The Gunsberg-Steinitz Match,
World Championship 1890-91
Researched by Nick Pope
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MR. STEINITZ WINS AGAIN.
THE CHESS MATCH MADE A TIE.
REFUSING TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE TIME LIMIT - THE GAME.
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The sixth game in the match between Steinitz and
Gunsberg, which was played yesterday, proved more interesting to the
spectators
in some respects than any of its predecessors. There was a better
attendance than usual in the Manhattan Chess Clubs
rooms.
When play began and for some time before the adjournment of the
afternoon
session there was an excited crowd gathered round the show-board in the
big club-room, discussing in an unusually animated manner each move as
it was made and the position of the game generally. |
Steinitz was undoubtedly ill after spending one
of his bad nights, while Gunsberg began the fight under the auspicious
and encouraging circumstances of being a game ahead of his
antagonist.
The younger player brought a surprised look to the face of the veteran
when he opened the game by P-Q 4, this time putting Steinitz in the
position
of defending a Q P opening, instead of carrying on the attack. |
When about fifteen moves had been made Steinitz
was considered to have achieved the advantage of position, and his game
was declared to be in a great measure superior to that of his
rival.
Gunsberg, however, fought gallantly and managed to rid himself of many
of the difficulties which beset his forces, and then Steinitz lost a
pawn,
which somewhat changed the aspect of what had hitherto been looked upon
as a fine game for the theorist. A few more moves,
however, and
matters began to look much more promising for Steinitz. |
It is a peculiar coincidence and one deserving
mention,
that Gunsberg again was the one of [sic] seal his move at the
adjournment,
which has been the case on every previous occasion. On all hands
it was considered that the position as the contestants left it for the
intermission was a very difficult one, and nobody ventured to declare
that
either one or the other of the players had the advantage. Playing
under heavy pressure of time and in an extremely difficult and almost
hopeless
position, Gunsberg managed by a clever effort to bring into play his two
Bishops, which had previously been lying in a useless and blocked
position.
Finally, however, after Steinitz had declined to claim a win because of
his opponents having exceeded the time limit, he announced on his
forty-first
move Mate in three, and brought the game to an admirable and
beautiful
conclusion accordingly. |
Taking the game from the beginning and dealing
more
particularly with the play, it will bee seen that Black was the first to
advance Q B P, which is out of the usual groove. After White had
castled, Black seemed in no hurry to place his King in security, but
proceeded
first to develop the Queens side. Whites eigth move,
sometimes
favored by Bird and Gunsberg, is one of which Steinitz
disapproves.
Black made his eigth and ninth moves with the intention of opening a
centre
and Kings side attack, which is scarecly in accordance with
Steinitzs
style. On his thirteenth move Steinitz began to press his pawns on
the Queens side, and was thereby successful in blocking both the
adverse
Bishops. Complications here seemed to arise and sacrificing
tactics
were expected by the onlookers. Steinitz, however, says that such a
proceeding
was not justified by analysis. Black lost a pawn on his
twenty-second
move, and as a matter of fact Steinitz himself admits that this was the
result of an oversight, but fortunately for him, as the result proved,
it led to a strong attack which caused White ultimately to spend
thirty-four
minutes in deliberation upon his twenty-seventh move, which was the one
he sealed. |
After the adjournment Blacks attention was
directed
to the concentration of his pieces against the King, and also to the
prevention
as far as possible of the exchanges which his adversary was evidently
contemplating.
His Rooks also became harassing to the adverse Queen, and White was
finally
obliged to give up the extra pawn, which had yielded him some hope of
fighting
effectually for a draw. Furthermore, Gunsbergs Kings
side was altogether
compromised, but he made a sturdy defence. For a long time he
warded
off the disaster which loomed inevitably before him, but finally was
obliged
to succumb after the thirty-ninth move of his opponent which brought
inevitably
in its train a mate in a few more moves. |
New-York Daily Tribune,
1890.12.21
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KNIGHTS AT THE BOARD.
