

Although this is classified as one of the four basic or elementary checkmates (the others being king and queen king and rook or king and two bishops against a lone king), it occurs in practice only approximately once in every 6,000 games. Checkmates are possible with the defending king on any square at the edge of the board but can be forced only from positions with different material or if the defending king is in a corner controlled by the bishop or on a square on the edge next to a corner however, mate adjacent to the corners not controlled by the bishop is only two moves deep (with the same material), so it is not generally encountered unless the defending side plays inaccurately.

These exceptions constitute about 0.5% of the positions. The exception is the " stalemate trap" (see below). With the stronger side to move and with perfect play, checkmate can be forced in at most thirty-three moves from any starting position where the defender cannot quickly win one of the pieces. I hope you enjoyed this article and that it will help you improve your technique in this important endgame.The bishop and knight checkmate in chess is the checkmate of a lone king which can be forced by a king, a bishop, and a knight. Now White already has checkmate in five moves. Na5 Kd8 11.Nb7 Rc8 12.Kc6 and the pattern repeats itself once more, with the knight preventing the king’s escape. A possible line would be 6 … Kd8 7.Nb6 Kc7 8.Nc4.Īnother block! The black king cannot escape.

In case of 5 … Kc7, 6.Bb5 takes the c6 square from the king. After the natural 3 … Kc7, White played another key move 4.Nd7! In case of 4 … Kc6 white locks the king with 5.Bd3! On the other hand, in the second diagram, Black opted for 2 … Kd8 and white played 3.Ke6. If the black king returns to f8 (as indicated by the arrow), white plays Nd7, expelling the king one more time. White played 1.Bh7 and Black answered 1 … Ke8. In the first diagram we have the continuation of the previous position. The most complex moment is the correct blocking of the opposing king. If it’s white to move, just take your time with the bishop (Bb1, for example) and repeat the maneuver. If it’s black to play, the move 1 … Kf8 will be played and white will continue with 2. However, the bishop and the knight manage to drive him out. In the above position the black king went to the corner opposite the color of the white bishop. Remember that if 50 moves are played the game will end in a draw. Of course the opponent will try to keep the king in the center and, when expelled, will go to one of the wrong corners, making checkmate more difficult.
Bishop knight checkmate how to#
How to Move The King From The Wrong Corner In the second position, with the bishop in the black square “c3”, checkmate is possible in a1 or h8. For this reason, the checkmate takes place in h1 or a8. In the first position, the bishop is in the white square “e4”. In the checkmate of bishop and knight the mate only happens in the corners of the same color of the bishop.

The Right Corner To Lead The Opponent’s KingĪs usual in simpler endgames, the initial mission is to lead the opposing king to one of the corners of the board. Practice this endgame against the computer until you can win it in less than a minute. After reading, it is crucial to put knowledge into practice. The ideal is for the reader to follow the article by analyzing the positions on the board. To avoid such a fate, here are some tips to improve your technique. In 2013, the women’s World Champion GM Anna Ushenina (Ukraine) failed to win it in an important game. Theoretical Endgames: The Bishop and Knight CheckmateĪlthough it is an elementary endgame, the bishop and knight checkmate has its complexities and must be studied seriously.
