg4+. 21. gxf4 Nxh5 22. Bxd4. What follows is an impressive display of technique. 22. ... Nxf4 23. Rg1+ Ng6 24. Rexg6+ hxg6 25. Rxg6+ Kh7 26. Rg7+ Kh6 27. Be4 f5 28. Bd3 b6 29. Rg3 Rf7 30. Be5 Re8 31. Bf4+ Kh7 32. Rg5 Re1+ 33. Kg2 Rg7 34. Bxf5+ Kh8 35. h4 Rxg5+ 36. Bxg5 Re8 37. Kf3 1 : 0.

Paul Charles Morphy