HONORS DIVIDED SO FAR IN A SPLENDID FIGHT.
The Veteran Gave a Magnificent Display of Playing
Chess - True, He Blundered Once, but this Gave Him an Attack
Which Gunsberg Could Not Defend.
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The sixth game in the Steinitz-Gunsberg chess
match
began yesterday morning, at the Manhattan Chess Club, under the most
favorable
conditions for the player from England, and he seemed perfectly at ease
with himself and on good terms with the rest of the world. There
must have been a great deal of satisfaction to him in the reflection
that
he was already leading, with two wins to his opponents one.
Then,
again, another thing greatly in his favor was the fact that undeniably
Steinitz was unwell. In fact, in answer to a question on this
point,
Steinitz said he had scarcely had a wink of sleep all through the
preceeding
night and, furthermore, he had been obliged to leave home without his
breakfast.
It could be easily seen from his appearance that he was far from well,
but if anything was required to make assurance on his head doubly sure,
it is only necessary to add that the ever-constant Steinitzian cigar was
absent during yesterdays play. He had no heart for it, and
those
who know him will understand from this that his indisposition was not a
trifling one. |
The opening of the game was perhaps its most
amusing
feature. Gunsberg had the start, and he played P Q 4!
Steinitz
looked and looked at the board, and at last he smiled a faint
smile. |
What, is it Q P you play? |
Yes, I am going to try your game,
replied the
Hungarian. |
His next move, however, proclaimed it to be his
intention to introduce a fresh variety of the Q P opening. During
the early part of play Gunsberg rather handicapped himself by attending
to the keeping of a double score of the game. After making his
twelfth
move his attention was so far distracted from the board that he got up
from the table and left his clock still going. After the lapse of
about a minute his attention was drawn to the fact, and for the moment
he seemed to be under the impression that his opponent had
replied.
A glance at the board, however, showed him what was the matter, and he
pressed down his clock and started that of his adversary, explaining, as
he quickly looked up, It was my own fault. When
Steinitz realized
the position of things, of which he had hitherto remained oblivious, he
said he thought the mistake should be rectified by Gunsberg putting back
his clock; but the latter decided not to take advantage of the
permission
which had been given him to retrieve the lost time. |
As the play progressed from the twelfth to the
nineteenth
move the opinion of the majority of the spectators quickly developed in
favor of Steinitz, and it was declared that with equally careful play to
that which he had already shown, he would be certain to win. It
was
a noticeable fact here, too, that he had the majority of pawns on the Q
side, and with a superior game it might be said that his theory thus
received
a further proof of its soundness. |
Almost from the beginning of play there was a
large
attendance of members and visitors in the club room, and they were soon
rewarded by something interesting. Indeed, by the time white had
made his twentieth move there was more than the usual excitement, and
blacks
reply was awaited with a considerable degree of interest and
anxiety.
Steinitz deliberated twenty-five minutes on this move. |
The clever and astute defence of Gunsberg,
however,
was such as to minimize the evils which surrounded his positionand the
tables were somewhat by what was pronounced to be a blunder on the part
of Steinitz in the twenty-second move, which resulted in his losing a
pawn.
