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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201212
DTSTAMP:20260817T135602Z
CREATED:20190822T155314Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135602Z
UID:985-1607644800-1607731199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Joseph Blake (11-xii-1951)
DESCRIPTION:We remember English player Joseph Blake who passed away on Tuesday\, December 11th\, 1951. \nJoseph Henry Blake was born on Thursday\, February 3rd\, 1859 in Farnborough\, Hampshire. His parents were Joseph Denner and Eliza Blake (née Early). In 1871 Joseph (aged 12) had a brother Frank (aged 10)\, sisters Annie (8)\, Elizabeth S (7)\, Eliza E (1) and a servant\, Kate Longman aged 18. The family lived in Lydia Cottage\, Hewitts Road\, Millbrook\, South Stoneham\, Hampshire. \nAccording to the 1861 census Joseph was two years old and living with his parents and Frank in Rotten Row\, Yeovil\, Somerset. \nIn 1881 the family has upped sticks again and moved to 2 St. Lawrence Road\, Saint Mary\, Eastleigh\, Hampshire. This address is also given as the South West Telegraph Office. Eliza was now the head of the household and a widower. Apart from Eliza E aged 11 everyone worked for the railway. \nIn 1891 Joseph had become Head of the Household (aged 32) and they had acquired a servant (Anna M Cornell) and a blacksmith (Francis Cornell) from Braintree in Essex. \nIn 1900 Joseph married Alice New in Cheltenham\, Gloucestershire. They lived at 24\, Barton Road\, Eastleigh\, Hampshire. Tragically\, Alice passed away in 1903. \nJoseph Henry Blake\nBy 1911 Joseph was 52 and had retained his career as a Railway Clerk. He lived at 33\, Broomfield Road\, Tolworth\, Surrey : \n33\, Broomfield Road\, Tolworth\, Surrey\nHe is recorded as the head of a household of one and a widower. \nIn 1939 Joseph was living at 10 Springfield Court\, Springfield Road\, Kingston Upon Thames\, Surrey. He was now retired. \nNo doubt there would have been other addresses not captured by the census records. \nAccording to The Encyclopedia of Chess\, (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“A leading British player in the 1890s and for many years editor of the Games Section of the British Chess Magazine between the two world wars. Blake’s best tournament performance came at the age sixty-three when\, at Weston-super-Mare in 1922\, he came 1st ahead of Maróczy\, Kostić\, Sir George Thomas and Yates. \nThe remarkable feature about Blake’s chess career is that he retained his skill and his comprehension of the game for a much longer period that most chess players. This extended from 1887 when he was 1st at the Counties Chess Association tournament at Stamford ahead of Bird and Pollock\, a performance he was to repeat in 1891 at Oxford\, to 1909 when he tied with H. E. Atkins for first place in the British Championship\, to 1923 when he won the Weston-super-Mare tournament\, right into the 1930s when he was principal annotator for the British Chess Magazine.” \nChess Endings for Beginners\, JH Blake\, George Routledge First Edition (1900)\nand according to The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976)\, Anne Sunnucks : \n“One of the leading British players at the end of the last century and the beginning of the present century. Born on 3rd February 1859. Represented England in the Anglo-American cable matches in 1902 and 1909. His best results were 1st in the Counties’ Chess Association Tournament 1887\, ahead of Bird and MacDonnell; =1st with HE Atkins in the 1909 British Championship\, but lost the play-off for the title; 1st at Weston-super-Mare 1922 ahead of Maroczy\, Kostich\, Sir George Thomas and Yates\, and winner of the brilliancy prize for his game against Sir George Thomas; 2nd in the international correspondence chess tournament organised by Le Monde Illustre in 1895. \nBlake was President of the Southern Counties Chess Association in 1911 and President of the Hampshire Chess Association from 1910-1912 and from 1927-1929. He was also Hon. Secretary of the City of London Chess Club for some years.” \nAccording to Tim Harding in the excellent Correspondence Chess in Britain and Ireland\, 1824-1987 : \nRailway clerk Joseph Henry Blake\, the leading English correspondence player of the 1890s; also a strong OTB amateur player. He was a regular contributor to British Chess Magazine