Tuesday, March 6, 2012

March 7th

Jacobus Peet (07-03-1831 - 24-04-1914) Dutch composer

Jacobus Peet is merely known for his "Kegelschach" compositions, where the black King is surrounded by all his pawns. The most challenging to solve, due to silent second white moves, seems to be:

Peet, Jacobus
Deutsches Wochenschach, 1907
4th Prize


#4 3 + 9

Show Solution

1.Bg6! ZZ
1...e3 2.Qc7 (3.Qxd6, Qxc6#) 2...c3 3.Bd3 (4.Qxd6, Qxc6#)
1...c3 2.Qa2+ c4 3.Qa5+/Qa3 c5 4.Qa8#
1...d3 2.Qc3 ZZ 2...e3 3.Bxd3 (4.Qxc4#) 3...cxd3, e4 4.Qxd3, Bxc4#






Willy Koslowski (07-03-1877 - 08-10-1975) German composer

Willy Koslowski is not a prolific composer either. We retained a funny twin fourmover, a rarity even nowadays:

Koslowski, Willy



#4 b) Move a8 g7 7 + 11

Show Solution

A: 1.Be5! Rb4 2.Bd6! Bg3 3.Rh3! (4.Rxg3#)
3...f4 4.Bxb4#
B: 1.Rd6! Bg3 2.Rd3! Rb4+ 3.Kxc8 (4.Bb4#)
3...Rc4+ 4.Sxc4#



John Lennart Waldemar Lillja (07-03-1879 - 05-02-1946) Finnish composer

John Lillja published mainly in Finland. His work is sometimes difficult to solve, as the following threemover from the FIDE Album proves:

Lillja, John Lennart Waldemar
Huvustasbladet, 1934


#3 14 + 4

Show Solution

1.Qd1 ! ZZ
1...Sc1/Sg1 2.Qa4 (3.Qxe4#)
1...Sf4 2.Qf3 (3.Qxe4/Qxf4#) 2...exf3 3.e4#
1...Sg3 2.f3 ZZ 2...Sg3~, exf3 3.fxe4, Qxf3#
1...Sd4 2.exd4 ZZ 2...e3, Kf4 3.Qf3, Rf8#
1...Sxc3 2.Qb3 ZZ 2...Sc3~, Sxb5+ 2.Q(x)d5, Qxb5#



Aleksis Richard Rurik Rautanen (07-03-1891 - 02-02-1970) Finnish composer

Aleksis Rautanen is the second Finnish composer in today's selection, distinguished with several prizewinners. He is the author of about 500 endgame studies and moremovers. In 1929 he published a book, written in Finnish and Esperanto, comprising 30 of his compositions and entitled "30 shakkiprobleemaa".

He loved exposing the white King to checks:

Rautanen, Aleksis Richard Rurik
L'Italia Scacchistica, 1934
1st Prize


#3 10 + 12

Show Solution

1.Sc3 ! (2.Sb1#)
1...Sc5+/Sxf8+/Sg5+ 2.Ke7 (3.Sb1#)
1...Sd4+ 2.Kf6 (3.Sb1#)
1...Sf4+ 2.Bd5 (3.Sb1#)
1...Sg7+ 2.Rd5 (3.Sb1#)
1...Sd8+ 2.Ke8 (3.Sb1#)
1...Sc7+ 2.Se6 (3.Sb1#)

Rautanen, Aleksis Richard Rurik
Schackvärlden, 1933
1st Prize


#3 14 + 9

Show Solution

1.Bh5 ! ZZ
1...Bg1 2.Rg4 (3.Rd4#) 2...Sf4+ 3.Rxf4#
1...Bxe5 2.f4 (3.Sf2#)
1...Bf4 2.Sf3 (3.Rxe1#) 2...Sg1+ Sxg1#
1...Bg3 2.f4 ZZ 2...B~ 3.Sf2#


Андрей Васильевич Немцов (07-03-1894 - 03-11-1956) Russian composer (Andrey Vasilievich Nemtsov)

Andrey Nemtsov composed difficult, yet beautiful problems as this threemover. His works count 400 three- and fourmovers. The next featured composition will surely cause headaches even to experienced solvers:

Немцов, Андрей Васильевич
Шахматы в СССР 1946
2nd Prize


#4 9 + 8

Show Solution

1.Qh7 ! ZZ
1...Kd3 2.Qh8 ZZ
2...Ke2 3.Qh1 ZZ 3...Kd3 4.Qf1#
2...Kc4 3.Qe8 ZZ 3...Kxd5, Kd3 4.Qe6, Qb5#
1...Kb5 2.Qxg7 (3.Qc3 ~ 4.Sc7#) 2...Kc6 3.Sc3 (4.Qc7#)
1...Kxd5 2.Qg8+ Kc6 3.Qe8+ Kd6/Kd5 4.Qe6#


