The King Walked to h5

The game, move by move

The Kieseritzky Gambit

1. 1. e4 King’s pawn
2. 1… e5 The same claim
3. 2. f4 The King’s Gambit
4. 2… exf4 Accepted — and this pawn decides the game It goes to f4 on the second move and stays there for the other thirty-eight. At the end it covers g3, which is the square the white king would otherwise run to.
5. 3. Nf3 The knight out, at the pawn
6. 3… g5 g5, propping it up
7. 4. h4 h4 — the Kieseritzky White attacks the pawn chain at its base rather than its head, and opens the h-file for a rook that has not moved.
8. 4… g4 g4, going past
9. 5. Ne5 The knight to e5
10. 5… Bg7 The bishop to g7
11. 6. Nxg4 The pawn on g4, taken
12. 6… d5 d5, opening the centre A pawn offered so that the queen has e7 and the diagonal to a3, and the check on e7 is what starts the king moving.

The king leaves f1

1. 7. exd5 Taken
2. 7… Qe7+ Check, from e7
3. 8. Kf2 The king steps to f2 Nothing can be interposed and castling is gone. He does not stand still again until he is mated.
4. 8… Bd4+ The bishop to d4, with check
5. 9. Kf3 Kf3 — forwards f1 and e1 are both covered and g3 is his own pawn’s square. Forwards is the only direction there is.
6. 9… h5 h5, holding g4
7. 10. Bb5+ Check from b5, at the other end
8. 10… Kd8 Kd8, and Black gives up castling too

A rook given on h4

1. 11. Nf2 The knight back to f2
2. 11… Bg4+ The bishop to g4, with check
3. 12. Nxg4 Taken
4. 12… hxg4+ And taken back, with check
5. 13. Kxg4 The king takes on g4 A white king on g4 on the twelfth move, with a black rook on h8 looking down an open file at him.
6. 13… Nf6+ Check from f6
7. 14. Kh3 Kh3 — sideways
8. 14… Rxh4+ The rook given on h4 A whole rook to pull the king one square further out. It is the last piece Black offers and the first one he does not get back.
9. 15. Kxh4 He has to take it
10. 15… Ne4+ Check from e4

Mated on h4

1. 16. Kg4 Kg4
2. 16… Nf2+ Check from f2
3. 17. Kh5 Kh5 — the fifth rank The white king is now nearer to Black’s back rank than to his own, and there are four black pieces around him.
4. 17… Qe5+ Check from e5
5. 18. Kh4 Kh4
6. 18… Qf6+ Check from f6
7. 19. Kh5 Kh5
8. 19… Qg6+ The queen to g6, with check She takes h5, g4 and g3 away in one move and drives him back onto the square the bishop is aimed at.
9. 20. Kh4 Kh4 — the last time
10. 20… Bf6# Checkmate, on f6 The bishop steps to f6 and covers g5. The queen on g6 holds h5, g4, g5 and g3; the knight on f2 holds g4 and h3; and g3 is also covered by the black pawn that has been standing on f4 since the second move.