Ossip Bernstein
Encyclopedia
Ossip Samoilovich Bernstein (20 September 1882 at Zhytomyr
, Russian Empire
(now Ukraine
) – 30 November 1962 in the French Pyrenees
) was a Russian chess
grandmaster and a financial lawyer.
. He earned a doctorate in law at Heidelberg University in 1906, and became a financial lawyer
.
After the First World War, the October Revolution
, and during the Russian Civil War
in 1918, he fled to France. In 1918 he was arrested in Odessa
by the Cheka
(Bolshevik secret police), and ordered shot by a firing squad because he was a legal advisor to bankers. As the firing squad lined up, a superior officer asked to see the list of prisoners' names. Discovering the name of Ossip Bernstein, he was asked whether he was the famous chess master. Not satisfied with Bernstein's affirmative reply, the officer made Bernstein play a game with him. If Bernstein lost or drew
, he would be shot. Bernstein won in short order and was released. He escaped on a British
ship and settled in Paris.
Bernstein was a successful businessman. He earned considerable wealth before losing it in the Bolshevik Revolution
, earned a second fortune that was lost in the Great Depression
, and a third that was lost when France
was invaded by Nazi Germany
in 1940. Bernstein was exiled in Paris
, only to be driven to Spain
by the Nazis, because of his Jewish origin.
Bernstein died in a sanatorium
in the French Pyrenees
in 1962.
"Bernstein" is German
for amber
.
, at Hannover (the 13th DSB Congress
, Hauptturnier A). In 1902/03, he won at Berlin. In September 1903, he took 2nd, behind Mikhail Chigorin
, in the Kiev 1903 chess tournament
(the 3rd All-Russian Masters' Tournament
). In 1903/04, he tied for 2nd-3rd with Rudolf Spielmann
, behind Horatio Caro
, at Berlin. In July–August 1904, he tied for 4th-5th at Coburg (14th DSB Congress). In August 1905, he tied for 4th-5th at Barmen (Masters A). In 1906, he tied for 1st with Carl Schlechter
at Stockholm. In 1906, he tied for 4th-6th at Ostend
. In 1907, he tied for 1st with Akiba Rubinstein
at Ostend (Masters A). In 1909, he took 5th at Sankt Petersburg. In 1911, he won the Moscow City Championship
. In February–March 1911, he tied for 8th-9th in the San Sebastian chess tournament
. In 1912, he took 2nd, behind Rubinstein, at Vilna (All-Russian ch.). In January 1914, he lost an exhibition mini-match against José Raúl Capablanca
at Moscow (+0 –1 =1). In April–May 1914, he tied for 6th-7th with Rubinstein in the St. Petersburg 1914 chess tournament
(Preliminaries).
In 1922, he lost a mini-match against Alexander Alekhine
in Paris
(+0 –1 =1). In 1930, he took 2nd, behind Hans Johner
, at Le Pont. In July 1932, he tied for 5th-6th with Efim Bogoljubow
in Bern. In 1932, he beat Oskar Naegeli
(+3 –1 =0) in Zurich. In 1933, he drew a training match against reigning World Chess Champion Alexander Alekhine in Paris (+1 –1 =2). In 1934, he tied for 6th-7th with Aron Nimzowitsch
in Zurich (Alekhine won). In 1938, he drew a match with Oldřich Duras
in Prague (+1 –1 =1).
During World War II
, he played friendly games with Alekhine and others in Paris in Spring 1940. He fled to Spain after the capitulation of France (Battle of France
) in Summer 1940. When he reached the Pyrenees, he and his family had to walk over mountain roads at night, hiding in caves during the daylight hours to avoid the Germans. After two exhausting nights. he reached Spain. However, Bernstein had a heart attack and was unconscious. The Spanish frontier guards arrested the family and placed them in separate prisons. Through the intervention of some influential friends in Spain, his family was released and was allowed to stay in Spain. He returned to Paris in 1945.
After the WW II, Bernstein came back to chess. In 1946, he took 2nd, behind Herman Steiner
, at London
. In 1946, he tied for 15th-16th at Groningen. In June 1946, he won a game against Lajos Steiner
at a match Australia
vs France in Australia. In December 1948, he drew a game against Reuben Fine
at a cable match New York vs Paris. In April 1954, he lost two games against David Bronstein
at a match France vs The Soviet Union
at Paris. In 1954, he tied for 2nd-3rd with Miguel Najdorf
, behind René Letelier
, at Montevideo
at age 72.
