The Hungarian Defense is a chess opening that begins with the moves:
24-613: The Hungarian Defense is a line in the Italian Game typically chosen as a quiet response to the aggressive 3.Bc4. With the move 3...Be7, Black avoids the complexities of the Giuoco Piano (3...Bc5), Evans Gambit (3...Bc5 4.b4), and Two Knights Defense (3...Nf6). White has an advantage in space and freer development , so Black must be prepared to defend a cramped position. According to Harding and Botterill , "The Hungarian Defence can only be played for
48-411: A closed game . White opens by playing 1.e4, which is the most popular opening move and has many strengths – it immediately stakes a claim in the center , and frees two pieces (the queen and king's bishop ) for action. The oldest openings in chess follow 1.e4. Bobby Fischer wrote that 1.e4 is "Best by test." On the negative side, 1.e4 places a pawn on an undefended square and weakens
72-409: A draw. White should have an edge in most lines." The opening is seldom seen in modern play. It has been played on occasion by some grandmasters with strong defensive- positional styles , including Reshevsky , Hort , and former world champions Petrosian and Smyslov . The variation takes its name from a correspondence game between Paris and Pest, Hungary , played from 1842 to 1845, but
96-515: A slightly better queenless middlegame with 5.dxe5 dxe5 (5...Nxe5? 6.Nxe5 dxe5 7.Qh5! and White's double attack on e5 and f7 wins a pawn) 6.Qxd8+ (6.Bd5 !? is also possible) Bxd8 7.Nc3 Nf6, or 7...f6. Or White can close the center with 5.d5 Nb8, followed by Bd3 and expansion on the queenside with c4, resulting in positions resembling those from the Old Indian Defense . Finally, with 5.Nc3 White can retain tension in
120-411: A spatial advantage. Weaker is 5.c3, hoping for 5...dxc3 ?! 6.Qd5 ! , after which Black resigned in the game Midjord–Scharf, Nice Olympiad 1974 (though Black could have tried 6...Nh6 7.Bxh6 0-0 when 8.Bc1 ? Nb4 9.Qd1 c2 wins back the piece, so White should play 8.Bxg7 Kxg7 9.Nxc3 with advantage). Instead of 5...dxc3, however, Black can play 5...Na5 (recommended by Chigorin ), forcing White to give up
144-608: Is 4.d3, when Black's main options are 4...Bc5, transposing into the Giuoco Pianissimo, and the solid 4...Be7, which is likely to lead to similar positions to the Bishop's Opening . Alternatively, White can play 4.d4, which may lead to the Scotch Gambit after the usual reply 4...exd4. Open Game An Open Game (or Double King's Pawn Opening ) is a generic term for a family of chess openings beginning with
168-502: Is a transposition into the Four Knights Game . Another option for White is the aggressive Evans Gambit (4.b4), a popular opening in the 19th century which is still occasionally played. The Italian Gambit (4.d4) may transpose into the Scotch Gambit after 4...exd4; however, this move order allows Black the option of 4...Bxd4, so if White wants a Scotch Gambit, 3.d4 is usually preferred. The Jerome Gambit (4.Bxf7+)
192-624: Is almost never seen. The most popular alternatives to 2.Nf3 are 2.f4 (the King's Gambit ), 2.Nc3 (the Vienna Game ), and 2.Bc4 (the Bishop's Opening ). These three openings have some similarities; some of the quieter lines in the Vienna and Bishop's Opening can transpose to positional variations of the King's Gambit Declined, when White plays f2–f4 before playing Nf3. The King's Gambit was popular in
216-543: Is one of the oldest recorded chess openings; it occurs in the Göttingen manuscript and was developed by players such as Damiano and Polerio in the 16th century, and later by Greco in 1620, who gave the game its main line. It has been extensively analyzed for more than 300 years. The term Italian Game is sometimes used interchangeably with Giuoco Piano , although the latter also refers particularly to play after 3...Bc5. The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings gives
240-853: Is to sacrifice one or two pawns by offering the Danish Gambit (3.c3). The early development of the queen in the Danvers Opening , also known as the Parham Attack (2.Qh5), is usually played only by amateurs, though Hikaru Nakamura has experimented with it in grandmaster tournaments and was able to achieve a reasonable position. The Napoleon Opening , 2.Qf3, has even less to recommend it as Black can easily block any mating threats without compromising their development. The Portuguese Opening (2.Bb5) and Alapin's Opening (2.Ne2) are offbeat tries for White, but neither gain any advantage against correct play. The Bongcloud Attack (2.Ke2)
264-411: Is unsound. 3...Nf6 is the more aggressive Two Knights Defense . This is more in the nature of a counterattack, and some (e.g. Bronstein ) have proposed it be renamed so. If White attempts to exploit the weakness of Black's f7-pawn with 4.Ng5, Black may try the knife-edged Traxler/Wilkes-Barre Variation (4...Bc5 !? ). After the more common 4...d5 5.exd5, Black generally avoids 5...Nxd5 allowing 6.Nxf7,
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#1732791955139288-476: The bishop pair with 6.Qxd4 or sacrifice a pawn. Also playable is 5...Nf6 6.e5 Ne4 (the Tartakower Variation) 7.Bd5 Nc5 8.cxd4 Ne6 ( Evans ), but after 9.Bb3 White has the upper hand ( Unzicker ). Alternatively, Black generally tries to hold the center with 4...d6, when White has a choice of plans, each of which should be enough to secure a slight advantage. White can simplify to
