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Another Morphy attacking masterpiece with black..

A game against his father and without his left rook (forgot to delete him..)

Paul Morphy competed in only one tournament in his short career, the 1st American Chess Congress in 1857. In the final round of this knock-out event, he defeated German master Louis Paulsen by a score of +5, =2, -1. In this game, he demonstrates both his better grasp of positional play -- Black's control of the center files makes a marked contrast to White's flailing on the flanks -- and his combinative ability, as he finishes the game with a startling and brilliant Queen sacrifice.

Enjoy:

The National Era was a weekly abolitionist newspaper published in the District of Columbia from Jan. 7, 1847 until March 22, 1860. November 19, 1857 Vol. XI No. 568 P. 185 Mr. Morphy, the champion chess player, it is said, will challenge Europe through the New York Chess Club, to produce a man to play with him, next spring, in New York, for from one to five thousand dollars. March 18, 1858 Vol. XII No. 585 P. 43 Paul Morphy, of New Orleans, the king of American chess players, has challenged Howard Stanton, chess editor of the London Illustrated News, who is considered the king of European chess players, to visit New Orleans, and engage in a tilt with him for $5,000 a side. If Mr. Stanton [sic] loses, he is to be allowed $1,000 to pay his expenses. September 16, 1858 Vol. XII No. 611 P. 147 FOREIGN SUMMARY Mr. Morphy, the American chess-player, had played eight games blindfolded, at one time, at the Birmingham Chess Congress, winning all but one. October 14, 1858 Vol. XII No. 615 P. 164 PAUL MORPHY IN EUROPE. The great chess match between Germany and America, between M. Harrwitz, of Prussia, and Mr. Paul Morphy, of the United States, is now going on in Paris at the Café de la Régence, in the Rue St. Honoré, the headquarters of the lovers of this scientific game. The match is to be won by the gainer of the first seven games. Harrwitz gained the first two games; Mr. Morphy gained the three next. In the third and fourth games Mr. Morphy made some of the most brilliant and startling moves that had ever been seen in the Cafe de la Régence, and so great was the enthusiasm that telegraphic despatches [sic] were sent to the Rhine, to Méry, to the Duke of Brunswick, and other great players, begging them to come and see the wonder of the world. Notwithstanding the watering season, when all the fashion is supposed at least to be out of town, the Café de la Régence is the scene of a crowd, or rather a mob, of distinguished men, and even women, of all nationalities and all tongues. It is believed that Morphy will beat Harrwitz, though it is not by any means sure, and, in that case, he becomes the champion of the world, for no man in Europe can beat Harrwitz. Harrwitz is 27 years old, Morphy but 22. Morphy plays much faster than Harrwitz, and in fact, faster than any adversary he has yet met in Europe, and the boldness and originality of his moves strike the lookers-on with amazement and admiration. A gentleman now in Paris writes as follows: “The greatest of living French sculptors, Lequesne, the pupil and successor of Pradier, has asked Morphy to sit to him for his bust in marble. Morphy gave him the first sitting yesterday. The bust will be exhibited at the Expo-position des Beaux Arts. This is, I think, the highest honor Morphy has as yet received. But I can assure you they treat him here like a god. He dines with his Royal Highness the Duke of Brunswick on Sunday. The other night, at the Theatre Français, half the audience stood up and looked at him - he perfectly unconscious until it was pointed out to him. Everybody seeks introductions to him, and the old players of the time of Labourdonnais, treat him with the greatest reverence.” After finishing his match with Harrwitz, Mr. Morphy will proceed directly to Berlin and Breslau, to meet Anderssen, Lange, and Mayet, Breslau, to meet Anderssen, Lange, and Mayet, who, with Von der Lasa, are at present the greatest exponents of the German chess. It is a matter of much regret, both to Mr. Morphy and his admirers, that the diplomatic duties of Von der Lasa who in Prussian Minister at Rio Janeiro) preclude the possibility of bringing about a meeting between these distinguished players. The last Illustrated News of London gives a portrait and life of Mr. Morphy, together with the eight games played blindfolded by him at the Birmingham meeting. March 31, 1859 Vol. XIII No. 639 P. 51 FOREIGN SUMMARY. But chess match was progressing