Bernstein played at first board for France at the 11th Chess Olympiad
in Amsterdam
1954 (+5 –5 =5). He was member of the French team, at the 12th Olympiad in Moscow 1956, but he did not play because of illness.
When FIDE introduced official titles in 1950, Bernstein was awarded the International Grandmaster title. He had level or nearly level lifetime scores against such outstanding players as the second World Champion Emanuel Lasker
(+2 –2 =1), Akiba Rubinstein
(+1 –1 =7), Aron Nimzowitsch
(+1 –2 =4), Mikhail Chigorin
(+2 –1 =0) and Salo Flohr
(+0 –0 =3). However, he had a poor record against third World Champion José Raúl Capablanca
(+0 -3 =1); and against the fourth World Champion Alexander Alekhine
(+1 –8 =5).
Zhytomyr
Zhytomyr is a city in the North of the western half of Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Zhytomyr Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Zhytomyr Raion...
, 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...
(now Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
) – 30 November 1962 in the French Pyrenees
French Pyrenees
The French Pyrenees is a large mountain range on the French-Spanish border that is part of the following départements, from east to west: Pyrénées-Orientales, Aude, Ariège, Haute-Garonne, Hautes-Pyrénées, and Pyrénées-Atlantiques ....
) was a Russian chess
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...
grandmaster and a financial lawyer.
Biography
Born in Imperial Russia to a family of Jewish heritage, Ossip Bernstein grew up in pre-revolutionary RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. He earned a doctorate in law at Heidelberg University in 1906, and became a financial lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
.
After the First World War, the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
, and during the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
in 1918, he fled to France. In 1918 he was arrested in Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
by the Cheka
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
(Bolshevik secret police), and ordered shot by a firing squad because he was a legal advisor to bankers. As the firing squad lined up, a superior officer asked to see the list of prisoners' names. Discovering the name of Ossip Bernstein, he was asked whether he was the famous chess master. Not satisfied with Bernstein's affirmative reply, the officer made Bernstein play a game with him. If Bernstein lost or drew
Draw (chess)
In chess, a draw is when a game ends in a tie. It is one of the possible outcomes of a game, along with a win for White and a win for Black . Usually, in tournaments a draw is worth a half point to each player, while a win is worth one point to the victor and none to the loser.For the most part,...
, he would be shot. Bernstein won in short order and was released. He escaped on a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
ship and settled in Paris.
Bernstein was a successful businessman. He earned considerable wealth before losing it in the Bolshevik Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
, earned a second fortune that was lost in the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, and a third that was lost when France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
was invaded by Nazi Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1940. Bernstein was exiled in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, only to be driven to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
by the Nazis, because of his Jewish origin.
Bernstein died in a sanatorium
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
in the French Pyrenees
French Pyrenees
The French Pyrenees is a large mountain range on the French-Spanish border that is part of the following départements, from east to west: Pyrénées-Orientales, Aude, Ariège, Haute-Garonne, Hautes-Pyrénées, and Pyrénées-Atlantiques ....
in 1962.
"Bernstein" is German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
for amber
Amber
Amber is fossilized tree resin , which has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Amber is used as an ingredient in perfumes, as a healing agent in folk medicine, and as jewelry. There are five classes of amber, defined on the basis of their chemical constituents...
.
Chess career
In June 1902, Bernstein won at Berlin. In July–August 1902, he took 2nd, behind Walter JohnWalter John
Walter John , was a German chess master.John was born at Thorn , Poland . He took 2nd, behind Curt von Bardeleben in Café Kerkau, and took 4th at Berlin 1902. He won at Hanover 1902...
, at Hannover (the 13th DSB Congress
DSB Congress
The Deutschen Schachbund had been founded in Leipzig on 18 July 1877. When the next meeting took place in the Schützenhaus on 15 July 1879, sixty-two clubs had become member of the chess federation. Hofrat Rudolf von Gottschall became Chairman and Hermann Zwanziger the General Secretary...
, Hauptturnier A). In 1902/03, he won at Berlin. In September 1903, he took 2nd, behind Mikhail Chigorin
Mikhail Chigorin
Mikhail Ivanovich Chigorin also was a leading Russian chess player...
, in the Kiev 1903 chess tournament
Kiev 1903 chess tournament
The 3rd All-Russian Masters' Tournament took place in the rooms of the Kiev Chess Society in the Popov Building at No. 29 Kreshchatyk in Kiev on September 1–26, 1903...
