Home Page arrow Chess Life Online arrow 2008 arrow February arrow 64 Square Problem Tour
64 Square Problem Tour Print E-mail
By Gary Kevin Ware   
February 23, 2008
Here is my effort to duplicate the excellent article by Bart Gibbons, on the 64 greatest moves, one for each square, only now for composed problems. Gibbons' selections included 32 problems with Black to Move and 32 with White to Move. In keeping with the conventions of the majority of composed problems, all 64 of mine are White to Move.

I will not say that these are definitely the greatest composed problems of all time. For one thing, there are thousands upon thousands of composed problems and endgame studies to choose from. But I have done my best to select positions that I think are spectacular, instructive and/or historically significant and pioneering.

Like Bart Gibbons, my original intention was to have an equal distribution among composers. But as those of you who read the article, Dr. D's Check-up: Fixing Sam (April 2007), which I co-wrote with former problems columnist Dr. Steven B. Dowd, know, I am a big fan of Sam Loyd, and he was a pioneer in so many ways and his problems are so spectacular, that he gets preferential treatment over other composers. Even on some of the problems, which he did not compose, he still gets mentioned! I could have easily included even more of Sam Loyd's puzzles. The one way in which I was more 'democratic' was that I tried to include direct mate problems that represented a diverse representation of the many themes, principles and terminology that are peculiar to the problemist's art.

For those of you who are new to composed problems, I hope that this article will pique your interest as mine first was over 20 years ago. The first book on composed problems that I read was 101 Chess Problems For Beginners; the problems were by Comins Mansfield, the commentary by Brian Harley and it was edited by Fred Reinfeld. But don't let the title deceive you, it is only a book for beginners in the sense that it starts from the ground floor and teaches you all of the major concepts that one needs to know to enjoy chess problems.

From there, I read all of Kenneth S. Howard's and Brian Harley's books and endgame study books by A.A.Troitsky, 1234 Modern End-game Studies by Sutherland and Lommer, and others. More recently, I read The Puzzle King: Sam Loyd's Chess Problems and Selected Mathematical Puzzles, available through the USCF, and that further sparked my interest in Sam Loyd and my discovery of his 'cooked' problems (multiple solutions) led to "Fixing Sam." I also acquired Alain C. White's, Sam Loyd and His Chess Problems.

For those of you who are more experienced with composed problems, I hope that you will still learn something, I certainly did! I have also included some endgame studies for those primarily focused on OTB play but as I said, I hope that they can also learn to appreciate composed problems.

Unlike Bart Gibbons, I am not going to include alternate positions that didn't make the cut. I plan on presenting those and other problems in future columns on Chess Life Online. With that in mind, I would look forward to communication and feedback from the past and future devotees of Key Krackers, Dr. D's Check-up and beyond, with regards to problems that they think should have been included, should be featured in the future, and as a general forum for the problem art. You can reach me at [email protected]


1.
 
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Sam Loyd, Musical World 1859, White to Mate in Two
                                                          


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2. 
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G.H. Drese and M. Niemeijer, Limburgsch Dagblad 1937 , White to Mate in 3



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3.

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 George Walker, Josef Kling 1841 
White to Move and Win



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4.

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Maximilian Philipp Friedrich von Klett, Deutsche Schachzeitung 1875, White to Mate in 4

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5
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Jean Oudot, L'Echiquier de France 1957, Mate in Four


 

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6. 
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Sam Loyd, New York State Chess Association, Feb.22, 1892,  White to Mate in Two


 

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7.
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Heuacher 1930, White to Move and Win



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8.
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G.N. Cheney, Brooklyn Standard, November 1860 White to Mate in 3


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9.
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Eugene Beauharnais Cook, The Chess Compositions of E.B. Cook (1927) White to Mate in 2



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10.
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Leonid Zagoruiko and Viacheslav Georgievich Kopayev, Visserman Memorial Tourney 1981
White to Mate in 3



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11.
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Brian Harley, South African Chess Magazine, October 1937 White to Mate in 3


 

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12. 
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Sam Loyd, London Era, January 13th, 1861, White to Mate in 5
 


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13.
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Josef Kling and Bernhard Horwitz, Chess Studies 1851. White to Mate in 12


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14.
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Milan Radoje Vukcevich, The Problemist 1981
White to Mate in 3


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15.
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Conrad Bayer, Leipziger Illustrierte Zeitung 1855, White to Mate in 9

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16.
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Eeltje Visserman, Chess Correspondent 1947,
White to Mate in Two

 

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17.
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Henry Augustus Loveday, Chess Player's Chronicle, 1845 White to Mate in 3


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 18.
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Anton Nowotny, Leipziger Illustrierte Zeitung 1854, White to Mate in 3


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 19.
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Antonin Kvicala, Svetozor 1869, White to Mate in 3.

