Chess

Chess is one of the most famous and oldest board games played by two players on a black and white patchwork board often, with pieces assigned to each player of different colors that are used to attack and capture the opponent’s pieces, and to defend each other to achieve the goal of this game, which is to surround the opponent’s king in a position that he cannot escape after. Half a point, and the loss is without points. [1]

History of the game of chess :

There are many opinions about the origin of the game of chess, as it is seen that it was inspired by a board game in which dice were used called Shatrunga (in English: Ashtapada), where this game originated in India, and then spread to different countries and cultures later, such as Europe - through wars - and both China and Persia, while some theories see that its beginnings go back to the Middle Ages, relying in saying this on the design of the chess board and its divisions, the shapes of the pieces and how each piece moves, as all of this reflects the picture of life in the Middle Ages This game has witnessed radical changes since its inception, affecting the shape and number of its pieces, and the method of its movement. As for the current names of the pieces, they are from the designation of Europeans, as they indicate the way in which ordinary people and those with higher ranks lived in that era.[2][3]

How to play chess and its rules

The game of chess is subject to a set of laws and rules defined by the International Chess Federation for its organization, in addition to a set of rules for amateurs that are applied in the United States of America championships under the auspices of the American Chess Federation. And two castles and eight soldiers, as shown in the following division: [4]

 Rows: The squares are arranged horizontally on the board from No. 1 to 8, so that the number 1 indicates the first row on the side on which the white pieces will be arranged, and the number 8 indicates the eighth row of the board on the side on which the black pieces will be arranged. According to the rules, the board is placed at the beginning of the game so that to the right of each player there is a white square, and the player who owns the white pieces begins to move the first piece.

 Columns: It is the group of eight squares arranged vertically in the board, and is denoted by Latin letters from a to h.

 Diagonals: It is expressed as the extension of the straight line connecting two opposite corners of squares of one color.

 The black pieces are arranged on the board, as follows:

The movement of pieces in the game of chess

 The game of chess consists of 16 pieces for each player, that is, a total of 32 pieces, which may be called stones, and each piece has its own movement, which is as follows: [5]

 Soldier

 The soldier or pawn is considered the weakest piece in the game of chess, as its value is equal to one point in the game, and the soldier's movement is only one step forward except for the first move, in which he can move two steps forward, and he cannot go back or jump over the other pieces, and when he reaches the end of the board for either side (row No. 8 for the white soldier and row No. 1 for the black soldier), it can be replaced with any piece the player chooses, whether a queen, castle, horse, or elephant.[5]

 the horse

 The horse (in English: Knight) is one of the strong pieces in the game of chess. As its value is equal to three points, and it moves in the form of a letter (L), that is, it moves by two squares vertically and one square horizontally, or vice versa, and it is the only piece that can jump over other chess pieces, as it can move to the required square without looking at any piece in its path, and it is preferable to use it at the beginning of the game. [5]

 the elephant

 The elephant (in English: Bishop) is one of the strong pieces in the game of chess; As its value is equal to three points, and it can move only diagonally and with an optional number of squares without jumping over any other piece. Each player starts the game with two elephants, one of which is placed on a white square and the other on a black square. It is worth noting that each elephant remains on the same color as the square in which it started until the end of the game, due to its diagonal movement.

 the castle

 The castle (in English: Rook) is a strong piece; As its value is equal to five points, and it moves in a straight line and in all directions horizontally and vertically and with any number of squares, except that it cannot jump over other pieces, and it is preferable not to use the castle at the beginning of the game because other pieces will hinder its movement, and it is possible for the player to lose it if he starts with it. [5]

 Minister

 The minister (in English: Queen) is the strongest piece in the game, its value is equal to nine points, as he can move diagonally or in the form of a straight line and in any direction, whether vertically or horizontally, and with any number of squares, and this makes him combine the movements of the castle and the elephant, but he cannot move like a horse. The minister is placed on his own color when setting up the chess board, so the white minister is placed on the white square, and the black minister is placed on the black square.[5]

 the king

 The king is the most important piece in the game of chess, as the goal that the players seek to achieve is to reach and capture the opponent’s king, and at the same time the king is considered the weakest of the pieces, as it moves by one movement towards a square adjacent to it, and this movement can be in any direction, i. The places that expose him to attack, where the king can be captured by surrounding him with the opponent's pieces, and the king cannot be placed directly next to the other king, because in this case he will be captured by the opponent king, which causes the game to end.