at Paris, Morphy playing against Mongradin [sic], the President of the London club. Four games had been played, Morphy winning all. The winner of the first seven games to be victor. May 19, 1859 Vol. XIII No. 646 P. 79 PAUL MORPHY, THE AMERICAN CHESS KING. This gentleman, previous to leaving New York for New Orleans, will visit Boston, where a public dinner has been tendered him. Hon. Edward Everett, Jared Sparks, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and other distinguished citizens of the modern Athens, will make addresses on the occasion. Mr. Morphy, at present, is somewhat prostrated from the effects of his voyage. The Post says: "Mr. Morphy spent a couple of hours at the rooms of the New York Chess Club on Wednesday evening, and played four or five games, at the odds of a knight, with Mr. F. Perrin, one of the strongest players in this country, and easily won all the games but one. Telegrams have been received from all parts of the country, to know what route Mr. Morphy will take on his way home to New Orleans, so that arrangements can be made for his proper reception. At the urgent solicitation of his friends, Mr. Morphy has determined to play no more blindfold games. The testimonials from his friends here will be presented to him in about two weeks." from Sarah's Journal Archive (Batgirl)

Today many amateurs think of Morphy as a dazzling combinative player, who excelled in sacrificing his queen and checkmating his opponent a few brilliant moves later. One reason for this impression is that chess books like to reprint his flashy games. There are games where he did do this, but it was not the basis of his chess style. In fact, the masters of his day considered his style to be on the conservative side compared to some of the flashy older masters like La Bourdonnais and even Anderssen. Morphy can be considered the first modern player. Some of his games do not look modern because he did not need the sort of slow positional systems that modern grandmasters use, or that Staunton, Paulsen, and later Steinitz developed. His opponents had not yet mastered the open game, so he played it against them and he preferred open positions because they brought quick success. He played open games almost to perfection, but he also could handle any sort of position, having a complete grasp of chess that was years ahead of his time. Morphy was a player who intuitively knew what was best, and in this regard he has been likened to Capablanca. He was, like Capablanca, a child prodigy; he played fast and he was hard to beat. Löwenthal and Anderssen both later remarked that he was indeed hard to beat since he knew how to defend and would draw or even win games despite getting into bad positions. At the same time, he was deadly when given a promising position. Anderssen especially commented on this, saying that after one bad move against Morphy one may as well resign. "I win my games in seventy moves but Mr. Morphy wins his in twenty, but that is only natural..." Anderssen said, explaining his poor results against Morphy. Of Morphy's 59 "serious" games — those played in matches and the 1857 New York tournament — he won 42, drew 9, and lost 8. While Bobby Fischer considered Morphy to be the greatest player of all time,some commentators disagree. "Morphy and Capablanca had enormous talent," – Bobby Fischer, Icelandic Radio Interview, 2006

Richard Réti Morphy was the first positional player who, unlike his Romantic rivals, understood the strategic basis for attack. He wrote nothing more than a few game notes and played fewer than seventy-five serious games. But his exploitation of open lines prepared the way for Steinitz's scientific treatment of closed positions and the era of modern chess. Andrew Soltis (in Golombek's Encyclopedia of Chess, New York, 1977) Genius is a starry word; but if there ever was a chess player to whom that attribute applied, it was Paul Morphy. Edward Lasker (in The Adventure of Chess, 2nd Edition, New York, 1959) After the passage of a century, Morphy still remains the most glamorous figure that has ever appeared in the chess world. Fred Reinfeld (in Great Moments in Chess History, Brancliff Manor, New York 1963) Paul Morphy was a great chessplayer, a genius... Morphy, I think everyone agrees, was probably the greatest genius of them all... Lasker In Paul Morphy the spirit of La Bourdonnais had arisen anew, only more vigorous, firmer, prouder... Morphy discovered that the brilliant move of the master is essentially conditional not on a sudden and inexplicable realisation, but on the placing of the pieces on the