Some rather weak play by Gunsberg, however, neutralized the advantage of
the pawn ahead [...] |
For the fifth time Gunsberg was the player
to seal his move at the adjournment, and so grave did he evidently
consider
his position at this point that he consumed thirty-four minutes in
considering
the move. Just before 5 oclock Steinitz accidentally touched
Gunsbergs
foot beneath the table. In his abstraction, instead of uttering
the
customary form of apology, he exclaimed, Jdoube, which
is the prescribed
formula when a player touches a piece for the purpose of adjusting it
simply,
and without the intention of playing it. When play was resumed
none
of the spectators were sufficiently venturesome to say that either
player
had the best of the game. Later, Gunsbergs position grew
worse,
and, as he was laboring under great time pressure on account of the
thirty-four
minutes he had consumed on his twenty-seventh turn, his position was
declared
to be almost without hope. He had at this stage only six minutes
in which to make eight moves, while Steinitz, having plenty of time in
accumulation, played with great deliberation, evidently forgetting that
by so doing he was allowing his opponent to utilize the time so spent in
studying a way of escape. Ultimately Gunsberg exceeded the time
limit,
and although Steinitz could have claimed the game as a win on this
account,
he refused to do so. A move or two later Steinitz, on his
forty-first
turn, announced mate in three, which he accomplished in a brilliant and
ingenious manner. All through the day the veteran had eschewed the
friendly cigar, but when he had finished play in this satisfactory
manner
he lighted one with evident enjoyment. |
Steinitz supplies the following description of
the
game: Black was the first to advance the Q B P which is a
proceeding
out of the usual groove. After white had castled, black proceeded
to develop the Q side first, and did not hurry to get his K into
security.
Whites eigth move was one which is sometimes favored by Bird and
Gunsberg,
but the modern school disapproves of it. Blacks eighth and
ninth
moves were made with a view of opening a centre and kings side
attack,
which is very rarely in my style. On the thirteenth move black
began
to press his pawns on the Q side and thereby succeeded in blocking the
two adverse bishops. Complications seemed to arise and sacrificing
tactics were probably expected, but they were hardly justifiable in
analysis.
At his twenty-second move black lost a pawn. To tell the truth,
this
was nothing but an oversight at the time, but nevertheless it led to a
very strong attack, which it was so difficult for white to repel that he
took thirty-four minutes to consider his twenty-seventh move, which he
sealed for the adjournment. |
On the resumption of play black directed his
attention
to the concentration of his pieces against the king and at the same time
to preventing, as much as possible, the exchanges which his opponent was
aiming at. His rooks became very harassing to the adverse Q, and
white had ultimately to give the extra pawn, which, under the
circumstances
- his position being altogether inferior - had yielded him some hope of
fighting effectually for a draw. His kings side was
altogether compromised,
but he made a sturdy defence, and staved off for a long time the
inevitable
disaster. He was also very much pressed for time, and had to make
nine moves in eight minutes. Blacks thirty-ninth move was a
coup
which virtually settled the matter by forcing mate in a few
moves. |
The Sun, New York,
1890.12.21
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NOW ITS MR. STEINITZ.
He Is Tied with Mr. Gunsberg in the Chess
Match.
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A numerous and illustrious crowd packed the
handsome
rooms of the Manhattan Chess Club to witness the sixth game of the great
chess match. The President, Prof. Isaac Rice, and the
Vice-President,
Col. Betts, of the Club, were early on hand in the players room,
while
the masters of the New York chess community, E. Delmar, S. Lipschutz, J.
Hanham, A. Hodges and numerous others watched the progress of
yesterdays
contest. |
The opening moves were wuite a disappointment to
the spectators, as they hoped for an Evans Gambit, or at
least a repetition
of Gunsbergs aggressive tactics in the Giuoco Piano. |
The English player, however, started with P-Q4,
and proceeded thereafter to develop his forces without offering the
gambit
usually connected with that opening. The line of play adopted by
the English champion, though leading to a dull game, is theoretically
perfectly
safe, but the first player was not always at his best and was soon
compelled
to move his Q B P, which gave him an inferiority of the position,
besides
condemning his Q B to inactivity. Black instituted an attack with
his pawns on the queens wing and a difficult and complicated
position
arose. The second player made a few feeble queen moves and gave
his
opponent, unnecessarily, an opportunity to win a pawn on his
twenty-third
move. |
The game was now in whites favor, but the
latter,
too eager to fortify the position of his pawns on the queen side, lost
two valuable moves by advancing his Q R P, and, moreover, allowed black
a wide range for his two bishops. At the time of the adjournment
Mr. Gunsberg, realizing the dangerous state of his game, was so excited
that he twice left the playing-room before sealing his move, for which
to decide he consumed fully thirty-five minutes. After the
adjournment,
at 7 oclock, white had but half an hour in which to make fourteen
moves.