312-506: The Giuoco Piano ("Quiet Game") in contrast to the more aggressive lines then being developed, this continues 4.d3, the positional Giuoco Pianissimo ("Very Quiet Game"), or the main line 4.c3 (the original Giuoco Piano) leading to positions first analyzed by Greco in the 17th century, and revitalized at the turn of the 20th by the Moller Attack. 4.0-0 will usually transpose into the Giuoco Pianissimo after 4...Nf6 5.d3, while 4.Nc3 Nf6
336-654: The Konstantinopolsky Opening (3.g3), and Inverted Hungarian Opening (3.Be2) are rarely played and offer White no advantage. Black's most popular alternative to 2...Nc6 is 2...Nf6 , usually leading to Petrov's Defense , though White can avoid the extensive theory of the Petrov by playing 3.Nc3. The Philidor Defense (2...d6) has the disadvantage of restricting the mobility of Black's king's bishop, and typically leads to solid but passive positions for Black. For this reason, it largely fell out of favor by
360-481: The Scotch Gambit (4.Bc4), a dangerous tactical line against an unprepared opponent. 3.Nc3 Nf6, the Four Knights Game , was often played in the late 19th to early 20th century. Less commonly, 3....g6 or ...Bb4, (the Three Knights Game ), are possible. The Ponziani Opening (3.c3) has never achieved widespread popularity but is occasionally used as a surprise weapon. Other third moves for White such as
384-523: The Fegatello or Fried Liver Attack , or 6.d4, the Lolli Variation, both of which are difficult to defend under practical conditions. Most common is 5...Na5, sacrificing a pawn for an active position. The very sharp Fritz Variation (5...Nd4) and the closely related Ulvestad Variation (5...b5) lead to wild positions with little margin for error for either side. A quieter option for White
408-679: The Italian Game ten codes: C50–C54 for the Giuoco Piano, and C55–C59 for the Two Knights Defense. Side lines are covered under C50. Black's two main options are 3...Bc5, the Giuoco Piano , and 3...Nf6, the Two Knights Defense . They are about equally popular, but the resulting positions usually have a very different character. Until the 19th century, this line was the main line of the Italian Game. Dubbed
432-420: The center and obtain active piece play. Bibliography Italian Game The Italian Game is a family of chess openings beginning with the moves: This opening is defined by the development of the white bishop to c4 (the so-called " Italian bishop "), where it attacks Black's vulnerable f7-square. It is part of the large family of Open Games or Double King's Pawn Games. The Italian Game
456-594: The early 20th century as Black players sought more dynamic options; however, it is still occasionally seen at grandmaster level. The Gunderam Defense (2...Qe7) is an offbeat choice which blocks the development of the king's bishop, and has never achieved widespread popularity. The Elephant Gambit (2...d5) and the Latvian Gambit (2...f5) are considered very risky for Black, with the latter usually seen only in correspondence play. The Damiano Defense (2...f6) may be met by either 3.Nxe5 or 3.Bc4 with advantage and
480-430: The most popular openings at all levels of chess, and one of the most extensively analyzed. The Italian Game (3.Bc4) is a popular alternative, usually leading to either the Giuoco Piano (3...Bc5) or the Two Knights Defense (3...Nf6). The Scotch Game (3.d4) was popular in the 19th century and remains so at amateur level. After 3...exd4 White may either recapture with 4.Nxd4, usually leading to an equal game, or play
504-427: The moves: White has moved the king's pawn two squares and Black has replied in kind. The result is an Open Game. Other responses to 1.e4 are termed Semi-Open Games or Single King's Pawn Games. When written in lowercase, the term "open game" refers to a chess position where ranks , files and diagonals are open, and tending to more tactical gameplay. It is possible that an Open Game may lead to
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#1732791955139528-527: The nineteenth century with grandmaster and amateur alike. White offers a pawn for speedy development, as well as to attack Black's central outpost. The Vienna Game also frequently features attacks on the Black center by means of f2–f4. In the Center Game (2.d4), White immediately opens the center, though if the pawn is to be recovered after 2...exd4, White must prematurely develop their queen. An alternative
552-486: The squares d4 and f4. If Black keeps the symmetry by replying 1...e5, the result is an Open Game ( Hooper & Whyld 1996 :279) ( Watson 2006 :87–90). The most popular second move for White is 2.Nf3 (the King's Knight Opening ), attacking Black's king pawn , preparing to castle kingside , and preparing for d2–d4. Black's most common reply to 2.Nf3 is 2...Nc6 . This can lead to the Ruy Lopez (3.Bb5), one of
576-485: Was first analyzed by Cozio in the 18th century. White's best response is 4.d4 (4.d3 Nf6 transposes to the Two Knights Defense ), seeking advantage in the center . Other moves pose fewer problems for Black: 4.c3 Nf6 ( Steinitz ), or 4.0-0 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6 6.d4 Bg4. After 4.d4, Black continues either 4...exd4 or 4...d6. After 4...exd4, 5.Nxd4 would transpose into a variation of the Scotch Game that gives White
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