board. He introduced the rule: brilliant moves and deep winning manoeuvres are possible only in those positions where the opponent can be opposed with an abundance of active energy... From the very first moves Morphy aimed to disclose the internal energy located in his pieces. It was suddenly revealed that they possess far greater dynamism than the opponent's forces. Capablanca Reviewing the history of chess from La Bourdonnais to the masters of our day right up to Lasker, we discover that the greatest stylist was Morphy. He did not look for complicated combinations, but he also did not avoid them, which really is the correct way of playing... His main strength lay not in his combinative gift, but in his positional play and general style. Morphy gained most of his wins by playing directly and simply, and it is this simple and logical method that constitutes the true brilliance of his play, if it is considered from the viewpoint of the great masters. and [I play in] the style of Morphy, they say, and if it is true that the goddess of fortune has endowed me with his talent, the result [of the match with Emanuel Lasker] will not be in doubt. The magnificent American master had the most extraordinary brain that anybody has ever had for chess. Technique, strategy, tactics, knowledge which is inconceivable for us; all that was possessed by Morphy fifty-four years ago. Alekhine How much more vivid, more rich does the figure of Morphy appear before us, how much clearer does the secret of his success and charm become, if we transfer ourselves in our thoughts to that era when he lived and created, if we take the trouble to study, only a little, his contemporaries! Then...in London and in particular in Paris, where the traditions of Philidor were still alive, where the immortal creations of La Bourdonnais and McDonnell were still in the memory, at that time, finally, when Anderssen was alive, and with brilliance alone it was hardly possibly to suprise anyone. The strength, the invincible strength of Morphy- this was the reason for his success and the guarantee of his immortality! Botvinnik To this day Morphy is an unsurpassed master of the open games. Just how great was his significance is evidant from the fact that after Morphy nothing substantially new has been created in this field. Every player- from beginner to master- should in this praxis return again and again to the games of the American genius. Fischer A popularly held theory about Paul Morphy is that if he returned to the chess world today and played our best contemporary players, he would come out the loser. Nothing is further from the truth. In a set match, Morphy would beat anybody alive today... Morphy was perhaps the most accurate chess player who ever lived. He had complete sight of the board and never blundered, in spite of the fact that he played quite rapidly, rarely taking more than five minutes to decide a move. Perhaps his only weakness was in closed games like the Dutch Defense. But even then, he was usually victorious because of his resourcefulness. Smyslov There is no doubt that for Morphy chess was an art, and for chess Morphy was a great artist. His play was captivated by freshness of thought and inexhaustible energy. He played with inspiration, without striving to penetrate into the psychology of the opponent; he played, if one can express it so, "pure chess". His harmonious positional understanding the pure intuition would have made Morphy a highly dangerous opponent even for any player of our times. Kasparov Morphy can be regarded as the forefather of modern chess. from Sarah's Journal

"I consider Mr. Morphy the finest chess player who ever existed. He is far superior to any now living, and would doubtless have beaten Labourdonnais himself. In all his games with me, he has not only played, in every instance, the exact move, but the most exact. He never makes a mistake; but, if his adversary commits the slightest error, he is lost." Adolf Anderssen, quoted by Frederick Edge in 1859 "Morphy will not let me." former unofficial world champion Adolf Anderssen, when asked why he did not play as brilliantly as usual against Paul Morphy. "Paul Morphy was the greatest chess player that ever lived...no one ever was so far superior to the players of his time" Dr. Emanuel Lasker, Lasker's Chess Magazine of January 1905, p.127 "In Paul Morphy the spirit of La Bourdonnais had arisen anew, only more vigorous, firmer, prouder... Morphy discovered that the brilliant move of the master is essentially conditional not on a sudden and inexplicable realisation, but on the placing