This is the painting ‘Cornered’ by G.C. Hindley circa 1900
A large copy of this painting hangs on the wall of the Edinburgh Chess Club.
We have on some evenings re-created the position in the painting on the board
We still debate if the piece on g1 is a White Rook or a White Bishop
For effect I of course have made it a Rook to allow the Smothered Mate.
From Comics to Paintings to Books. Chess Book. A Chess Pop-Up Book
Wait for it...
Back to the position in the painting.
There are more than 5,000 examples of a Queen and two Rooks taking
on a Queen and one Knight on RHP. White wins the vast majority but....
Muxagata - gina0104 RHP 2017
Black played 48...Rxf2+ 49.Qxf2 (28.Re2 is OK)
49...Qd3 Checkmate.
edevo - roelfj RHP 2017
FEN
2r3k1/5p2/pq4p1/1p6/3RQP2/7n/PP5P/5R1K w - - 0 33
[FEN "2r3k1/5p2/pq4p1/1p6/3RQP2/7n/PP5P/5R1K w - - 0 33"] 33. f5 Rc1 {A piece of desperation by Black. White should just play Qe8+ then Qe5+ and then take on c1.} 34. Rxc1 {OOPS!} 34... Nf2+ 35. Kg2 Nxe4 {Again White misses an important check. Rc8+ now would have led to a probable draw.} 36. Rxe4 Qb7 37. Re1 gxf5 {The Rook is lost. Black won.}
thomasverwer - phatband RHP 2017
FEN
8/1R2n3/PQ3pk1/3qp3/8/5P2/1P2n1PP/5RK1 w - - 0 40
[FEN "8/1R2n3/PQ3pk1/3qp3/8/5P2/1P2n1PP/5RK1 w - - 0 40"] 40. Kf2 {There was nothing wrong with Kh1.} 40... Qd2 {The last roll of the dice.} 41. Rxe7 {Qe3 wins, now it is lost.} 41... Nf4+ 42. Kg3 Qxg2+ 43. Kh4 Qh3# {Checkmate.}
The White King chased by Queen and Knight goes to all the wrong squares.
Gabo03 - Venom06 RHP 2017
FEN
QR6/6Rp/2p1k3/4P3/8/4PK2/n6P/5q2 w - - 0 38
[FEN "QR6/6Rp/2p1k3/4P3/8/4PK2/n6P/5q2 w - - 0 38"] 38. Ke4 Qf5+ 39. Kd4 Qxe5+ 40. Kd3 {Black cannot take on g7 because the a2 Knight hangs with a check.} 40... Qc3+ 41. Ke4 Qe5+ 42. Kf3 Qf6+ 43. Ke2 {White now manages to let Black to take the g2 Rook with a check.} 43... Nc3+ 44. Kd2 Ne4+ 45. Ke2 Qf2+ 46. Kd3 Nc5+ 47. Kc4 Qc2+ 48. Kb4 Nd3+ 49. Ka5 Qa2+ 50. Kb6 Qb2+ 51. Ka7 {Kxc6. Black no more than a perpetual check.} 51... Qxg7+ {Now White walks into a mating net.} 52. Kb6 Qb2+ 53. Kc7 Qe5+ 54. Kc8 Kd6 55. Qa3+ Nc5 56. Qa5 Qe6+ 57. Kd8 Qd7
In this next example White drops both Rooks and gets mated.
peter wilton - Flipperwaldt RHP 2017
FEN
Q7/6pk/p2p3p/2n5/4Pp1q/P4P2/8/R4RK1 w - - 0 32
[FEN "Q7/6pk/p2p3p/2n5/4Pp1q/P4P2/8/R4RK1 w - - 0 32"] 32. Rf2 Qg3+ {Now Rg2. What has happened in these games is that the two Rooks player has simply relaxed.} 33. Kf1 Nd3 34. Raa2 Qh3+ 35. Rg2 Qh1+ 36. Ke2 Qxg2+ 37. Kxd3 Qxa2 {Black is back in the game. White now constructs his own mating net.} 38. Qxa6 Qb3+ 39. Kd4 Qxf3 40. Qd3 Qf2+ 41. Kd5 Qe3 42. Kc4 Qc1+ {Now Kb3 has to be played.} 43. Kd4 {OOPS!} 43... Qc5 {Checkmate.}
In this last sight seeing tour of misery White should have settled for a perpetual.