from the 1880s to the late 1930s. \nIn British Chess Magazine\, Volume XXXIX (39\, 1919)\, Number 3 (March) we have the following from Julius du Mont : “I presume it relates more particularly to chess professionals in this country\, at any rate\, it does not seem to me that the jews hold rank amongst first-class amateurs in proportion to their numbers. \nIn London there are very few if any of the class of RC Griffith\, GA Thomas\, JH Blake\, HG Cole\, EG Sergeant\, and many others to say nothing of the younger recruits \, W.Winter and RHV Scott.” \nFrom the 1949 British Chess Magazine (written by RN Coles) we have this : \nJH Blake is Ninety \nAfter an absence of ten years I looked in recently on the Kingston and Thames Valley Chess Club. There were many new faces and a number of familiar ones\, among the latter one of rosy countenance\, trim beard and twinkling eyes\, none other than JH Blake\, more vigorous than ever and attaining his 90th birthday on the 3rd February. \nTwenty years ago in this same club I (RN Coles) was learning the game\, now middle age approaches. Blake was an elderly man in those days\, who had retired from all competitive play because of the strain it imposed; now\, so far from showing the weight of years\, he is back in competitive chess again.  He won the club championship last year and is in a fair way to repeating his victory this year. Of all the ‘Grand Old Men’ of chess\, few have still been champions in their 90th year. \nOlder readers of the BCM will remember him as their Games Editor for many years\, but few memories will cover the whole series of his successes beginning with a 1st at Stamford in 1887. Even 1922 must seem a distant year to the generation of today. That was the year that Maroczy and Kostic were invited to Weston-super-Mare to meet such rising young English masters as FD Yates and Sir George Thomas. And the first prize amongst those talented players was won by JH Blake\, who had been born just when Morphy returned to England after his Paris Victory over Anderssen ! \nAll readers of the BCM and all players everywhere will wish Britain’s oldest master continued health and increasing vigour\, and those who knew him today will be surprised if he does not continue his attack for another decade at least. \nBesides winning the first prize at Weston Blake also won the brilliancy prize with the following game : (#10\,229) \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February)\, pp.44-46 contained an obituary with articles from MDB* : \n*(Careful investigation by Richard James suggest that MDB is Mabel Dorothy Barker\, JHB’s niece in 6th Cross Road.) \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February) pp. 44 – 46\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February) pp. 44 – 46\nand EG Sergeant : \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February) pp. 44 – 46\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February) pp. 44 – 46\n\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFor more on this game and its often mis-reported continuation see this article from Edward Winter. \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Joseph Henry Blake (3 February 1859\, Farnborough\, Hampshire – 11 December 1951\, Kingston-upon-Thames) was an English chess master. \nBlake won many tournaments played in England toward the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. He won at Stamford 1887\, Oxford 1891 (joint)\, Brighton 1892\, Cambridge 1893\, and Salisbury 1898 (joint). He also took 5th at Manchester 1882\, tied for 3-4th at Birmingham 1883 (Section B)\, took 4th at Bath 1884\, tied for 6-8th at London 1889 (Henry Bird won)\, took 2nd at Cambridge 1890\, tied for 3rd-4th at Woodhall Spa 1893\, shared 2nd at Craigside 1895\, took 3rd at Hastings (Amateur) 1895\, took 2nd\, behind Henry Ernest Atkins\, at Bristol 1896\, and won at Folkestone 1901. \nHe took 2nd in an international correspondence tournament organised by Le Monde Illustré in 1895\, shared 1st in the 1909 British Championship in Scarborough but lost to Atkins the play-off\, and shared 1st at London 1911. He was British correspondence champion in 1922. \nBlake represented England in cable matches against the United States in 1902\, 1909 and 1910. \nHis best achievement was victory\, ahead of Géza Maróczy\, George Alan Thomas\, Fred Yates and Boris Kostić\, at