Crash Course on the French Defence

The French Defence is a dynamic way for black to meet 1. e4. An extremely solid opening, it offers good attacking potential. Although it remains a mainstay for many grandmasters, newer players can easily adopt it. For these reasons, I recommend that you include it in your opening repertoire.

What is the French Defence?

The French Defence is characterised by the moves 1...e6 and 2...d5 when faced with 1. e4

Compared to other openings, the French does not require the player to memorise lines excessively. Instead, it rewards anyone who understands the key ideas behind the common positions that will arise. In this article, I will highlight five essential concepts of the French to get you started.

1. Pawn break #1 ...c5!

In most French games, you will find a particular type of pawn structure frequently showing up - one where the white pawns are on d4 and e5, and the black pawns remain on d5 and e6.

Therefore, it makes sense to study the nature of this arrangement before anything else. Nearly always, the way to play against it is to quickly get in a ...c5! pawn break. Why? First of all, we want to have more influence over the centre. By attacking the base of white's d4-e5 pawn duo, black is threatening to quickly rip white's front line apart. Additionally, this helps to set up the preconditions for a queenside expansion.

2. Pawn break #2 ...f6!?

Seasoned French players will unanimously agree that c5 should be played in almost all games with the structure shown above. However, when it comes to the f6 pawn break, one should always proceed with caution.

The reasons to play this second pawn break are rather straightforward as well. Black has much to gain when he trades his f6 pawn for either the d4 or e5 pawn. For one, his opponent will be left with one less central pawn. Moreover, black will have an open f-file to work with. However, the downside is that ...f6 will often weaken e6 and the e8-h5 diagonal. I will demonstrate this in the following diagram.

In that game, black played ...f6 and proved that he knew what he was doing. As a result, he has a very playable game. Despite being down an exchange, he has ample compensation - an extra pawn, significantly more active pieces, and a much stronger influence over the centre.

3. The "bad" light-squared bishop

With the black pawns usually stuck on e6 and d5 for a very long time, it is difficult for the light-squared bishop to become active. Hence, a recurring idea in French games is to plan the escape of the c8 bishop from its own pawn prison. I will show you a couple of ways to accomplish this task.

Bc8-a6

Bc8-d7-b5

e6-e5

Bd7-e8-g6/h5

It is a well-known principle that we should play on the side of the board where our pawn chain points towards. Since black's e6-d5 French structure offers a good queenside spatial advantage, that is where we want to set up our battlefield. White, on the other hand, should be looking for activity on the kingside. Here is where the concern of many black players lies: Wouldn't white have a much easier time with his plans because he is heading for the black's monarch, whereas black is shooting into an empty space?

While it is true that black is not going for a king hunt, he is still capable of creating very strong threats by attacking weak pawns, tying up enemy pieces, and creating passed pawns of his own. You can see these plans in action in the following game.

5. The importance of the c-file

After playing pawn break #1, ...c5, white often supports his d4 pawn with c3. Consequently, the c pawns are soon traded on d4 and a contest for the c-file becomes critical. The next game I will show you is a famous one between Alexander Alekhine and Aron Nimzowitsch. The fight over the c-file was so great that not only were there 5 major pieces on the file at one point, it also resulted in a formation being named after Alekhine. This formation is known as Alekhine's gun, where all three major pieces are tripled up on a file with the queen at the rear. Here is the game.

Hopefully, this brief introduction to the French has given you some idea on the nature of the opening. I wish you all the best in your game, and I will see you again soon