Zwischenzug

The zwischenzug (German for "intermediate move", pronounced|ˈtsvɪʃənˌtsuːk) is a chess tactic in which a player, instead of playing the expected move (commonly a recapture of a piece that the opponent has just captured) first interpolates another move, posing an immediate threat that the opponent must answer, then plays the expected move harvcol|Hooper|Whyld|1992|p=460 harvcol|Golombek|1977|p=354. Ideally, the zwischenzug changes the situation to the player's advantage, such as by gaining material or avoiding what would otherwise be a strong continuation for the opponent.

Such a move is also called an "intermezzo", [An example of this use of "intermezzo" is seen in John Cox, "Starting Out: Sicilian Sveshnikov", Gloucester Publishers, 2007, p. 216. ISBN 9781-85744-431-5.] "intermediate move", or "in-between move". [Graham Burgess, "The Mammoth Book of Chess", Carroll & Graf, 1997, p. 494. ISBN 0-7867-0431-4.] harvcol|Horowitz|Reinfeld|1954|pp=180-97 When the intermediate move is a check, it is sometimes called a "zwischenschach" harvcol|van Perlo|2006|p=479.

As with any fairly common chess tactic, it is impossible to pinpoint when the first zwischenzug was played. Three early examples are Lichtenhein-Morphy, New York 1857; Rosenthal-De Vere, Paris 1867; and Tartakower-Capablanca, New York 1924. The first known use of the term zwischenzug, however, did not occur until 1938, when the prolific American chess author Fred Reinfeld used it in a magazine article.

History

Chess diagram|=
tright
Lichtenhein-Morphy, New York 1857
=
rd| | |qd|kd| | |rd|=
pd| |pd|bd| |pd|pd|pd|=
| |pd| | | | | |=
| |bd|pd|pl| | | |=
| | | |bl| | | |=
| | | | | | | |=
pl|pl|pl| | |pl|pl|pl|=
rl|nl|bl|ql|kl| | |rl|=
Position after 10.Bxe4.No one knows when the first zwischenzug was played, but it was evidently long before the term itself existed. [National Master Dennis Monokroussos observes that "just because authors didn't use the "word" 'zwischenzug' doesn't mean they didn't use the "concept" - perhaps they simply used 'in-between move' instead". [http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1145816614.shtml Fred Reinfeld and the Zwischenzug] ] One early example was Lichtenhein-Morphy, New York 1857. [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1224554 Lichtenhein-Morphy, New York 1857] ] In the diagram at right, White has just captured Black's knight on e4 and surely expected the recapture 10...dxe4 11.0-0, when White's king is safe and he has the better pawn structure. Morphy, the strongest player of the day, instead played the zwischenzug 10...Qh4! [http://www.geocities.com/lifemasteraj/lich-morp1.html Lichtenhein-Morphy, First American Chess Congress, 1857] ] Now White cannot save the bishop, since a move like 11.Bf3?? is met by 11...Qxf2#. Moreover, 11.0-0 would be met by 11...Qxe4 11.Nc3 Qh4, when "Black has the two bishops and a compact position without serious weakness" harvcol|Reinfeld|Soltis|1974|p=53. Instead, White played 11.Qe2 (forcing Black to weaken his pawns) dex4 12.Be3? (after 12.0-0!, Black has only a slight advantage) ["Encyclopedia of Chess Openings", Volume C, Third Edition, Šahovski Informator, 1997, p. 301 n.72.] Bg4! 13.Qc4 Bxe3!! and Morphy went on to win a brilliancy. harvcol|Réti|1976|pp=32-36 harvcol|Reinfeld|Soltis|1974|pp=51-54

Chess diagram|=
tleft
Rosenthal-De Vere, Paris 1867
=
| |rd| | |rd|kd| |=
pd|pd| |bd| |pd|pd|pd|=
|qd| | |pd| | | |=
| | |pd|pl| | | |=
|bl| | | |pl|nd| |=
| | |bl| |nl| | |=
pl| | | |ql| |pl|pl|=
rl|nl| | |kl|rl| | |=
Position after 16.Bxb4.Rosenthal-De Vere, Paris 1867, [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1255356 Rosenthal-De Vere, Paris 1867] ] is another 19th-century example of a zwischenzug harvcol|Hooper|Whyld|1992|pp=107-8. De Vere (Black) had earlier sacrificed a piece for two pawns. White has just played 16.Bxb4. Instead of recapturing with 16...Qxb4+, De Vere first played the zwischenzug (or zwischenschach) 16...Rc1+! After 17.Kd2 Rxf1 18.Qxf1 Qxb4+ 19.Ke2 Qxf4 20.Qg1 Nxe5, De Vere's zwischenzug had netted him two more pawns, leaving him with a material advantage. White resigned after twelve more moves.