Weston-super-Mare 1922. He shared 2nd at London 1922 (Major Open)\, tied for 7-8th at Hastings International Chess Congress 1922/23 (Akiba Rubinstein won)\, took 2nd\, behind Thomas\, at London 1923\, took 5th at Liverpool 1923 (Jacques Mieses won)\, tied for 7-8th at Hastings 1923/24 (Max Euwe won)\, tied for 6-7th at Weston-super-Mare 1924 (Euwe won)\, took 2nd\, behind R.P. Michell\, at London 1925\, took 4th at London 1926 (Victor Buerger won)\, and tied for 7-9th at Weston-super-Mare 1926 (Euwe won).” \nHe is the author of Chess endings for beginners (London 1900). \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-joseph-henry-blake/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201212
DTSTAMP:20201211T135933Z
CREATED:20191211T101420Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201211T135933Z
UID:2290-1607644800-1607731199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of FM Peter Clarke (18-iii-1933 11-xii-2014)
DESCRIPTION:PH Clarke\nWe remember FM Peter Clarke who passed away on Thursday\, December 11th\, 2014 whilst living at Chapel House\, Bude\, Cornwall\, EX23 9SQ \nPeter Hugh Clarke was born on Saturday\, March 18th 1933 in West Ham\, London. His mother’s maiden name was Ekblom. \nFrom The Modest Master of Morwenstow by James Pratt (sadly\, as yet\, unpublished) : \n“Peter Hugh Clarke was born in London on 18th March\, 1933. At the age of eight or nine he taught himself the game from ‘The Book of Knowledge’ and played friendly games with his cousin\, who was about a year older. Peter’s father supported his game for many years. PHC was a student at St. Bonaventures School and London University. World War II\, and its even longer aftermath\, robbed him of a number of playing opportunities. It is surprising that he had no childhood heroes\, although later the play of Botvinnik\, Keres and Smyslov impressed him.” \nPeter Clarke with father\, Courtesy of Keverel Chess\nFrom British Chess (Pergamon\, 1983) written by George Botterill : \nChess correspondent of The Sunday Times\, Clarke played for England in the Olympiads of 1954\, 56\, 58\, 60\, 62\, 66 and 68. He has never won the British Championship but has come 2nd on 5 occasions. \nA fine writer. His best books are Mikhail Tal’s Best Games of Chess \nMikhail Tal’s Best Games of Chess\, PH Clarke\, Bell\, 1961\nand Petrosian’s Best Games of Chess 1946-1963 both published by Bell. \nPetrosian’s Best Games of Chess 1946-1963\, PH Clarke\, George Bell & Sons Ltd\, 1964\nThe most remarkable thing about Clarke’s chess career was they way in which he became transformed\, in about 1968-9\, into the most drawish of players. In British tournaments he has become notorious for correct but dull solidity.” \nPeter was Southern Counties (SCCU) Champion for the 1945-55 season. \nPeter was England’s third Correspondence Grandmaster (CGM) in 1980 after Keith Richardson and Adrian Hollis. \nPeter at the dinner table\nFrom BCM / ECF : \n“FIDE and British Master P.H. Clarke will be best remembered as biographer to Tal and to Petrosyan\, but he was so much more. The young Clarke played for Ilford CC in the London League and for Essex at county level. Doing national service he was to learn the Russian that was to so shape his writings. \nThe 1964 England Olympiad (Tel Aviv) Team : Owen Hindle\, Čeněk Kottnauer\, Peter Clarke\, Michael Franklin\, Norman Littlewood & Michael Haygarth\nFor a brief period in the late 1950s\, and early sixties\, he was the number two player in England\, ahead of the vastly more experienced Alexander and Golombek. He played\, of course\, below Jonathan Penrose\, a partnership that bore fruit when preparing openings; latterly they both became Correspondence Grandmasters.” \nPeter Clarke at the 1963 Ilford Whitsun Congress. Source : British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXXIII\, Number 7 (July)\, page 194\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFM Peter Clarke\n“At the British Championships itself he finished second on his first appearance; he was to tie for silver medal on no less than five occasions\, appearing\, almost without a break for thirty years\, a run that ended in 1982. He represented the BCF – as it then was – in eight Olympiads\, playing on top board in 1966. \nBorislav Ivkov playing Peter Clarke at the 1960 Leipzig Olympiad. The game was a QGA which was drawn\nThe Clarke