A well-directed sacrifice of a pawn gave him considerable relief, but in
spite of intense concentration, time slipped by and amid great
excitement
it was noticed that Gunsbergs clock stood at five minutes to the
hour
and he had yet six moves to make. Those present in the room could
not but admire the coolness with which up to that point white resisted
the attack, but the last five minutes proved too much for him, and his
opponent, taking forcible advantage of the position, managed by a clever
sacrifice of his B to bring about a mating position on the forty-third
move. Score - Gunsberg, 2; Steinitz, 2; drawn, 2. |
The World, New York,
1890.12.21
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Gunsberg,IA Steinitz,W
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(6)
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D05/05 |
Queens Pawn: Closed (Rubinstein)
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1890.12.20 |
USA New York, NY (Manhattan Chess
Club)
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Annotations by Gunsberg &
Steinitz
1.d4 d5 2.e3 e6 3.Bd3 c5
** |
Steinitz: It is a curious
feature
of this game that, while White retains the c-pawn, Black, although
second
player, is the first to advance that pawn. As will be seen, White
intends to turn the game into an ordinary Fianchetto di
Donna. |
4.b3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Nf6
[0:02:30-0:04:00]
6.0-0 Bd7 7.Bb2 Rc8
** |
Gunsberg: A good move played
with the object of continuing with ...Nb4.
Steinitz: This threatens, after
exchanging
pawns, ...Nb4, with a good game. |
8.c3
** |
Gunsberg: A very
disagreeable
alternative.
Steinitz: Hardly advisable in this and
similar situations. |
8...Bd6
** |
Steinitz: Usually the
defense
plays ...Be7 in this opening, but, as White has blocked his own
dark-square
bishop, Black is justified in altering his tactics. |
9.Nbd2 e5
** |
Gunsberg: Always a forcible
move in similar positions.
Steinitz: As in a similar position in
the match between Steinitz and Chigorin at Havana. |
10.dxe5 Nxe5 [0:16-0:15] 11.Nxe5
Bxe5 12.Nf3 Bb8 13.h3
** |
Steinitz: There was hardly
any necessity for this move, which is generally
disadvantageous. |
13...c4 14.Bc2 0-0 15.Qd4 Re8
[0:33-0:24]
16.Rad1 b5 17.b4
** |
Gunsberg: White already has
a serious disadvantage by having his dark-sqaure bishop blocked
in. |
17...Qc7 18.Rfe1
** |
Gunsberg: An unnecessary
move.
White ought to have proceeded at once with 18.Qh4. |
18...Re7 19.Kf1
** |
Gunsberg: If 19.e4 Black
plays
19...dxe4 20.Bxe4 Rd8 which makes it uncomfortable for White. The
text move was played to gain time if necessary to be able to play his
knight.
Steinitz: He might have better utilized
his time by playing first 19.Rd2, with a view of bringing the bishop
back
to d1. |
19...Rce8 20.Qh4 Qd6
[0:53-1:09]
** |
Steinitz: If 20...Re4
21.Bxe4
Rxe4 22.g4 h5 23.Ng5 and Black gets nothing for the loss of the
exchange.
But anyhow the text move was a waste of time, and Black should have
played
20...Qc6 at once. |
21.Rd4 Qc6
** |
Gunsberg: These are aimless
moves which lose time. |
22.Red1 Be5
** |
Gunsberg: A curious
oversight
by which he loses a valuable pawn.
Steinitz: An oversight which loses a
pawn.