dcpk - sardodos RHP 2016
FEN
6k1/p2q4/1p1p2p1/7p/1PPnrP1P/P2Q4/5P2/R4RK1 w - - 0 30
[FEN "6k1/p2q4/1p1p2p1/7p/1PPnrP1P/P2Q4/5P2/R4RK1 w - - 0 30"] 30. Qxe4 Qg4+ {Now White has go Kh1 to g1 to h1 but two Rooks up they do not want to cede a draw.} 31. Qg2 {A success. This game will not be a draw.} 31... Nf3+ 32. Kh1 Qxh4+ 33. Qh2 Qxh2 {Instead it is a Black win.}
Heard good reports about this book and only recently managed to get a copy
from a second hand shop for 50p. (I now wait to get all my books 2nd hand).
It’s very good and has a rather unique introduction to the game.
It does not introduce the reader to algebraic notation till page 251.
Usually that is one of the first things a beginners book explains.
Up to page 251 the author, James Eade, uses diagrams with ‘ghosts’ to explain things.
Here he is pointing out that trap in Petroff 4.Qd1- e2 (see the ghost Queen on d1)
A minor point of interest here. 80 RHP players as Black have played 4...Nf6 here.
And most...not all...have lost their Queen to 5.Nc6+
I say ‘not all’ which is a perfect excuse for me to show an RHP game I gave
a few years ago. This is one my most favourite instructive games on RHP.
rmajoran - Daily Knight RHP 2011
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 Nxe4 4. Qe2 Nf6 {White now misses the chance to win the Queen with Nc6+ instead he goes for the h8 Rook.} 5. Ng6+ Be7 6. Nxh8 {White has a Rook in his rucksack but the Knight is trapped. In effect all he has won is the exchange. Most would have preferred winning the Queen.} 6... Kf8 {Actually a sly move. It looks like Black is heading off to pick up that h8 Knight. But in truth he vacating e8 for the lucky Black Queen.} 7. Qc4 {This threatens mate with Qxf7.} 7... d5 {Black stops the mate and....} 8. Qb3 Qe8 {...crosses his fingers. White must not move that d-pawn.} 9. d4 {OOPS! Check all Checks and double check all double checks.} 9... Bb4+ {Duel Daggers. The King must move when Double Checked.} 10. Kd1 {Only move. There is no choice, the King must move on a Double Check.} 10... Qe1# {Checkmated by the Black Queen who life was spared back on move 5.}
Using the ghost piece on the from square James used 11 diagrams to show the reader this.
It is White to play and draw.
FEN
3B4/1r2p3/r2p1p2/bkp1P1p1/1p1P1PPp/p1P4P/PP1K4/3B4 w - - 0 1
[FEN "3B4/1r2p3/r2p1p2/bkp1P1p1/1p1P1PPp/p1P4P/PP1K4/3B4 w - - 0 1"] 1. Ba4+ Kxa4 {Black has no choice, his next 4 moves are all forced.} 2. b3+ Kb5 3. c4+ Kc6 4. d5+ Kd7 5. e6+ Kxd8 {It does not matter if Black takes this Bishop or not. If it is not taken White will never move it.} 6. f5 {Look at that. There is no way at all for Black to get past that forest of pawns. This is a draw. See next game.}
It is a wee bitty obvious that saboteur and iranpeyma also know of this study.
saboteur - iranpeyma RHP Challenge 2013
FEN
3B4/1r2p3/r2p1p2/bkp1P1p1/1p1P1PPp/p1PK3P/PPB5/8 w - - 0 1