family moved to the West of England in the late Sixties. PHC played in thirteen WECU Championships\, and lost only twice. As a player he could be cautious\, agreeing too readily to draws. Accuracy and respect meant more to him than ambition. The biographer became a journalist as illness cut short his playing career. In his time he beat Larsen\, Penrose and Szabo. \n \nIn 1962 he married BH Wood’s daughter\, Peggy. They had three daughters. In 1975 my mother happened across Peter and Peggy on Morecambe prom. ‘Never’ she was later to tell me\, ‘have I seen a couple more in love.'” \nPeter Clarke & Peggy Wood in 1962\, Courtesy of Keverel Chess\nWe are grateful to James Pratt to allow us to quote from the the sadly unpublished “Modest Master from Morwenstow” as follows : \nPHC by John Littlewood : \n“Peter had a relatively short career at the top and it is interesting to comment on his style. In essence\, his great strength lay in positional understanding which backed-up his defensive skills rather than helped his ability to create wins; in other words\, he won games in which his opponents over-pressed or opted for dubious positional moves. \nAfter doing well in English chess\, he was perhaps pushed into international chess too early for him to develop his own personal creative style. Playing for England and meeting strong players\, he tended towards a rather negative approach that may have been necessary for the team but was not good for his own personal progress\, as shown when he later met English opponents who outstripped him in their positive will-to-win. His friendship with Penrose (a far stronger player) led to far too many draws which did neither of them any good. \nMikhail Tal’s Best Games of Chess\, PH Clarke. Bell\, 1961\nTo be fair\, Peter was not an easy player to beat but\, on the other hand\, he was not too hard to draw against if you felt so inclined. His forte lay in his knowledge of the game and his excellent writing skills\, where he was at his happiest; there is hardly a book of his that I haven’t enjoyed.” \nPetrosian’s Best Games of Chess 1946-1963\, PH Clarke\, Bell\, 1971\nWriting in BCM 04/64\, John Littlewood called PHC a self-style non-tactician and disagreed with Clarke’s belief in the inner logic (‘I have made no mistakes and therefore my position is OK.’) of positions where tactics are to the fore. \nFM Peter Clarke\nPHC by Leonard Barden : \n“Peter’s contribution to British Chess was important as a player and even more so as a writer. His best period was 1956-61. He\, Penrose and myself used to stay in the same hotel during the British Championships and prepare and analyse together\, although we played hard when actually paired. Peter was the solid man in the English team\, gradually taking over the role of Golombek. It was important that we did reasonably well in this period which provided a bridge between the Alexander/Golombek era and the rise of Keene/Hartston. \nPeter was always a good friend to me and his family gave me hospitality each year during the Ilford Congress. Peter’s books\, especially the one about Tal\, were real works of scholarship in an era where there were no computers to facilitate the job. He could have achieved more as a player if he had been able to concentrate fully on that\, but the economic climate then was poor for professionals.” \nPeter and life long friend\, Jonathan Penrose\, Courtesy of Keverel Chess\nPHC by Bernard Cafferty : \n“Right up to that point of his illness in the 1980’s he had worthily defended the reputation of the older generation in the British Championship\, as the last survivor\, still active at that level\, from the Penrose era. I first saw Peter at the 1951 British Championship at Chester and first played him at the 1952 Bristol Universities individual contest. \n24th USSR Chess Championships\, PH Clarke\, British Chess Magazine\, 1959\nHe left the University of London before taking his degree (study of chess rather taking over his life)\, but then had the good fortune to go on to study Russian while doing his National Service\, around 1954-55. Or was he still in the Army when the Moscow 1956 Olympiad took place? He certainly did well there\, perhaps less affected than other Westerners by the strangeness of the place that was just recovering slightly from the depths of Stalin’s baleful influence. \n  \nVV Smyslov – My Best Games of Chess\, edited and translated by PH Clarke\, Routledge and Kegan Paul\, 1958\nI do recall that for a couple of years Peter changed his cautious style. This was around 1957-58 when he scored one of his two wins against Penrose. Was it at Ilford? I remember that the game appeared with notes by B.H. Wood in ‘The Illustrated London News’ column. \nCien Miniaturas Rusas\n  \nI used to see Peter regularly at the Paignton and Hastings Congresses in the 1990’s but not in the last couple of years. His health seems restored.” \nPeter with Brian Reilly observing playing ? with ? in the background.