of the pieces on the board. He introduced the rule: brilliant moves and deep winning manoeuvres are possible only in those positions where the opponent can be opposed with an abundance of active energy... From the very first moves Morphy aimed to disclose the internal energy located in his pieces. It was suddenly revealed that they possess far greater dynamism than the opponent's forces." Emanuel Lasker "Morphy's principal strength does not rest upon his power of combination but in his position play and his general style....Beginning with la Bourdonnais to the present, and including Lasker, we find that the greatest stylist has been Morphy. Whence the reason, although it might not be the only one, why he is generally considered the greatest of all." Josι Raϊl Capablanca, in Pablo Morphy by V. F. Coria and L. Palau. "...Morphy, the master of all phases of the game, stronger than any of his opponents, even the strongest of them..." Alexander Alekhine, in Shakmatny Vestnik, January 15, 1914 "To this day Morphy is an unsurpassed master of the open games. Just how great was his significance is evident from the fact that after Morphy nothing substantially new has been created in this field. Every player- from beginner to master- should in this praxis return again and again to the games of the American genius." Mikhail Botvinnik "A popularly held theory about Paul Morphy is that if he returned to the chess world today and played our best contemporary players, he would come out the loser. Nothing is further from the truth. In a set match, Morphy would beat anybody alive today... Morphy was perhaps the most accurate chess player who ever lived. He had complete sight of the board and never blundered, in spite of the fact that he played quite rapidly, rarely taking more than five minutes to decide a move. Perhaps his only weakness was in closed games like the Dutch Defense. But even then, he was usually victorious because of his resourcefulness." Bobby Fischer "Morphy, I think everyone agrees, was probably the greatest genius of them all." Bobby Fischer, 1992 "We also remember the brilliant flight of the American super-genius Paul Morphy, who in a couple of years (1857-59) conquered both the New and the Old Worlds. He revealed a thunderous blend of pragmatism, aggression and accurate calculation to the world -- qualities that enabled America to accomplish a powerful spurt in the second half of the 19th century." Garry Kasparov (2003). On My Great Predecessors. Gloucester Publishers plc. Vol. 1, p. 6. "What was the secret of Morphy's invincibility? I think it was a combination of a unique natural talent and brilliant erudition. His play was the next, more mature stage in the development of chess. Morphy had a well-developed 'feeling for position', and therefore he can be confidently regarded as the 'first swallow' - the prototype of the strong 20th century grandmaster." Garry Kasparov (2003). On My Great Predecessors. Gloucester Publishers plc. Vol. 1, p. 43. Compiled by Chopin

According to wikipedia: Paul Charles Morphy (June 22, 1837 - July 10, 1884), "The Pride and Sorrow of Chess," was an American chess player. He is considered to have been the greatest chess master of his era and an unofficial World Chess Champion.[1] He was also one of the first chess prodigies in the modern rules of chess era. Early life Morphy was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, to a wealthy and distinguished family. His father, Alonzo Michael Morphy, a lawyer, served as a Louisiana state legislator, attorney general, and Supreme Court Justice. Alonzo was of Portuguese, Irish, and Spanish ancestry. Morphy's mother, Louise Thérèse Félicité Thelcide Le Carpentier, was the musically-talented daughter of a prominent French Creole family. Morphy grew up in an atmosphere of genteel civility and culture where chess and music were the typical highlights of a Sunday home gathering. According to his uncle, Ernest Morphy, no one formally taught Morphy how to play chess; rather, Morphy learned on his own as a young child simply from watching others play. After watching a lengthy game between Ernest and Alonzo, young Paul surprised them by stating that Ernest should have won. His father and uncle had not realized that Paul even knew the moves, let alone any chess strategy. They were even more surprised when Paul proved his claim by resetting the pieces and demonstrating the win his uncle had missed. Childhood victories After that incident Morphy's family recognized him as a precocious talent and encouraged him to play at family gatherings and local chess