Black as it happens obtains a strong attack by the loss of the pawn, as
he liberates his light-square bishop. |
23.Rxd5 Bb8
** |
Gunsberg: He would be mated
if he took the rook with his knight. |
24.a4
** |
Gunsberg: The best play for
White would have been to retire the rook at once to d2. |
24...a6
** |
Steinitz: Black could not
take
the pawn without getting the disadvantage by the reply 25.b5, followed
by 26.Ba3. |
25.a5
** |
Gunsberg: This move gives
Black
a wide range for his pieces. |
25...h6
[1:37-1:25]
** |
Steinitz: A little too
late. |
26.R5d4 Qb7 (Adjourned)
[1:40-1:26]
27.Ne1 (Sealed)
** |
Gunsberg: This move was
sealed.
White was afraid of Black playing ...Bc6, followed by ...Qc7
etc. |
27...Be5 [2:15-1:26] 28.R4d2
Bc7
** |
Steinitz: Black has gained
an important move by this maneuver, whereby he prevents the exchanging
of rooks at later stages. |
29.Re2 Re5
** |
Gunsberg: A strong
move.
He threatens ...Rh5, followed by ...Bxh3 or ...Rxh3.
Steinitz: Threatening
...Rh5. |
30.f3
** |
Gunsberg: The only move to
counteract Blacks powerful
stroke.
Although he gives up a pawn White gains considerable relief for a
time.
Steinitz: About the only
move. |
30...Rxe3 [2:28-1:53]
31.Rxe3
** |
Gunsberg: 31.Be4 would not
have been good on account of 31...Nxe4 32.Rxe3 Ng3+ 33.Kf2 Rxe3 34.Rxd7
Re2+ and mates in two more moves.
Steinitz: If 31.Be4, which White
probably
speculated upon, then 31...R8xe4 32.fxe4 Bg3 and wins. |
31...Rxe3 32.Bc1
** |
Gunsberg: A very useful move
if Black now plays 32...Rxc3, White gets pull by 33.Bb2. |
32...Re5
** |
Gunsberg: If White now plays
33.Bf4 and Black replies with 33...Rh5 34.Qg3 Rxh3 35.gxh3 Nh5 36.Qh4,
White gets the best of it. But an interesting variation arises if,
after White playing 33.Bf4, Black should continue with 33...Rh5 34.Qg3
Rg5 35.Qh2 Bxf4 36.Qxf4 Nd5 37.Rxd5 Rxd5 (he cannot take with the queen
because of 38.Qb8+.) 38.Be4, etc.
Steinitz: White threatened Bxh6, which
is now prevented, as Black would answer ...Rh5. The text move was
also better than 32...Rxc3, as White would answer 33.Bb2, with an
excellent
attack. |
33.Qf2 Qc6 34.Be3
** |
Gunsberg: 34.g4 might
perhaps
have been played here. |
34...Re8 35.Qd2 Qe6 [2:42-2:11]
36.Bd4
** |
Gunsberg: If 36.Bf4, Black
plays 36...Bxf4 37.Qxf4 Qe2+ 38.Kg1 Qe3+ 39.Qxe3 Rxe3 40.Kf2 Rxc3
41.Rd6,
with a good game. |
36...Nh5 37.Bf2
** |
Steinitz: If 37.Bxg7 Ng3+
38.Kg1
Kxg7, and obviously White dare not take the bishop as mate would follow
in a few moves, beginning with 39...Qe3+. |
37...Bc6 38.Bb1 Qe5 39.Nc2 Bxf3
** |
Gunsberg: All these moves
were
made under great time pressure. Black now seizes a chance for a
pretty
mating combination.
Steinitz: This is decisive. |
40.gxf3
** |
Gunsberg: If 40.Re1 Bxg2+
41.Kxg2
Qh2+ 42.Kf1 Qh1+ 43.Bg1 etc., the same as in the text. |
40...Qh2 41.Qd7 Qh1+ 42.Bg1 Qxf3+
43.Bf2 Ng3+ [2:47-2:29] 0-1.
** |
Gunsberg: Mate follows next
move. |
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The Sun, New York,
1890.12.21
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The World, New York,
1890.12.21
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New-York Daily Tribune,
1890.12.21
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