Chess diagram|=
tright
Tartakower-Capablanca, New York 1924
=
rd|bl|bd|qd|kd| | |rd|=
pd|pd| | | |pd|pd|pd|=
| | | | |nd| | |=
| | | | | | | |=
|bd|pd|pl| | | | |=
| | | | | | | |=
pl|pl| | |bl| |pl|pl|=
rl|nl| |ql| |kl|nl|rl|=
Position after 9. Bxb8.Another prominent example that brought the concept of zwischenzug, albeit not the term itself, to public attention was Tartakower-Capablanca, New York 1924. [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1076242 Tartakower-Capablanca, New York 1924] ] This was a game won by the reigning World Champion at one of the strongest tournaments of the early 20th century. [Chessmetrics ranks New York 1924 as the ninth strongest tournament between 1900 and 1930. [http://db.chessmetrics.com/CM2/Summary.asp?Params=190030SS3SS3S000000000000111000000000000010100 Strongest Tournaments 1900-1930] ] In the position at right, Tartakower (White) has just played 9. Bxb8, thinking he has caught Capablanca in a tr
bishop harvcol|Tartakower|du Mont|1975|p=295. However, Capablanca sprang the zwischenzug 9...Nd5!, protecting his bishop and also threatening 10...Ne3+, forking White's king and queen. After Tartakower's 10.Kf2 Rxb8, Capablanca had regained his piece and went on to win in 20 more moves. Note that after 10.Bf4 (instead of 10.Kf2), Black would not play 10...Nxf4??, which would still allow 11.Qa4+, winning a piece. Instead, after 10.Bf4 Black would play a second zwischenzug, 10...Qf6!, attacking the bishop again, and also renewing the threat of 11...Ne3+ harvcol|Alekhine|1961|p=208 note h harvcol|Reinfeld|1974|p=230. After a move like 11.Qc1, Black could either take the bishop or consider yet a third zwischenzug with 11...Bd6.

Alekhine, Reinfeld, and Tartakower and du Mont do not call 9...Nd5! a "zwischenzug" in their books (originally published in 1925, 1942, and 1952, respectively). Instead, they refer to it as, respectively, "a bit of finesse", a "sly interpolation", and an "intermediary manoeuvre" harvcol|Alekhine|1961|p=208 note e harvcol|Reinfeld|1974|p=230 harvcol|Tartakower|du Mont|1975|p=296. The earliest known use of the term zwischenzug did not occur until well after any of these games. According to the chess historian Edward Winter, the first known use was in 1938. [http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/extra/earliest.html Edward Winter, Earliest Occurrences of Chess Terms] ] Fred Reinfeld, annotating the 19th game of the recently concluded 1937 World Championship between Max Euwe and Alexander Alekhine, [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1013295 Euwe-Alekhine, 19th match game 1937] ] wrote (using descriptive notation), "White cannot go in for 18 PxKt? PxP regaining the piece ... . However, a little "Zwischenzug" changes all that." ["Chess Review", February 1938, p. 38 (bold typeface changed to italics). Also available on DVD (page 44 of "Chess Review 1938" PDF file on DVD).] Winter notes that the earliest example of the term cited by the "Oxford English Dictionary" is from another Reinfeld book, published three years later, "Keres' Best Games of Chess 1931-1940" (1941), where Reinfeld wrote of Keres' 25th move in Keres-Gilg, Prague 1937, [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1071833 Keres-Gilg, Prague 1937] ] "This masterly "Zwischenzug" is the finest move in the whole game, and forces the game into channels evidently unforeseen by Black." harvcol|Reinfeld|1941|p=108

Additional examples

Chess diagram|=
tleft|
=
| | | | | |kd| |=
|qd| | | |pd|pd| |=
| | | | | |pd| |=
pd| | | | | | |rd|=
| | |ql| | | |rl|=
| | | | | |rd|pl|=
| | | | | |pl| |=
| | | | |bl|kl| |=
Black now moves 1...Rxh4?; White responds with a zwischenzugThe diagram shows another example. Black, on move, plays: 1...Rxh4?expecting White to play 2. Qxh4, when Black retains a material advantage. However, White has a zwischenzug: : 2.Qd8+!which is followed by : 2...Kh7 : 3.Qxh4+ Kg8: 4.Qxg3and White has won a rook, leaving him with a winning position. [ [http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Delphi/6551/zwis.htm Tutorial] ]

Mieses-Reshevsky

Chess diagram|=
tright
Mieses-Reshevsky, 1935
=
| | | |rd| |kd| |=
pd|pd| | | |pd|bd|pd|=
| | | | | |pd| |=
|pl| |qd| | | | |=
pl| |pd| | | | | |=
| |pl| | |nl|pl| |=
| |ql| | |pl| |pl|=
| |rl| | | |kl| |=
Position before 29. Nd4A zwischenzug occurred in Mieses-Reshevsky, Margate 1935. [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1224094 Mieses-Reshevsky, Margate 1935] ] From the position in the diagram, play continued::29. Nd4 Bxd4:30. cxd4White must have expected 30... Qxd4 31. Qxc4 Re1+ and then 32. Kg2 gets him out of trouble, but Black has a zwischenzug::30... Re4!Making a double attack on the d-pawn and preventing the capture of his own pawn. Now if 31. Qxc4, 31... Re1+ forces 32. Rxe1 and White loses his queen harvcol|Chernev|1965|p=211.

