Peruvian Immortal
Encyclopedia
The Peruvian Immortal is the name given to a spectacular chess
game played by the Peru
vian master
(later grandmaster
) Esteban Canal
against an unknown amateur in a simultaneous exhibition
he gave at Budapest
in 1934. In just 14 moves, Canal sacrificed both his rooks
and his queen
, finishing with Boden's mate
.
Du Mont
calls it, "A charming game." Irving Chernev
writes, "In 13 moves, Canal sacrifices both Rooks and his Queen—and then mates on his 14th move! ... A man might play a million games of chess and never duplicate Canal's feat." Fred Reinfeld
writes, "When Anderssen
sacrificed two Rooks, the Queen etc. against Kieseritzky
, the finished product was described as the immortal game
'. It might be more accurate to call it an immortal game', for since that time there have been many claimants to the title. Not the least deserving is [this] little gem, on which Canal may have lavished something less than five minutes. The game has the blazing quality of a Liszt
improvisation."
Center Counter Game
1. e4 d5
2. exd5 Qxd5
3. Nc3 Qa5
4. d4 c6
5. Nf3 Bg4
6. Bf4 e6
7. h3 Bxf3
8. Qxf3 Bb4
9. Be2 Nd7
10. a3 0-0-0??
In another book, Reinfeld writes, "Black mistakenly thinks that [11.axb4] is out of the question. But White, seeing further ahead and relying on his excellent attacking position, has a stunning surprise continuation." Iakov Neishtadt writes, "Black is convinced that his opponent cannot take the Bishop. This would indeed have been the case if he had played not 10...0-0-0, but 10...Ngf6." Seirawan and Minev
advise, "Motto: Think twice before castling on the Queenside!"
11. axb4!! Qxa1+
12. Kd2! Qxh1
Reinfeld writes (converting his descriptive notation
to algebraic notation
), "Microscopically preferable was 12...Ne5 13.Bxe5 Qxh1 14.Qxf7 Rd7 (amusing would be 14...Ne7 15.Qxe6+! Rd7 16.Bg4 Rhd8 17.Qd6! forcing mate) 15.Qe8+ Rd8 16.Qxe6+ Rd7 17.Qe8+ Rd8 18.Bg4#!"
13. Qxc6+! bxc6
14. Ba6# 1–0
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...
game played by the Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
vian master
Chess master
A chess master is a chess player of such skill that he/she can usually beat chess experts, who themselves typically prevail against most amateurs. Among chess players, the term is often abbreviated to master, the meaning being clear from context....
(later grandmaster
International Grandmaster
The title Grandmaster is awarded to strong chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain....
) Esteban Canal
Esteban Canal
Esteban Canal was a leading Peruvian chess player who had his best tournament results in the 1920s and 1930s.-Birth and life:Born in Chiclayo, Peru, he moved to Italy in the 1920s and remained there.-As a chess player:...
against an unknown amateur in a simultaneous exhibition
Simultaneous exhibition
A simultaneous exhibition or simultaneous display is a board game exhibition in which one player plays multiple games at a time with a number of other players. Such an exhibition is often referred to simply as a "simul".In a regular simul, no chess clocks are used...
he gave at Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
in 1934. In just 14 moves, Canal sacrificed both his rooks
Rook (chess)
A rook is a piece in the strategy board game of chess. Formerly the piece was called the castle, tower, marquess, rector, and comes...
and his queen
Queen (chess)
The queen is the most powerful piece in the game of chess, able to move any number of squares vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. Each player starts the game with one queen, placed in the middle of the first rank next to the king. With the chessboard oriented correctly, the white queen starts...
, finishing with Boden's mate
Boden's Mate
Boden's Mate is a checkmating pattern in chess characterized by bishops on two criss-crossing diagonals , with possible flight squares for the king being occupied by friendly pieces. Most often the checkmated king has castled queenside, and is mated on c8 or c1...
.
Du Mont
Julius du Mont
Julius du Mont was a pianist, piano teacher, chess player, journalist, editor and writer. He studied music at the Frankfurt Conservatoire and at Heidelberg, and became a concert pianist. He emigrated to England as a young man and became a successful piano teacher. Amongst his pupils was Edna Iles...
calls it, "A charming game." Irving Chernev
Irving Chernev
Irving Chernev was a prolific Russian-American chess author. He was born in Priluki in the Russian Empire and emigrated to the United States in 1920. Chernev was a national master strength player, and was obsessed with chess...
writes, "In 13 moves, Canal sacrifices both Rooks and his Queen—and then mates on his 14th move! ... A man might play a million games of chess and never duplicate Canal's feat." Fred Reinfeld
Fred Reinfeld
Fred Reinfeld was an American chess master and a prolific writer on chess and many other subjects, whose books are still read today.-Biography:...
writes, "When Anderssen
Adolf Anderssen
Karl Ernst Adolf Anderssen was a German chess master. He is considered to have been the world's leading chess player in the 1850s and 1860s...
sacrificed two Rooks, the Queen etc. against Kieseritzky
Lionel Kieseritzky
Lionel Adalbert Bagration Felix Kieseritzky was a 19th-century chess master, famous primarily for a game he lost against Adolf Anderssen, which because of its brilliance was named "The Immortal Game".-Early life:...
, the finished product was described as the immortal game
Immortal game
The Immortal Game was a chess game played by Adolf Anderssen and Lionel Kieseritzky on 21 June 1851 in London, during a break of the first international tournament. The very bold sacrifices made by Anderssen to finally secure victory have made it one of the most famous chess games of all time...
'. It might be more accurate to call it an immortal game', for since that time there have been many claimants to the title. Not the least deserving is [this] little gem, on which Canal may have lavished something less than five minutes. The game has the blazing quality of a Liszt
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
improvisation."
The game
Canal vs. N.N., Budapest 1934Center Counter Game
1. e4 d5
2. exd5 Qxd5
3. Nc3 Qa5
4. d4 c6
5. Nf3 Bg4
6. Bf4 e6
7. h3 Bxf3
8. Qxf3 Bb4
9. Be2 Nd7
10. a3 0-0-0??
In another book, Reinfeld writes, "Black mistakenly thinks that [11.axb4] is out of the question. But White, seeing further ahead and relying on his excellent attacking position, has a stunning surprise continuation." Iakov Neishtadt writes, "Black is convinced that his opponent cannot take the Bishop. This would indeed have been the case if he had played not 10...0-0-0, but 10...Ngf6." Seirawan and Minev
Nikolay Minev
Nikolay Nikolaev Minev was born in Rousse, Bulgaria, on 8 November 1931. He is a chess International master and noted chess author....
advise, "Motto: Think twice before castling on the Queenside!"
11. axb4!! Qxa1+
12. Kd2! Qxh1
Reinfeld writes (converting his descriptive notation
Descriptive chess notation
Descriptive notation is a notation for recording chess games, and at one time was the most popular notation in English-speaking and Spanish-speaking countries , . It was used in Europe until it was superseded by abbreviated algebraic notation, which was introduced by Philipp Stamma in 1737...
to algebraic notation
Algebraic chess notation
Algebraic notation is a method for recording and describing the moves in a game of chess. It is now standard among all chess organizations and most books, magazines, and newspapers...
), "Microscopically preferable was 12...Ne5 13.Bxe5 Qxh1 14.Qxf7 Rd7 (amusing would be 14...Ne7 15.Qxe6+! Rd7 16.Bg4 Rhd8 17.Qd6! forcing mate) 15.Qe8+ Rd8 16.Qxe6+ Rd7 17.Qe8+ Rd8 18.Bg4#!"
13. Qxc6+! bxc6
14. Ba6# 1–0