Dawid Przepiórka
Encyclopedia
Dawid Przepiórka was a prominent Polish chess
player of the early twentieth century.
Dawid Przepiórka was born 22 December 1880 in Warsaw
, Poland (then part of the Russian Empire
), to a family of wealthy landowners and entrepreneurs of Jewish extraction. His grandfather, Izrael Przepiórka, built a large house at the crossing of Warsaw's Aleje Jerozolimskie
and Nowy Świat Streets, in the very heart of the city. Both the tenement house and the Gastronomia restaurant located there (one of the most popular restaurants in Warsaw between the wars) provided him with steady income.
However, Przepiórka was more interested in mathematics and chess than doing business. He learned to play chess at the age of seven, on his own, as no one in his family knew the game. Declared a prodigy by the age of nine, soon afterward he managed to beat a well-known chess master Jan Taubenhaus.
Shortly before World War I
, he left his family company for good and started traveling abroad, devoting himself to chess. Abroad he took part in numerous chess tournaments, winning many of them. His international chess career started in 1926. That year he became the first Polish Champion
winning in Warsaw
. The same year he also won a notable tournament in Munich
(+4 –0 =1) ahead of Rudolf Spielmann
and Efim Bogoljubov. He placed second (behind Max Euwe
) in the second and last World's Amateur Championship
in 1928.
Two years later he was part of the Polish team at the 3rd Chess Olympiad
in Hamburg
, where he won the gold medal in a team with Akiba Rubinstein
, Ksawery Tartakower, Kazimierz Makarczyk
and Paulin Frydman. The following year, the team won the silver medal at the 4th Chess Olympiad
in Prague
, being beaten by the United States
by one point.
His successes abroad made him popular among the Polish chess community, and he became the deputy chairman of the Polish Chess Federation
in the 1930s. Przepiórka took the major responsibility as a chairman of Organizing Committee for 6th Chess Olympiad
at Warsaw 1935.
During the Nazi invasion of Poland
, his apartment was destroyed and he moved to share an apartment with fellow chess player and his closest collaborator, Marian Wróbel
. A Gestapo raid on the apartment in January 1940, during an informal meeting of Warsaw chess players, led to the arrest of all present. The non-Jewish participants were released a week later, Przepiórka and the other Jewish players were subsequently executed by the Germans in Palmiry
. The exact date of his death is unknown; it is presumed to be April 1940.
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
player of the early twentieth century.
Dawid Przepiórka was born 22 December 1880 in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Poland (then part of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
), to a family of wealthy landowners and entrepreneurs of Jewish extraction. His grandfather, Izrael Przepiórka, built a large house at the crossing of Warsaw's Aleje Jerozolimskie
Aleje Jerozolimskie
Aleje Jerozolimskie is one of the principal streets of the city of Warsaw in Poland. It runs through the City Centre along the East-West axis, linking the western borough of Wola with the bridge on the Vistula River and the borough of Praga on the other side of the river.The name of the street...
and Nowy Świat Streets, in the very heart of the city. Both the tenement house and the Gastronomia restaurant located there (one of the most popular restaurants in Warsaw between the wars) provided him with steady income.
However, Przepiórka was more interested in mathematics and chess than doing business. He learned to play chess at the age of seven, on his own, as no one in his family knew the game. Declared a prodigy by the age of nine, soon afterward he managed to beat a well-known chess master Jan Taubenhaus.
Shortly before World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, he left his family company for good and started traveling abroad, devoting himself to chess. Abroad he took part in numerous chess tournaments, winning many of them. His international chess career started in 1926. That year he became the first Polish Champion
Polish Chess Championship
Individual Polish Chess Championship is the most important Polish chess tournament, aiming at selecting the best chess players in Poland. Based on the results of the tournament , the Polish Chess Federation selects the national and subsequently the olympiad team.The first men's championship took...
winning in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
. The same year he also won a notable tournament in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
(+4 –0 =1) ahead of Rudolf Spielmann
Rudolf Spielmann
Rudolf Spielmann was an Austrian-Jewish chess player of the romantic school, and chess writer.-Career:He was a lawyer but never worked as one....
and Efim Bogoljubov. He placed second (behind Max Euwe
Max Euwe
Machgielis Euwe was a Dutch chess Grandmaster, mathematician, and author. He was the fifth player to become World Chess Champion . Euwe also served as President of FIDE, the World Chess Federation, from 1970 to 1978.- Early years :Euwe was born in Watergraafsmeer, near Amsterdam...
) in the second and last World's Amateur Championship
2nd Chess Olympiad
The 2nd Chess Olympiad, organized by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between July 21 and August 6, 1928 in The Hague, Netherlands.The final results were as...
in 1928.
Two years later he was part of the Polish team at the 3rd Chess Olympiad
3rd Chess Olympiad
The 3rd Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between July 13 and July 27, 1930, in Hamburg, Germany...
in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, where he won the gold medal in a team with Akiba Rubinstein
Akiba Rubinstein
Akiba Kiwelowicz Rubinstein was a famous Polish chess Grandmaster at the beginning of the 20th century. He was scheduled to play a match with Emanuel Lasker for the world championship in 1914, but it was cancelled because of the outbreak of World War I...
, Ksawery Tartakower, Kazimierz Makarczyk
Kazimierz Makarczyk
Kazimierz Makarczyk was a Polish chess master.In 1922, he took 3rd in Warsaw . In 1926, he finished 10th in the 1st Polish chess championship played in Warsaw. The event was won by Dawid Przepiórka. In 1927, he took 3rd, behind Akiba Rubinstein and Savielly Tartakower, in Łódź...
and Paulin Frydman. The following year, the team won the silver medal at the 4th Chess Olympiad
4th Chess Olympiad
The 4th Chess Olympiad, organized by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between July 11 and July 26, 1931, in Prague, Czechoslovakia...
in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, being beaten by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by one point.
His successes abroad made him popular among the Polish chess community, and he became the deputy chairman of the Polish Chess Federation
Polish Chess Federation
The Polish Chess Federation was created on 11 April 1926 in Warsaw. Józef Żabiński was the first chairman. The initial statute outlined the fundamental objectives of the association including amongst others the popularisation of the game of chess and general organization of the chess movement in...
in the 1930s. Przepiórka took the major responsibility as a chairman of Organizing Committee for 6th Chess Olympiad
6th Chess Olympiad
The 6th Chess Olympiad, organized by the FIDE and comprising an open and women's tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between August 16 and August 31, 1935, in Warsaw, Poland...
at Warsaw 1935.
During the Nazi invasion of Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, his apartment was destroyed and he moved to share an apartment with fellow chess player and his closest collaborator, Marian Wróbel
Marian Wróbel
Marian Wróbel was a prominent Polish chess problemist of the mid-twentieth century. Between 1947 and 1950 he was considered the leading chess composer in the world...
. A Gestapo raid on the apartment in January 1940, during an informal meeting of Warsaw chess players, led to the arrest of all present. The non-Jewish participants were released a week later, Przepiórka and the other Jewish players were subsequently executed by the Germans in Palmiry
Palmiry
Palmiry During World War II, between 1939 and 1943, the village and the surrounding forest was one of the sites of German mass executions of Jews, Polish intelligentsia, politicians and athletes, killed during the AB Action. Most of the victims were first arrested and tortured in the Pawiak prison...
. The exact date of his death is unknown; it is presumed to be April 1940.