H.F.L. Meyer's Great Problem
'It is often said that problem composers are bad players, but it might be more correct to say that great players are bad composers.'
H.F.L. Meyer
I came across a very interesting and unusual problem by H.F.L. Meyer in a Polish chess magazine and decided to share it with you, but first let me introduce the author shortly:
Heinrich Friedrich Ludwig Meyer (1839-1928) was one of the greatest German problemists and a chess author. His most famous book is 'A Complete Guide to the Game of Chess: From the Alphabet to the Solution and Construction of Problems' (1882), now reprinted in Forgotten Books series.
Joseph Steele (left) and H.F.L. Meyer (right) (1880) | Source: Cleveland Public Library Digital Gallery / Public Domain
And here's the problem - a classic among problemists but if you don't know it, give it a try. In his book, Meyer called it just "The Draw in a Problem". It's from 1882. White to move and draw:
I'm sure you noticed the problem Meyer and Steele are presenting in the photograph. The description on the board says: "A Problem by H.F.L. Meyer / Dedicated to Joseph Steele / Mate in 5 / Croydon 1880". Let's make a run at it. White to move and mate in 5.
One more problem by Meyer, a classical and simple one (originally published in The Boy's Own Paper in 1903), white to move and win:
I hope that you enjoyed and solved the puzzles. I'm going to write more about famous composers of the past since such chess artists, due to their great contribution to chess, definitely deserve to be remembered and what they created should not be lost.
Thanks for reading my article.