milieus. By the age of nine, he was considered one of the best players in New Orleans. In 1846, General Winfield Scott visited the city, and let his hosts know that he desired an evening of chess with a strong local player. Chess was an infrequent pastime of Scott's, but he enjoyed the game and considered himself a formidable player. After dinner, the chess pieces were set up and Scott's opponent was brought in: diminutive, nine-year-old Morphy. Scott was at first offended, thinking he was being made fun of, but he consented to play after being assured that his wishes had been scrupulously obeyed and that the boy was a "chess prodigy" who would tax his skill. Morphy beat him easily not once, but twice, the second time announcing a forced checkmate after only six moves. As two losses against a small boy was all General Scott's ego could stand, he declined further games and retired for the night, never to play Morphy again. In 1850, when Morphy was twelve, the strong professional Hungarian chess master Johann Löwenthal visited New Orleans. Löwenthal, who had often played and defeated talented youngsters, considered the informal match a waste of time but accepted the offer as a courtesy to the well-to-do judge. When Löwenthal met Morphy, he patted him on the head in a patronizing manner. By about the twelfth move in the first game, Löwenthal realized he was up against something formidable. Each time Morphy made a good move, Löwenthal's eyebrows shot up in a manner described by Ernest Morphy as "comique". Löwenthal played three games with Morphy during his New Orleans stay, losing all three. Schooling and the First American Chess Congress After 1850, Morphy did not play much chess for a long time. Studying diligently, he graduated from Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama, in 1854. He then stayed on an extra year, studying mathematics and philosophy. He was awarded an A.M. degree with the highest honors in May 1855. He next was accepted to the University of Louisiana to study law. He received an L.L.B. degree on April 7, 1857, in preparation for which he is said to have memorized the complete Louisiana book of codes and laws. Not yet of legal age to begin the practice of law, Morphy found himself with free time. He received an invitation to participate in the First American Chess Congress, to be held in New York in the fall of 1857. At first he declined, but at the urging of his uncle he eventually decided to play. He defeated each of his rivals, including the strong German master Louis Paulsen in the final round. Morphy was hailed as the chess champion of the United States, but he appeared unaffected by his sudden fame. According to the December 1857 issue of Chess Monthly, "his genial disposition, his unaffected modesty and gentlemanly courtesy have endeared him to all his acquaintances." Morphy goes to Europe Soon after returning to New Orleans he was invited to attend an international chess tournament to be held in Birmingham, England in the summer of 1858. Still too young to start his law career, he accepted the challenge and traveled to England. Instead of playing in the tournament, however, he ended up playing and easily winning a series of chess matches against all the leading English masters except the veteran Howard Staunton, who was well past his prime, and who initially promised a match but eventually declined after witnessing Morphy's play. Staunton was later criticised for avoiding a match with Morphy. Staunton is known to have been working on his edition of the complete works of Shakespeare at the time, but he also competed in a chess tournament during Morphy's visit. Staunton later blamed Morphy for the failure to have a match, suggesting among other things that Morphy lacked the funds required for match stakes—a most unlikely charge given Morphy's popularity. Seeking new opponents, Morphy crossed the English Channel to France. At the Café de la Régence in Paris, the center of chess in France, he played a match against Daniel Harrwitz, the resident chess professional, soundly defeating him. In Paris, Morphy suffered from a bout of intestinal influenza. In accordance with the medical wisdom of the time, he was treated with leeches, resulting in his losing a significant amount of blood. Although too weak to stand up unaided, Morphy insisted on going ahead with a match against the visiting German master Adolf Anderssen, considered by many to be Europe's leading player. Despite his illness Morphy triumphed easily, winning seven while losing two, with two draws. When asked about his defeat, Anderssen