Ten Hours

Paul Charles Morphy – Séguin
Eight-board blindfold simultaneous exhibition; Paris, September 27, 1858
Philidor Defence C41

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Be7 6. Bd3 0-0 7. f4 c5. “Black leaves himself with a weakness which costs him dear”, writes Philip W. Sergeant in his book “Morphy’s Games of Chess”, New York Dover Publicatons, 1957, p. 185. 8. Nf3 Nc6 9. 0-0. Géza Maróczy regards 9. e5 as more energetic, but Morphy prefers to play on positional grounds. 9. .. Bg4 10. Be3 a6 11. a4 h6 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Nb4 14. Rad1 Qc7 15. b3 Nxd3 16. cxd3 Rfe8. Also after 16. ... b5 17. d4 b4 18. Ne2 White stands better. 17. d4 Qc6 18. dxc5! dxc5. “Morphy has now shifted his opponent’s weakness from the d6-Pawn to the c5-Pawn, and is willing to exchange Queens in order to win the latter – and with it the game”, Philip W. Sergeant wrote in his book “Morphy’s Games of Chess”, New York Dover Publicatons, 1957, p. 185.

19. e5! Morphy disdains the abstract benefit of a space advantage by 19. d5, and scientifically proceeds toward the endgame. 19. ... Qxf3 20. Rxf3 Nh7 21. Rd7 Rab8 22. Nd5 Bf8 23. Bf2 Rbd8 24. Nb6 Rxd7 25. Nxd7 Rc8 26. Rc3 Rc7. Black cannot avoid the loss of the c-Pawn, for if 26. ... Be7 then 27. a5! inexorably tightening the grip. 27. Nxf8 Nxf8 28. Rxc5. Not 28. Bxc5? as after 28. ... Ne6 Black regains the Pawn with equality. 28. .. Rxc5 29. Bxc5 Ne6 30. Be3 g6 31. g4 Nd8 32. Kf2 Nc6 33. Ke2 b5 34. axb5 axb5 35. Kd3 Kf8 36. Bc5+ Ke8 37. Ke4 Kd7 38. Kd5 Nd8 39. f5 gxf5 40. gxf5 h5 41. Bb6 Nb7. On 41. ... Nc6 42. e6+ White wins the Knight. 42. e6+. “Every step is made with the same precision by Mr. Morphy, in this the conclusion of the last game, after ten hours of unexampled mental tension, which he exhibited in the outset of the first partie”, Howard Staunton wrote in Max Lange’s book “Paul Morphy, a sketch from the Chess World”, London, 1860, p. 203. 42. ... fxe6+ 43. fxe6+ Ke7 44. Kc6 Nd8+ 45. Bxd8+ Kxd8 46. Kd6 Ke8 47. e7 1 : 0.

Gens una restat

I am more strongly confirmed than ever in the belief that the time devoted to chess is literally frittered away. It is, to be sure, a most exhilarating sport, but it is only a sport; and it is not to be wondered at that such as have been passionately addicted to the charming pastime should one day ask themselves whether sober reason does not advise its utter dereliction. I have, for my own part, resolved not to be moved from my purpose of not engaging in chess hereafter. The few games that I have played here have been altogether private and sans façon. I never patronize the Café de la Régence; it is a low, and, to borrow a Gallicism, ill frequented establishment. Extract from a letter by Paul Charles Morphy to Daniel Willard Fiske, dated February 4, 1863, from Paris, France

Here is a drawing of Paul Charles Morphy wearing his broad Panama hat in London, 1859. Image courtesy of Chess.com.

Coffee and Cigarette and In-Between

A Regency chess set displayed in an exhibit style setting inside a coffee house at the corner between Via Masaccio and Via fra’ Bartolomeo in Florence, Italy. As they say, a coffee before and a cigarette after, and in-between don’t forget to take a couple pictures!

Gallicism

Serafino Dubois – Jules Arnous de Rivière
Paris, July 20, 1855
Sicilian Defence B21

Notes by Georges Bertola, “1856 La Régence (2)”, Europe Échecs, December 14, 2015.

