Boden’s Mate

The game, move by move

A wild opening

1. 1. e4 King’s pawn
2. 1… e5 The same claim
3. 2. Nf3 Out, hitting e5
4. 2… d6 Propping it up
5. 3. c3 A quiet pawn move c3 supports d4 — and it is also the square Black’s queen lands on at the end of the game.
6. 3… f5 A pawn to f5 Wild, and typical of the decade: Black opens the file his own king is not on and invites everything that follows.
7. 4. Bc4 The bishop at f7
8. 4… Nf6 Out, holding e4
9. 5. d4 The centre opens
10. 5… fxe4 Taken

Pawns everywhere

1. 6. dxe5 Taking, and hitting the knight White takes on e5 and threatens the knight; Black answers with a pawn to f3 that cannot be taken safely. Four pawns are captured in the next three moves.
2. 6… exf3 A pawn on f3, hitting the queen
3. 7. exf6 Taking the knight
4. 7… Qxf6 Recaptured with the queen The queens are both out and the position has more open lines than pieces to use them.
5. 8. gxf3 Taking the pawn back
6. 8… Nc6 A knight out

Both kings castle long

1. 9. f4 A pawn wall White blocks the diagonal and settles for a slow game. There is no slow game available.
2. 9… Bd7 The bishop out
3. 10. Be3 Developing, and preparing to castle
4. 10… O-O-O Black castles long The king goes to c8 behind pawns on b7 and d7. Remember those two pawns: they are the walls in the mate.
5. 11. Nd2 Developing
6. 11… Re8 The rook to the open file
7. 12. Qf3 The queen out
8. 12… Bf5 The bishop to f5
9. 13. O-O-O White castles long too And this is the losing move. The king steps onto c1, where a bishop coming to a3 will check him — and where his own pawns take away b1 and d2.
10. 13… d5 Opening the diagonal A pawn to d5, offered, so the bishop on f8 gets a line to a3.

Boden’s mate

1. 14. Bxd5 Taken
2. 14… Qxc3+ The queen, given away On c3, where the pawn on b2 has to take her — and taking is what opens the second diagonal.
3. 15. bxc3 It has to be taken Declining the queen loses to Qxc1 all the same. Taking her moves the pawn off b2 and lets a bishop into a3.
4. 15… Ba3# Checkmate Two bishops crossing on the king, and his own pieces taking the last squares. This is the game the pattern is named after.