claimed to be out of practice, but also admitted that Morphy was in any event the stronger player and that he was fairly beaten. Anderssen also attested that in his opinion, Morphy was the strongest player ever to play the game, even stronger than the famous French champion La Bourdonnais. Both in England and France, Morphy gave numerous simultaneous exhibitions, including displays of blindfold chess in which he regularly played and defeated eight opponents at a time. Morphy played a well-known casual game against the Duke of Brunswick and Count Isouard at the Italian Opera House in Paris. Morphy is hailed as World Champion Still only twenty-one, Morphy was now quite famous. While in Paris, he was sitting in his hotel room one evening, chatting with his companion Frederick Edge, when they had an unexpected visitor. "I am Prince Galitzine; I wish to see Mr. Morphy," the visitor said, according to Edge. Morphy identified himself to the visitor. "No, it is not possible!" the prince exclaimed, "You are too young!" Prince Galitzine then explained that he was in the frontiers of Siberia when he had first heard of Morphy's "wonderful deeds." He explained, "One of my suite had a copy of the chess paper published in Berlin, the Schachzeitung, and ever since that time I have been wanting to see you." He then told Morphy that he must go to St. Petersburg, Russia, because the chess club in the Imperial Palace would receive him with enthusiasm. In Europe Morphy was generally hailed as world chess champion. In Paris, at a banquet held in his honor on April 4, 1859, a laurel wreath was placed over the head of a bust of Morphy, carved by the sculptor Eugene Lequesne. At a similar gathering in London, where he returned in the spring of 1859, Morphy was again proclaimed "the Champion of the World". He was also invited to a private audience with Queen Victoria. So dominant was Morphy that even masters could not seriously challenge him in play without some kind of handicap. At a simultaneous match against five masters (Jules Arnous de Rivière, Samuel Boden, Thomas Barnes, Johann Löwenthal, and Henry Bird), Morphy won two games, drew two games, and lost one. Upon his return to America, the accolades continued as Morphy toured the major cities on his way home. At the University of the City of New York, on May 29, 1859, John Van Buren, son of President Martin Van Buren, ended a testimonial presentation by proclaiming, "Paul Morphy, Chess Champion of the World". In Boston, at a banquet attended by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Louis Agassiz, the mayor of Boston, the President of Harvard, and other luminaries, Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes toasted "Paul Morphy, the World Chess Champion". In short, Morphy was a celebrity. Manufacturers sought his endorsements, newspapers asked him to write chess columns, and a baseball club was named after him. Morphy abandons chess Having vanquished virtually all serious opposition, Morphy reportedly declared that he would play no more matches without giving odds of pawn and move.After returning home he declared himself retired from the game and, with a few exceptions, gave up public competition for good. Unfortunately, Morphy's embryonic law career was disrupted in 1861 by the outbreak of the American Civil War. Opposed to secession, Morphy did not serve in the Confederate Army. During the war he lived partly in New Orleans and partly abroad, spending time in Paris and Havana, Cuba. Possibly because of his antiwar stance, Morphy was unable to successfully build a law practice even after the war ended. His attempts to open a law office failed; when he had visitors, they invariably wanted to talk about chess, not their legal affairs. Financially secure thanks to his family fortune, Morphy essentially spent the rest of his life in idleness. Asked by admirers to return to chess competition, he refused. In accord with the prevailing sentiment of the time, Morphy esteemed chess only as an amateur activity, considering the game unworthy of pursuit as a serious occupation. Chess professionals were viewed in the same light as professional gamblers. It was not until decades later that the age of the professional chess player arrived. Tragedy and twilight On the afternoon of July 10, 1884, Morphy was found dead in his bathtub at the age of forty-seven. According to the autopsy, Morphy had suffered a stroke brought on by entering cold water after a long walk in the midday heat. The Morphy mansion, sold by the family in 1891, is today the site of Brennan's, a famous New Orleans restaurant.