1. e4 c5 2. f4 e6 3. c4!? Nc6 4. Nf3 f5. Sans doute prématuré mais joué sous l’influence du champion de l’époque Staunton. Voici un exemple: 4. ... g6 5. Nc3 Bg7 6. Be2 d6 7. 0–0 Nge7 8. a3 a6 9. Rb1 0–0 10. Qc2 f5=/+ Horwitz – Staunton (Londres 1851). 5. e5. Fermer la position n’est pas la suite critique 5. exf5!?. 5. ... Nh6 6. Nc3 Be7 7. Be2 0-0 8. 0-0 a6 9. d3 b6 10. b3 Bb7 11. h3 Qc7. “Les noirs développent leur jeu avec beaucoup de soin et de jugement”. (Dubois). 12. Be3 Rad8 13. a3 d5?! Meilleur 13. ... d6!. 14. exd6? “Si les blancs prennent le pion avec 14. cxd5 les conséquences sont avantageuses pour le joueur en second, supposons 14. ... exd5 15. d4 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Nxe5 17. fxe5? Qxc3 18. Bxh6 Bc5 19. Kh1 Qxd4-+”. (Dubois). Puis près de 20 ans plus tard, il renforça la variante avec 17. Ne6! (17. Rc1!) 17. ... Qxc3 18. Bd4! Qc8 19. Nxd8 avec gain de la qualité pour un pion. 14. ... Bxd6 15. Ng5 Rf6 16. Qd2 Nd4 17. Bxd4 cxd4 18. Na4. “Mauvaise place pour le cavalier”. (Dubois). 18. ... Bc6 19. Nb2 e5! 20. fxe5 Bxe5 21. Bf3 Bg3 22. Bxc6 Qxc6 23. Rf3

23. ... f4? “Permet de dégager le cavalier et force l’échange. 23. ... Qd6!”. (Dubois) 24. Ne4 Rg6 25. Nxg3 fxg3 26. Raf1 Qd6 27. Qb4 Qxb4 28. axb4 b5. “Une très bonne répartie et très inattendue, arrêtant la marche des pions et enfermant le cavalier pour fort longtemps”. (Dubois). 29. c5 Re6 30. Rxg3 Re2 31. Rf2 Rxf2 32. Kxf2 Nf5 33. Rf3 Ne3 34. Rxe3. “Hasardeux; 34. Rf4 était plus sûr”. (Dubois). 34. ... dxe3+ 35. Kxe3 Kf7 36. d4 Re8+ 37. Kf4 Ke6 38. Ke4 Kd7+ 39. Kd5? “39. Kd3 eut probablement sauvé la partie”. (Dubois). 39. ... Re3! 40. Nd1 Rxb3 41. Nf2 Rxb4 42. Nd3 Rb3 43. c6+ Kc7 44. Nc5 Ra3 45. Ne6+ Kc8 46. Kc5 Rc3+ 47. Kb6 b4 48. d5 Rd3 0 : 1.

Paul Charles Morphy (L.) and Jules Arnous de Rivière (R.) playing at Paris, 1858. Photo: Wikipedia.

贵族政治

Paul Charles Morphy – C. A. Seguin
Eight-board blindfolded simultaneous exhibition; Paris, September 27, 1858
Philidor C41

Notes by Johann Jacob Löwenthal, “Morphy’s Games of Chess”, New York, D. Appleton and Company, 1860, pp. 227-229, and by Philip W. Sergeant, Morphy’s Games of Chess, New York, Dover Publications, 1957, p. 185.

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Be7 6. Bd3 0-0 7. f4 c5. Black leaves himself with a weakness which costs him dear. (Sergeant). 8. Nf3 Nc6 9. 0-0 Bg4 10. Be3 a6 11. a4 h6 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Nb4 14. Rad1 Qc7 15. b3 Nxd3 16. cxd3 Rfe8 17. d4 Qc6 18. dxc5 dxc5 19. e5!! Morphy has now shifted his opponent’s weakness from the Pd6 to his Pc5, and is willing to exchange Queens in order to win the latter – and with it the game. (Sergeant). 19. ... Qxf3 20. Rxf3 Nh7 21. Rd7 Rab8 22. Nd5 Bf8 23. Bf2. Not only to enable him to push on the Pf4, but also to bring the Rf3 to attack the adverse Pc5. (Löwenthal). 23. ... Rbd8 24. Nb6 Rxd7 25. Nxd7 Rc8 26. Rc3 Rc7 27. Nxf8 Nxf8 28. Rxc5 Rxc5 29. Bxc5 Ne6 30. Be3 g6 31. g4 Nd8 32. Kf2 Nc6 33. Ke2 b5 34. axb5 axb5 35. Kd3 Kf8 36. Bc5+ Ke8 37. Ke4 Kd7 38. Kd5 Nd8 39. f5 gxf5 40. gxf5 h5 41. Bb6 Nb7 42. e6+ fxe6+ 43. fxe6+ Ke7 44. Kc6. This game does not, on the whole, exhibit such numerous points of interest as many of the foregoing, contested on the same occasion; but is yet worth studying, as Mr. Morphy’s accuracy is most remarkable, and without that winning would have been no easy task. We give a diagram of the position after Black’s 43rd move:– (Löwenthal).

Position after 43. ... Kd7-e7

44. ... Nd8+ 45. Bxd8+ Kxd8 46. Kd6 Ke8 47. e7 1 : 0. Ed. Note; For if 47. ... h4 then 48. b4 or, viceversa, 47. ... b4 48. h4. The game lasted ten hours!

Morphy’s eight boards blinfold simultaneous exhibition
Paris (Café de la Régence), September 27, 1858