MARK RUBERY CHESS

Samuel Rosenthal (1837-1902) was a polish-born player who dedicated his life to chess-playing, touring, writing, teaching and analysing. Despite only occasional participation in first-class events, he scored victories over all the leading masters of the time (Anderssen, Blackburne, Chigorin, Mackenzie, Mason, Paulsen, Steinitz and Zukertort). He also acquired world renown as an unassuming showman who gave large simultaneous displays and blindfold séances, invariably producing a cluster of glittering moves. He gave up serious play in favour of writing articles, editing chess columns and teaching which led Steinitz to write that he was the only chess professional of his time who earned a good living. He averaged 20,000 Francs a year for the last 30 years of his life.

When he died the obituaries were ample and generous, but today his name is, at best, only vaguely remembered.

Anderssen, Adolf - Rosenthal, Samuel [C51]

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bb6 5.0–0 d6 6.a4 a5 7.b5 Nd4 8.Nxd4 Bxd4 9.c3 Bb6 10.d4 exd4 11.cxd4 Ne7 12.Bb2 0–0 13.Nc3 Kh8 14.Nd5 Nxd5 15.Bxd5 Rb8 16.Ra3 Be6 17.Qh5 Bxd5 18.Qxd5 Qe8 19.Rg3 f6 20.Qf5 Qf7 21.Rh3 h6 22.d5 Rbe8 23.Kh1 Qg8 24.f3 Qh7 25.Qh5 Re7 26.Rg3 Be3 27.Rg6 b6 28.Re1 Bf4 29.g3 Be5 30.Bc1 Bc3 31.Re3 Re5 32.Qg4 h5! 33.Qd7 Bd4 34.Rd3 Bc5 0–1

John Grefe (1947-2013) won the American championship in 1973 and was renowned for his free-flowing attacking style. Although he never achieved the grandmaster title he was certainly at that level during his peak years.

Reshevsky, Samuel Herman (2490) - Grefe, John A (2425) [E12]

USA-ch Mentor (1), 1977

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 b6 4.Nc3 Bb7 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 g5 7.Bg3 Nh5 8.e3 Nxg3 9.hxg3 Bg7 10.Bd3 Nc6 11.g4 Qe7 12.a3 0–0–0 13.Qc2 h5 14.gxh5 g4 15.Nd2 f5 16.Ne2 Qg5 17.0–0–0 Rxh5 18.d5 Ne5 19.Nf4 Nxd3+ 20.Qxd3 Qf6 21.Qc2 Rxh1 22.Rxh1 Bh6 23.dxe6 dxe6 24.Rh2 Bxf4 25.exf4 g3! 26.fxg3 Qd4 27.Rh1 Bxg2 28.Re1 Qf2 29.Qd1 Bf3 30.Rf1

…Rxd2! 0–1

Chess is so common in Russia, that during our continuance at Moscow, I scarcely entered into any company where parties were not engaged in that diversion; and I very frequently observed in my passage through the streets, the tradesmen and common people playing it before the doors of their shops or houses. The Russians are esteemed great proficients in Chess. - English visitor to Russia in 1772