What is Lucena Position?

The Lucena position is one of the most important theoretical positions in rook and pawn endgames. It demonstrates how the stronger side wins by "building a bridge"—using the rook to shelter the king from checks so the pawn can promote. The position is named after the Spanish author Luis Ramírez de Lucena, whose 1497 treatise is among the earliest chess books, though the exact attribution is debated.