Monday, December 26, 2011

The twelve puzzles of Xmas


White to play and mate in three

Blumenthal, 1902

9 comments:

Campion said...

Think I've got it. Oh, that's rather pretty - I guess Levitt's book would file this under "symmetry". Nice use too of zugzwang.

Martin Smith said...

Could you also start with the bishop on a7?

Anonymous said...

Yes, for the mirror image solution. This is a very neat composition!

ejh said...

And the solution is.....

Anonymous said...

1. Rf4 Bd4 2. Rb4 zugzwang, with 3. Rf3 or Rb3# depending on the reply.

ejh said...

And so it is. From Schachminiaturen, Leipzig 1902.

I took it from Mating with two rooks and a knight which apears on the website of Kingston Chess Club.

John Cox said...

What's the deal with three-movers then - if Black has a defence which forces White to mate in two but not three, is that a flaw?

(not sure 1 Rf4 Bc3 is such a defence necessarily, though I don't see a mate in two exactly from here; just wondering)

ejh said...

It's not a flaw as far as I know, but I'm not really (i.e. not at all) a problemist. Comments welcomed from readers who are. And, indeed, readers who are not.

Richard James said...

Just to add that this was composed by Shinkman, but appeared in a book by Blumenthal which you can find online at http://www.chessmaniac.com/chess_ebooks/online-chess-books4.htm.

Blumenthal was also a celebrated playwright and drama critic (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Blumenthal) perhaps best remembered today for co-writing the play which eventually became the operetta White Horse Inn. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Im_Weissen_R%C3%B6ssl.