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20.
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Percy Francis Blake, German Chess Association 1910, White to Mate in 3


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21.
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Sam Loyd, Wilke's Spirit of the Times 1868,
White to Mate in 3


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22.
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Robin Charles Oliver Matthews, The Problemist 1978, White to Mate in 3


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Fernando Saavedra, originally published by G.E. Barbier in the Glasgow Weekly Citizen, May 1895
White to Move and Win
23.

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 24.
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Vatslav Yevgenievich Gebelt, USSR Team Championship 1982, White to Mate in 4

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25.
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C.S. Kipping, Chess Amateur, October 1921,
 White to Mate in 3


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26.
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Percy Francis Blake, Western Daily Mercury 1906, White to Mate in 2


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27.

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Herbert Siegfried Oskar Ahues, Schweizererische Schachzeitung 1982, White to Mate in 2


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28.
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Sam Loyd, Chess Monthly 1857,White to Mate in 3

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29.

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Arvo Matti Myllyniemi, Satakunnan Tehtavakerho
 theme tourney 1982,
White to Mate in two


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30.
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Max Euwe 1927, White to Mate in 2


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31.
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Alfred de Musset, La Regence 1849,
White to Mate in 3

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32.
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Helmut Maria Zajic, Die Schwalbe 1981,
 White to Mate in Two

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33.
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Byron Zappas, The Problemist 1980,
White to Mate in Two

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34.
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Sam Loyd, Checkmate 1903, White to Mate in 3

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  35.
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Kraemer 1948, White to Mate in 6

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36.

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J.B. of Bridport 1863,
 White to Mate in Two

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37.

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Peter August D'Orville Problemes d'echecs, composes et dedies aux amateurs de ce jeu 1842,
White to Mate in 5

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38.

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William Anthony Shinkman, Illustrated American 1890, White to Mate in 2

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39.

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Thomas Rayner Dawson, The Problemist 1941,
White to Mate in 3

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40.

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Marjan Kovacevic, Myllyniemi Jubilee tourney 1980, White to Mate in 2


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41.

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Sam Loyd, Leipziger Illustrierte Zeitung, October 23, 1869, White to Mate in 3

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42.
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Johannes Kohtz and Carl Kockelkorn, V Deutsches Wochenschach November 11, 1906 
White to Mate in 3

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43.
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Josef Plachutta, Leipziger Illustrierte Zeitung 1858, White to Mate in 4

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44.
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Sam Loyd Mirror of American Sports November 1885
White to Mate in 4

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45.

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Eric Ernest Zepler 1935,
 White to Mate in 4

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46.

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Arthur Ford Mackenzie, American Chess Bulletin 1905, White to Mate in 2

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47.
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Vladimir Alexandrovich Korolkov, Lelo 1951
White to Move and Mate in 12.

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48.

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Sam Loyd New York Sunday Herald 1889,
White to Mate in Two

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49.

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Israel Abramovich Schiffman,
British Chess Federation tourney 1928,
White to Mate in 2

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50.

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B.J. de C. Andrade, Observer, August 1927,
White to Mate in 3

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51.

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Joseph C.J. Wainwright Les Tours de Force 1906
White to Move and Mate in 2

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52.
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Hendrik Hermanus Kamstra, Tijdschrift v.d.K.N.S.B. 1950, White to Mate in 8

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53.
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N. Easter, British Chess Problem Society 1927,
 White to Mate in 3


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54.
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MSS Magliabechiani xix,51,Biblioteche Nazionale Centrale, Florence c. 1500,
White to Move and Win



 

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55.
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Richard Reti, Deutschosterreichische Tages-Zeitung 1921, White to Move and Draw

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56.

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Ignazio Calvi, Le Palamede 1836 (version)
White to Play and Win

 

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57.

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Comins Mansfield, Chess Correspondent 1947,
White to Mate in 2

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58.

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Venelin Alaikov, Shakhmatny Misl 1982,
White to Mate in 2

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59.
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Otto Wurzburg, British Chess Magazine, October 1896, White to Mate in 3

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60.
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Leonid Yarosh, Shakhmaty v SSSR, March 1983,
White to Mate in 4

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61.
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Abun Naam Lost Al Adli Collection, c.840 AD
White to Mate in 3


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62.
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A.W. Galitsky, Schachmatny Obozrenie 1892,
White to Mate in 3

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63.

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Viktor Ivanovich Chepizhny and Lev Ilyich Loshinsky, Themes 64, 1966,
White to Mate in 3

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64.

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P.A. Boorer, Observer, July 1938
White to Mate in 3

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