(the 3rd All-Russian Masters' Tournament
Russian Chess Championship
-Imperial Russia:In 1874, Emanuel Schiffers defeated Andrey Chardin in a match held in St. Petersburg with five wins and four losses. Schiffers was considered the first Russian champion until his student, Mikhail Chigorin, defeated him in a match held in St. Petersburg in 1879...
). In 1903/04, he tied for 2nd-3rd with 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....
, behind Horatio Caro
Horatio Caro
Horatio Caro was an English chess master.Caro was born in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, but spent most of his chess career in Berlin, Germany. He played several matches. In 1892, he drew with Curt von Bardeleben , lost to Szymon Winawer . In 1897, he lost to Jacques Mieses . In 1903, he drew...
, at Berlin. In July–August 1904, he tied for 4th-5th at Coburg (14th DSB Congress). In August 1905, he tied for 4th-5th at Barmen (Masters A). In 1906, he tied for 1st with Carl Schlechter
Carl Schlechter
Carl Schlechter was a leading Austrian chess master and theoretician at the turn of the 20th century. He is best known for drawing a World Chess Championship match with Emanuel Lasker.-Early life:...
at Stockholm. In 1906, he tied for 4th-6th at Ostend
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
. In 1907, he tied for 1st 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...
at Ostend (Masters A). In 1909, he took 5th at Sankt Petersburg. In 1911, he won the Moscow City Championship
Moscow City Chess Championship
-References: ****** from chessbase.com...
. In February–March 1911, he tied for 8th-9th in the San Sebastian chess tournament
San Sebastian chess tournament
-San Sebastian 1911:The tournament was held from February 20 to March 17, 1911. The event was organized by Jacques Mieses, who insisted that all of the expenses of the masters were paid....
. In 1912, he took 2nd, behind Rubinstein, at Vilna (All-Russian ch.). In January 1914, he lost an exhibition mini-match against José Raúl Capablanca
José Raúl Capablanca
José Raúl Capablanca y Graupera was a Cuban chess player who was world chess champion from 1921 to 1927. One of the greatest players of all time, he was renowned for his exceptional endgame skill and speed of play...
at Moscow (+0 –1 =1). In April–May 1914, he tied for 6th-7th with Rubinstein in the St. Petersburg 1914 chess tournament
St. Petersburg 1914 chess tournament
The tournament celebrated the tenth anniversary of the St. Petersburg Chess Society. The president of the organizing committee was Peter Petrovich Saburov. Members of the committee were: Boris Maliutin, Peter Alexandrovich Saburov, and O. Sossnitzky...
(Preliminaries).
In 1922, he lost a mini-match against Alexander Alekhine
Alexander Alekhine
Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine was the fourth World Chess Champion. He is often considered one of the greatest chess players ever.By the age of twenty-two, he was already among the strongest chess players in the world. During the 1920s, he won most of the tournaments in which he played...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
(+0 –1 =1). In 1930, he took 2nd, behind Hans Johner
Hans Johner
Hans Johner was a Swiss chess player.He was awarded the title of International Master in 1950, having been Swiss Champion on a number of occasions...
, at Le Pont. In July 1932, he tied for 5th-6th with Efim Bogoljubow
Efim Bogoljubow
Efim Dmitriyevich Bogolyubov was a Russo-German chess grandmaster who won numerous events and played two matches with Alexander Alekhine for the world championship.-Early career:...
in Bern. In 1932, he beat Oskar Naegeli
Oskar Naegeli
Prof. Dr. Oskar Naegeli , was a Swiss dermatologist and chess master. He represented Switzerland at the Chess Olympiads in 1927, 1928, 1931 and 1935, as well as at the unofficial Olympiad in 1936 at Munich.Naegeli won twice Swiss Chess Championship...
(+3 –1 =0) in Zurich. In 1933, he drew a training match against reigning World Chess Champion Alexander Alekhine in Paris (+1 –1 =2). In 1934, he tied for 6th-7th with Aron Nimzowitsch
Aron Nimzowitsch
Aron Nimzowitsch was a Russian-born Danish unofficial chess grandmaster and a very influential chess writer...
in Zurich (Alekhine won). In 1938, he drew a match with Oldřich Duras
Oldrich Duras
Oldřich Duras was a leading Czech chess master of the early 20th century...
in Prague (+1 –1 =1).
