MARK RUBERY CHESS
Louis Paulsen (1833-91) was one of the earliest theoreticians of note and a player ranked amongst the best in the world during the 1860s and 1870s although he remained an amateur. In 1857 he played his first serious tournament in New York where he finished 2nd behind Morphy. Like all the great players of that era he was accomplished in the art of blindfold chess and played, at that time, an unprecedented 15 opponents simultaneously. He was unsuccessful in arranging a match with Morphy and it was this very form of play that suited his playing style. Paulen’s finest results were a drawn match with Anderssen 4-4 in 1862 and a victory over the same opponent 5.5-4.5 in 1879. As a player he introduced 3 Nc3 against the French Defence when the innocuous 3 exd5 was the most popular response. He was a pioneer in the Kings Indian Defence-an opening that only came to prominence in the 1940s yet it is his line of the Sicilian that is the most enduring (1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 e6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 a6). Around 1860 most players employed a direct attacking game thus most of Paulsen’s ideas were improvements for Black as he believed that should the second player maintain the equilibrium then White’s attack would fail. This theory of play was later expounded in greater detail by the first world champion Wilhelm Steinitz.
Paulsen,Louis - Morphy,Paul [C64]
USA–01.Kongress New York (4.3) 1857
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Bc5 4.Bb5 d6 5.d4 exd4 6.Nxd4 Bd7 7.Nxc6 bxc6 8.Ba4 Qh4 9.0–0 Nf6 10.Qf3 Ng4 11.Bf4 Ne5 12.Qg3 Qf6 13.Rad1 h6 14.Kh1 g5 15.Bxe5 dxe5 16.b4! Bd6 (16...Bxb4 is forcefully met by 17.Rxd7! Kxd7 18.Nd5! Qd6 19.Nxb4 Qxb4 20.Rd1+ Kc8 21.Bxc6) 17.Rd3 h5 18.Rfd1 a6 19.Ne2 Rd8 20.a3 g4 21.c4 Qh6 22.c5 h4 23.Qe3 Be7 24.f4 exf4 25.Qxf4 Qxf4 26.Nxf4 Rh6 27.Ne2 f5 28.e5 Re6 29.Nf4 Rxe5 30.Rxd7 Rxd7 31.Bxc6 Bd6 32.cxd6 cxd6 33.Kg1 Kd8 34.Bxd7 1–0
Doroshkevich-Tukmakov
USSR Ch, Riga, 1970
1 c4 e5 2 Nc3 Nc6 3 Nf3 f5 4 d4 e4 5 Bg5 Nf6 6 d5? exf3! 7 dxc6 fxg2
White now played 8 cxd7+ . WHAT DID BLACK PLAY NEXT?
‘The football commentator’s remark that the game is “like a game of chess” is now almost a cliché, but many years ago I heard a particularly funny and original version. Sheffield Wednesday were playing Manchester United and both teams were without their star players, Waddell and Cantona respectively. Kevin Keegan summed it up perfectly –“It’s like a game of chess in which the queens have been exchanged”. (Alan Perkins)