L. Steiner-Helling

Chess diagram|=
tleft
L. Steiner-Helling, 1928
=
rd| |bd| | |rd|kd| |=
| |pd| | |pd|pd|pd|=
pd| | |bd| | | | |=
|pd| | | | | | |=
| | |pl| | | |qd|=
|bl|pl| | |ql| |pl|=
pl|pl| | | |nd|pl| |=
rl|nl|bl| |rl| |kl| |=
Position after 15...Nxf2

L. Steiner-Helling, Berlin 1928, [ [http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1280329 L. Steiner-Helling, Berlin 1928] ] provides another example of the zwischenschach (in-between check). Black has just captured White's pawn on f2 with his knight. White responded with 16.Qxf2, expecting the skewer 16...Bg3??, which he would refute with 17.Qxf7+! Rxf7 18.Re8#. Instead, Black first played the zwischenschach 16...Bh2+! Now 17.Kxh2 Qxf2 loses White's queen. The game continued 17.Kf1 Bg3! Not seeing the point, White blithely continued with his plan: 18. Qxf7+?? Rxf7+ Now White realized that he is in check (that was the point of 16...Bh2+!), so his intended 19.Re8# is illegal. The forced 19.Bxf7+ Kxf7 would leave Black with queen for rook, an easily winning material advantage, so White resigned harvcol|Horowitz|Reinfeld|1954|pp=178-80 harvcol|Golombek|1977|p=354.

Kerchev-Karastoichev

Chess diagram|=
tright
Kerchev-Karastoichev, 1965
=
rd| | | | |rd|kd| |=
pd|pd| | | |pd|bd|pd|=
| | |pd| | |qd| |=
| | |pd| | | | |=
| |pl| |nd|pl| | |=
| | | |pl|rl| |pl|=
pl|pl|ql| |bl| | |kl|=
rl| | | |bl| | | |=
Black to move.In the game between Zlatozar Kerchev and Emil Stefanov Karastoichev, Black moved : 1... Ng5opening an attack on White's queen. White moved:: 2. Qxg6(If White moves the queen to another square, Black's knight captures White's rook on f3, winning the exchange.) Instead of immediately recapturing the queen, Black played: 2... Nxf3+and White must get out of check. After: 3. Bxf3 hxg6Black had won the exchange harvcol|Burgess|2000|p=47.

ee also

* List of chess terms
* Combination (chess)

Notes

References

*Citation
surname1=Alekhine|given1=Alexander|authorlink1=Alexander Alekhine
year=1961
title=The Book of the New York International Chess Tournament 1924
publisher=Dover
ID=ISBN 978-0486207520

*citation
last=Burgess |first=Graham |authorlink = Graham Burgess
title=The Mammoth Book of Chess
publisher=Carroll & Graf
year=2000
edition = 2nd
id=ISBN 978-0-7867-0725-6

*Citation
surname1=Chernev|given1=Irving|authorlink1=Irving Chernev
year=1965
title=The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played: 62 Masterpieces of Chess Strategy
publisher=Dover
ID=ISBN 0-486-27302-4

* Citation
surname1=Golombek|given1=Harry|authorlink1=Harry Golombek
title=Golombek's Encyclopedia of Chess
year=1977
publisher=Crown Publishing
ID=ISBN 0-517-53146-1

* Citation
surname1=Hooper|given1=David|authorlink1=David Vincent Hooper
surname2=Whyld|given2=Kenneth|authorlink2=Kenneth Whyld
title=The Oxford Companion to Chess
year=1992
edition=second
publisher=Oxford University Press
ID=ISBN 0-19-866164-9

* Citation
surname1=Horowitz|given1=I.A.|authorlink1=I.A. Horowitz
surname2=Reinfeld|given2=Fred|authorlink2=Fred Reinfeld
title=Chess Traps, Pitfalls, and Swindles
year=1954
publisher=Simon and Schuster
ID=ISBN 0-671-21041-6

*Citation
surname1=Reinfeld|given1=Fred|authorlink1=
year=1941
title=Keres' Best Games of Chess 1931-1940
publisher=
ID=

*Citation
surname1=Reinfeld|given1=Fred|authorlink1=
year=1974
title=The Immortal Capablanca
publisher=Dover
ID=ISBN 0-02-029690-8

* Citation
surname1=Reinfeld|given1=Fred|authorlink1=
surname2=Soltis|given2=Andrew|authorlink2=Andrew Soltis
title=Morphy Chess Masterpieces
year=1974
publisher=Collier Books
ID=ASIN B0011U1746

*Citation
surname1=Réti|given1=Richard|authorlink1=Richard Réti
year=1976
title=Masters of the Chessboard
publisher=Dover
ID=ISBN 0-486-23384-7

* Citation
surname1=Tartakower|given1=Savielly|authorlink1=Savielly Tartakower
surname2 = du Mont|given2 = Julius|authorlink2=Julius du Mont
title=500 Master Games of Chess
year=1975
publisher=Dover
ID=ISBN 0-486-23208-5

* Citation
last=van Perlo|first=Gerardus C.
title=Van Perlo's Endgame Tactics
year=2006
publisher=New In Chess
ID=ISBN 978-90-5691-168-3