Greco’s Discovered Queen

The game, move by move

Two bishops on two diagonals

1. 1. e4 King’s pawn
2. 1… b6 b6, for the long diagonal Black is playing for the bishop on b7 and the diagonal it looks down. He gets both, and they cost him the game.
3. 2. d4 The second centre pawn
4. 2… Bb7 The bishop, as planned
5. 3. Bd3 The bishop to d3 The other long diagonal — d3 to h7 — and both players now have a bishop aimed at the other’s king. Only one of them is ahead in development.
6. 3… f5 f5, hitting e4 The losing move, and it looks active: it strikes at the centre and opens the file. It also opens f7 and the diagonal his own king is sitting on.

A pawn for a pawn

1. 4. exf5 Taken
2. 4… Bxg2 The bishop takes g2 A pawn, and the rook behind it. Black is collecting on one side of the board while every white piece is pointed at the other.
3. 5. Qh5+ Check, from h5 The queen steps onto the diagonal the f-pawn abandoned two moves ago. There is one way to stop the check and it is a pawn.
4. 5… g6 Blocked with the pawn

The queen uncovered

1. 6. fxg6 The pawn takes g6 White’s own pawn now stands on g6, directly in front of his queen, blocking the check she would otherwise be giving. Remember that it is in the way.
2. 6… Nf6 The knight attacks the queen Nf6 develops and hits h5 at the same time, which in almost every other game would mean the queen has to move.
3. 7. gxh7+ The pawn moves instead gxh7 takes a pawn, gives check — because the queen’s line to the king opens the moment the pawn steps off g6 — and leaves her standing there to be taken. Black has to answer the check, and taking her does answer it.
4. 7… Nxh5 The knight takes the queen A whole queen for a pawn, and Black is winning on any count that matters except the only one left.
5. 8. Bg6# Checkmate The bishop lands on g6 — the square White’s own pawn stepped off two moves ago — and checks through the empty f7. The knight on h5 cannot reach it, and d7, e7, d8 and f8 are all Black’s own men. Eight moves.