Johannes Baumann (07-03-1946) Swiss composer

Johannes Baumann is a very fine Swiss composer, with remarkable pieces of work particularly in direct field. We quote a funny puzzle:

Baumann, Johannes
idee & form, 1988
1st Prize


#3 9 + 4

Show Solution

1.Be6 ! ZZ
1...Se2 2.Sh5 ZZ 2...S~ 3.Sg3#
1...Sf1 2.Sf5 ZZ 2...S~ 3.Sg3#
1...Sh5 2.Se2 ZZ 2...S~ 3.Sg3#
1...Sf5 2.Sf1 ZZ 2...S~ 3.Sg3#
1...Sxe4 2.Bd5 ~ 3.Bxe4#
Stalemate avoidance.


Josef Halumbirek (07-03-1891 - 22-06-1968) Austrian composer and International Master


Josef Halumbirek
Source: "Шахматная задача ХХ века. 1901-1944" by Умнов Е.И.
[Thanks to Александр Никитин ]




Josef Halumbirek is the star of our today selection and a mandatory author for anyone specializing in moremovers. Halumbirek was the editor of the Problems section of the "Deutsche Schachzeitung" from 1932 until 1944. His problems must be carefully studied in order to get all the hidden treasures in deceptively simple settings.

The reader may be interested in the article about the focal theme ("Brennpunkt neuheiten") by W.F.von Holzhausen published in the Wiener Schachzeitung March 1927 pag.69-72 and downloadable from here.

Halumbirek, Josef
Neue Leipziger Zeitung, 1933
1st Prize


#3 6 + 9

Show Solution

1.Qh2 ! (2.Qh8#)
1...Rh4 2.Qg2 3.Qxb7/Qg8#) 2...Bxg2 3.Se4#
1...Rg6/Rg4/Rf4/Rf6 2.Qh8+ Rg8/Rf8 3.Qxg8/Qxf8#
1...Rh6 2.Sd5+ Rc4/Bc6 3.Sxe7#
Decoying two black pieces in order to activate the white battery.

Halumbirek, Josef
Neue Leipziger Zeitung, 1931
1st Prize


#4 8 + 8

Show Solution

1.Rf2 ! (2.Rf5+ Qxf5 3.Sb7#)
1...Bg4 2.hxg4 (3.Rf5+ Qxf5 4.Sb7# or 3.Rf4 [4.Rxc4#])
1...Bf3 2.Rxf3 (3.Rf5+ Qxf5 4.Sb7# or 3.Rf4 [4.Rxc4#])
1...Bc2 2.Rg2 ! (3. Rg5+ Bf5, Qf5 4.Se4, Sb7#) 2...Be4 3.Rg7 ! (4.Sb7#) 3...Qxg7 4.Sxe4#
A demonstration of focal theme.

Halumbirek, Josef
Neue Leipziger Zeitung, 1933
1st Prize


#5 4 + 5

Show Solution

1.Bh7 ! ZZ
1...Kd8 2.Bf5 Ke8 3.Re1+
3...Kf8 4.Bb1 ZZ 4...Kg8 5.Re8#
3...Kd8 4.Rd7+ Kc8 5.Re8#
1...Kf8 2.Ra7 ZZ 2...Ke8 3.Re1+ Kf8, Kd8 4.Bb1 ZZ 4...Kg8, Kc8 5.Re8#

How to replace the wrong blocker (wRb1) with the good one (wBb1).


Kurt Laue (07-03-1887 - 11-07-1953) German composer


Kurt Laue
[Source:Задачи и этюды 6/1929, page 11]



Kurt Laue was also a correspondence chess player.
He composed mostly direct mates but also some helpmates.
The Laue theme is defined by Wilfried Neef on schachbund.de in German and English, with an example.
In Zadachy i Etyudy 6/1929 you can find his article about twins.

Laue, Kurt
Ostdeutsche Morgenpost, 1923
2nd Prize


#3 8 + 9

Show Solution

1.♕e8! (2.♕a4+ ♔×d5 3.♕c4#)
1...♔×d5 2.♘f6+ ♔d4/♔c5 3.♗f2#
1...e×d5 2.♗f2+ ♔×e4 3.♕g6#
1...♖×e8 2.♘×c3 ~ 3.♗f2#

Laue, Kurt
Bayerischer Schachbund, 1923
2nd Prize


#2 7 + 12

Show Solution

1.♘f5! (2.♘e7#)
1...♗c3/d3 2.♕a2#
1...♖c3 2.♖xd4#
1...♘c3 2.♘e3#
1...♖xf5 2.♕c5#
1...e5/exf5 2.♖e5#
Grimshaw on c3, pin mates after play of the half-pinned black pieces Se4/Rf3

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