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legal trap

Submitted by legodood on Wed, 04/22/2009 at 8:21pm.

The Légal Trap/mate is a chess opening trap, characterized by a queen sacrifice followed by checkmate with minor pieces if Black accepts the sacrifice. The trap is named after Sire de Légal who was a French player, or Joseph Henry Blackburne  who was a British master and one of the world's strongest players in the latter part of the 19th century.

Here is how the legal trap/mate is usuall done:

1. e4 e5
2. Nf3 Nc6
3. Bc4 d6
4. Nc3 Bg4?!
5. Nxe5 Bxd1
6. Bxf7+ Ke7
7. Nd5#




























 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This kind of mate, where an apparently pinned knight moves anyway, allowing capture of the queen, but leading to a checkmate with both knights and a bishop, occasionally occurs at lower levels of play, though masters would not normally fall for it. For example instead of taking the queen you can  play Nxe5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now you see how this move can also be dangerous but there are many other ways to do take the fallowing diagram:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope this can help you in you chess games.

Alfred Awe, Belize

» posted in For Beginners
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Comments:

by McSorley - 6 months ago
Manhattan, Kansas United States
Member Since: Aug 2011
Member Points: 55

Fun

by werdnabd1 - 16 months ago
london Great Britain
Member Since: Aug 2010
Member Points: 114

Excellent¬!!

by bpair - 18 months ago
Kohima,Nagaland,India India
Member Since: Jul 2010
Member Points: 7

Cool! New to chess and chess.com. Want to know about the shortest game possible in chess.

by 2l84zwamani - 2 years ago
Sydney Australia
Member Since: Oct 2009
Member Points: 83

I already know this, but thanks!

by gambit156 - 2 years ago
mumbai India
Member Since: Jun 2009
Member Points: 702

kool man!!............

by viswamitra - 2 years ago
New York United States
Member Since: Feb 2009
Member Points: 123

I actually accomplished this mate in a recent chess.com correspondence game. I couldn't believe it was happening but there it was! I had to save it just so I would believe it actually happened.

by amitprabhale - 2 years ago
Mumbai India
Member Since: May 2009
Member Points: 1016

awesum.........thanxxxxxxx a loads dudes

by fiaraz - 2 years ago
bradford United Kingdom
Member Since: Jul 2009
Member Points: 14

new to chess and chess.com so nice to see something simple, but which still offeres variation.

by legodood - 2 years ago
Alta Vista Belize
Member Since: Apr 2008
Member Points: 974

I would like to invite everyone to join my group Supreme Pawns.

by Lance4635946 - 2 years ago
Smyrna United States
Member Since: Dec 2008
Member Points: 310

Epic lol

by Ideological_Slave1 - 2 years ago
United States
Member Since: Apr 2009
Member Points: 143

I am truly a beginner! I did not know of this trap! Thanks!

by headbanger - 2 years ago
Baltimore,Maryland United States
Member Since: Jan 2009
Member Points: 19

Excellent, I enjoyed both the article and comments!

by hatman123 - 2 years ago
sydney Australia
Member Since: May 2008
Member Points: 1147

i knew that.. but thanks any way!!

by Eli - 2 years ago
United States
Member Since: Aug 2007
Member Points: 210

Here is another way this sort of mate can appear:

by Vodac - 2 years ago
Neuchâtel Switzerland
Member Since: Sep 2008
Member Points: 25

After Nxc4, white has Qb5+ followed by Qxc4.

by Garymossu - 2 years ago
Brooklyn United States
Member Since: Jan 2009
Member Points: 274

For Kittlequeen,

and what about after Qxh5, black takes white bishop...Nxc4.?

by killthequeen - 2 years ago
Mt Everest Australia
Member Since: Aug 2008
Member Points: 2010

Yes this is quite well known. More commonly Nc6 comes AFTER the bishop pin, and g6 is more probably the imbetween move. If the imbetween move is Nc6 then that spoils whites plan as Nxe5, the Queen cannot take the bishop because it is protected. In this situation what white must do is play h6, booting the bishop to h5. Then white can Nxe5 Nxe5. Qxh5! Trading a knight for a bishop and a pawn.

by zotalegre - 2 years ago
Samora Portugal
Member Since: Mar 2009
Member Points: 88

what if 5... Nxe5 instead Bxd1?

by kabukiscrew - 2 years ago
Eugene, OR United States
Member Since: Nov 2008
Member Points: 462

Seen it before, Love seeing it again. Kind of makes you want to try it. If black fallows suit. Thanks for the post.

by BaronDerKilt - 2 years ago
East of Omaha United States
Member Since: Feb 2008
Member Points: 458

It IS cool as a concept. Not as much for deadliness tho, since black has a chance to get out that comes After the "Surprise" move 5.Nxe5, with ...Nxe5 in reply.

I remember seeing this at a very young age as being one of the classic traps. As legodood suggests, possibly Everyone has seen this by Master, and I'd guess even by the time they reach class A or maybe lower. A good thing to know, as it does have importance in showing the danger of f7 weakness in e4 e5 openings and that pins aren't always pins! imo

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