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Chess articles

Updated 28 October 2026

Everything on this site that is not the game itself. The articles are written for this site, checked move by move with a rules library, and grouped from the basic rules to history and reference. If you are new, read them roughly in this order: rules, opening principles, beginner mistakes, then whichever topic your last game made you curious about.

Jump to: Rules · Openings · Strategy · Tactics · Endgames · Games · Reference

Rules

• Chess rules and strategyEvery rule of chess in one page: setup, how each piece moves, check and checkmate, castling, en passant, promotion, and the five ways a game is drawn. · Updated 20 October 2026 · about 1765 words

Openings

• The best chess openings for beginnersItalian Game, Ruy Lopez, Queen's Gambit and London System for White; Sicilian, French and Caro-Kann for Black, with checked move orders, plans and a FAQ. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 1714 words
• Opening principles, and five openings worth knowingThe four rules that carry you through the first ten moves, then the Italian Game, Ruy Lopez, Queen's Gambit, Sicilian Defence and London System with checked move orders. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 1390 words
• Five opening traps, and the habit that avoids each oneScholar's Mate, Légal's Mate, the Blackburne Shilling Gambit, the Elephant Trap and the Noah's Ark Trap, played through on checked diagrams with the lesson behind each. · Published 23 October 2026 · about 1222 words

Strategy

• Ten common beginner mistakes, and the habit that fixes eachThe errors that decide most beginner games, from hanging pieces and early queen raids to weakening the king and stalemating a won ending, each with a fix you can use today. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 1035 words
• Bishop or knight? How to judge the minor piecesWhen a bishop is stronger than a knight and when it is the other way round: open and closed positions, outposts, bad bishops, the bishop pair, and the wrong-coloured bishop. · Published 27 October 2026 · about 1063 words
• How to calculate: a thinking method for every moveA simple thinking method for each move: list candidate moves, look at checks, captures and threats first, count exchanges, and run a blunder check before you play. · Published 26 October 2026 · about 1105 words
• Chess strategy from beginner to intermediateHow to make a plan when there is no tactic: piece activity, pawn structure, open files, outposts, good and bad bishops, king safety and when to trade. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 1319 words

Tactics

• Six checkmate patterns every player should recogniseBack-rank mate, smothered mate, Anastasia's mate, Boden's mate, the Arabian mate and Fool's Mate, each shown on a checked diagram with the idea that makes it work. · Published 21 October 2026 · about 1409 words
• Discovered attacks and double checkHow a discovered attack works, why a discovered check is so strong, and how double check decided Réti v Tartakower in 1910. Every move checked with a rules library. · Published 25 October 2026 · about 1131 words
• The Greek gift: the bishop sacrifice on h7How the classic bishop sacrifice on h7 works, the conditions it needs, the three king moves after Ng5+, and how to defend against it. Moves checked with a rules library and an engine. · Published 28 October 2026 · about 1071 words
• Two attacks from one chess moveHow a single move can create two threats: the fork, the pin and the skewer, when each one really wins material, and how to defend against them. · Updated 20 October 2026 · about 1011 words
• Reading a quiet chess positionA move-by-move routine for calm chess positions: name the checks, find loose pieces, compare captures and quiet moves, and choose a plan when nothing is hanging. · Updated 20 October 2026 · about 975 words

Endgames

• Endgame basics: the mates and pawn endings you must knowHow to checkmate with king and queen or king and rook, how to avoid stalemate, and the king-and-pawn ideas of opposition and the square, with tablebase-checked positions. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 1402 words
• Rook endgames: the Lucena and Philidor positionsThe two rook-and-pawn positions every player should know: how to win the Lucena by building a bridge, and how to hold the Philidor with the third-rank defence. Tablebase-checked. · Published 24 October 2026 · about 1180 words

Games

• Three short games, explained move by moveThe Opera Game of 1858, Légal's mate and the Blackburne Shilling trap, each checked for legal moves and explained with board diagrams at the key moments. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 1253 words

Reference

• Best Free Sites to Play Chess OnlineLichess, Chess.com, ChessWorld, SparkChess and this site compared on cost, computer play, online opponents and sign-up, using only what each site states. · Updated 20 October 2026 · about 433 words
• A short history of chessHow chess moved from India through Persia and the Arab world to Europe, when the modern queen appeared, and the milestones from the first tournaments to Deep Blue. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 1084 words
• Frequently asked questionsAnswers about playing on chessplayonline.com (difficulty, undo, online matches, saved games, privacy) and about chess rules people often get wrong. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 890 words
• Chess glossaryFrom algebraic notation to zwischenzug: plain-English definitions of the chess terms used in books, videos and on this site, with links to deeper guides. · Published 20 October 2026 · about 1388 words