Queen's Gambit

The Queen's Gambit is a chess opening that starts with the moves

1. d4 d5

2. c4

The Queen's Gambit is one of the oldest known chess openings, as Lucena described it in 1497 and it is mentioned in the earlier Göttingen manuscript. During the early period of modern chess, queen pawn openings were not in fashion, and the Queen's Gambit did not become common until the 1873 tournament in Vienna. As Steinitz and Tarrasch developed chess theory and increased the appreciation of positional play, the Queen's Gambit grew more popular. It reached its peak popularity in the 1920s and 1930s and was played in 32 out of 34 games in the 1934 World Chess Championship. Since then Black has increasingly moved away from symmetrical openings, tending to use the Indian defences to combat queen pawn openings. The Queen's Gambit is still frequently played and it remains an important part of many grandmasters' opening repertoires.

With 2.c4, White threatens to exchange a wing pawn (the c-pawn) for a center pawn (Black's d-pawn) and dominate the center with e2-e4. This is not a true gambit because if Black accepts the pawn he cannot expect to keep it. An opening trap after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 goes 3.e3 b5? (Black tries to guard his pawn but should pursue development with, e.g., 3...e5!) 4.a4 c6? 5.axb5 cxb5?? 6.Qf3! winning a piece on Black's weakened queenside.

The Queen's Gambit is divided into two major categories based on Black's response: The Queen's Gambit Accepted (QGA) and the Queen's Gambit Declined (QGD). In the QGA, Black plays 2...dxc4, temporarily giving up the center to obtain freer development. In the QGD, Black holds the center at d5. Frequently Black will be cramped, but Black aims to exchange pieces and use the pawn breaks at c5 and e5 to free his game.