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he played friendly games with Alekhine and others in Paris in Spring 1940. He fled to Spain after the capitulation of France (Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
) in Summer 1940. When he reached the Pyrenees, he and his family had to walk over mountain roads at night, hiding in caves during the daylight hours to avoid the Germans. After two exhausting nights. he reached Spain. However, Bernstein had a heart attack and was unconscious. The Spanish frontier guards arrested the family and placed them in separate prisons. Through the intervention of some influential friends in Spain, his family was released and was allowed to stay in Spain. He returned to Paris in 1945.
After the WW II, Bernstein came back to chess. In 1946, he took 2nd, behind Herman Steiner
Herman Steiner
Herman Steiner was a United States chess player, organizer, and columnist.He won the U.S. Chess Championship in 1948 and became International Master in 1950....
, at London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. In 1946, he tied for 15th-16th at Groningen. In June 1946, he won a game against Lajos Steiner
Lajos Steiner
Lajos Steiner was a Hungarian–born Australian chess master.Steiner was one of four children of Bernat Steiner, a mathematics teacher, and his wife Cecilia,, and a younger brother of Endre Steiner...
at a match Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
vs France in Australia. In December 1948, he drew a game against Reuben Fine
Reuben Fine
Reuben Fine was one of the strongest chess players in the world from the early 1930s through the 1940s, an International Grandmaster, psychologist, university professor, and author of many books on both chess and psychology.Fine won five medals in three chess Olympiads. Fine won the U.S...
at a cable match New York vs Paris. In April 1954, he lost two games against David Bronstein
David Bronstein
David Ionovich Bronstein was a Soviet chess grandmaster, who narrowly missed becoming World Chess Champion in 1951. Bronstein was described by his peers as a creative genius and master of tactics...
at a match France vs The Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
at Paris. In 1954, he tied for 2nd-3rd with Miguel Najdorf
Miguel Najdorf
Miguel Najdorf was a Polish-born Argentine chess grandmaster of Jewish origin, famous for his Najdorf Variation....
, behind René Letelier
René Letelier
René Letelier Martner was a Chilean chess player with the title of International Master.-Biography:...
, at Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
at age 72.
Bernstein played at first board for France at the 11th Chess Olympiad
Chess Olympiad
The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other. The event is organised by FIDE, which selects the host nation.-Birth of the Olympiad:The first Olympiad was unofficial...
in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
1954 (+5 –5 =5). He was member of the French team, at the 12th Olympiad in Moscow 1956, but he did not play because of illness.
When FIDE introduced official titles in 1950, Bernstein was awarded the International Grandmaster title. He had level or nearly level lifetime scores against such outstanding players as the second World Champion Emanuel Lasker
Emanuel Lasker
Emanuel Lasker was a German chess player, mathematician, and philosopher who was World Chess Champion for 27 years...
(+2 –2 =1), 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...
(+1 –1 =7), Aron Nimzowitsch
Aron Nimzowitsch
Aron Nimzowitsch was a Russian-born Danish unofficial chess grandmaster and a very influential chess writer...
(+1 –2 =4), Mikhail Chigorin
Mikhail Chigorin
Mikhail Ivanovich Chigorin also was a leading Russian chess player...
(+2 –1 =0) and Salo Flohr
Salo Flohr
Salomon Mikhailovich Flohr was a leading Czech and later Soviet chess grandmaster of the mid-20th century, who became a national hero in Czechoslovakia during the 1930s. His name was used to sell many of the luxury products of the time, including Salo Flohr cigarettes, slippers and eau-de-cologne...
(+0 –0 =3). However, he had a poor record against third World Champion José Raúl Capablanca
José Raúl Capablanca
José Raúl Capablanca y Graupera was a Cuban chess player who was world chess champion from 1921 to 1927. One of the greatest players of all time, he was renowned for his exceptional endgame skill and speed of play...
(+0 -3 =1); and against the fourth World Champion Alexander Alekhine
Alexander Alekhine
Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine was the fourth World Chess Champion. He is often considered one of the greatest chess players ever.By the age of twenty-two, he was already among the strongest chess players in the world. During the 1920s, he won most of the tournaments in which he played...
(+1 –8 =5).
Notable chess games
- Ossip Bernstein vs Jacques Mieses, Coburg 1904, Sicilian, Taimanov, B45, 1-0
- Ossip Bernstein vs Emanuel Lasker, Sankt Petersburg (prel) 1914, Ruy Lopez, C66, 1-0
- Savielly Tartakower vs Ossip Bernstein, Paris 1937, Philidor Defense, C41, 0-1
- Ossip Bernstein vs Miguel Najdorf, Montevideo 1954, Old Indian, Main line, A55, 1-0 The best game prize!