\nPHC by Ken Harman : \n“I am very pleased to hear about your book about Peter Clarke; not sure I can contribute much as I wasn’t a friend of his so only knew him through seeing him and Margaret at chess tournaments. He was a quiet spoken gentleman who played such quiet positional chess that I would call it ‘monastic chess’. I think Clarke thought chess a search for spiritual truth\, only to be found in the cloisters of spiritual truth\, only to be found in the cloisters of contemplative life – ‘The Thomas Merton of Chess’\, if you like. Of course\, I have no idea if he was a spiritual man in real life but his chess always struck me as if he was reaching for heaven and found hell in a doubled pawn. He seemed like a nice man and I suspect his wife Margaret was the dominant one. I have his book on Mikhail Tal’s Best Games of Chess (Bell 1961) which is signed by him and may well have been his copy\, because as you open the book – there is a small newspaper clipping and a photo of Clarke sellotaped which is rather unusual being that the book is about Tal\, and not him. ” \nPeter plays Erich Gottlieb Eliskases at the 1960 Leipzig Olympiad\nPHC by Alan P. Borwell (ICCF Honorary President) : \n“I first met Peter at the 1959 BCF Congress in York when I was a member of local organising committee and then at Paignton and when York played & won the National Club Championship in 1964/5. \nIn 1966 I played Peter in the British Chess Championship in last round in Sunderland.” \nPeter analyses “al fresco” with ?. Possibly from Hastings ?\nand from Wikipedia : \nPeter Hugh Clarke (18 March 1933 – 11 December 2014) was an English chess player\, who hold titles FIDE master (FM) and International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster (1980)\, FIDE International arbiter (1976)\, Chess Olympiad individual silver medal winner (1956). \nPeter Clarke started playing chess at the age of six. He twice won the London Boys’ Chess Championship (1950\, 1951). He was British Chess Championship multiplier participant where five times won silver medal. \nSince 1959\, Peter Hugh Clarke has been working as a chess journalist in the newspaper Sunday Times and magazine British Chess Magazine. He known as the biographical book’s author of Mikhail Tal (1961) and Tigran Petrosian (1964). Thanks to his good knowledge of Russian language\, he translated the book about Vasily Smyslov in 1958. In 1963 he wrote a book 100 Soviet Chess Miniatures. \nPeter Clarke played for England in the Chess Olympiads : \nIn 1954\, at second reserve board in the 11th Chess Olympiad in Amsterdam (+2\, =2\, -3)\,\nIn 1956\, at reserve board in the 12th Chess Olympiad in Moscow (+7\, =5\, -0) and won individual silver medal\,\nIn 1958\, at fourth board in the 13th Chess Olympiad in Munich (+2\, =10\, -3)\,\nIn 1960\, at third board in the 14th Chess Olympiad in Leipzig (+4\, =7\, -3)\,\nIn 1962\, at second board in the 15th Chess Olympiad in Varna (+3\, =10\, -2)\,\nIn 1964\, at second board in the 16th Chess Olympiad in Tel Aviv (+2\, =8\, -2)\,\nIn 1966\, at first board in the 17th Chess Olympiad in Havana (+2\, =10\, -1)\,\nIn 1968\, at third board in the 18th Chess Olympiad in Lugano (+0\, =7\, -1).\nAlso he played for England in the World Student Team Chess Championship (1954\, 1959)and in the Clare Benedict Chess Cup (1960-1961\, 1963\, 1965\, 1967-1968) where won team silver medal (1960) and 4 bronze medals (1961\, 1963\, 1967\, 1968). \nIn later years\, Peter Clarke active participated in correspondence chess tournaments. In 1977\, he won British Correspondence Chess Championship. In 1976\, Peter Clarke was awarded the International Correspondence Chess Master (IMC) title and received the International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster (GMC) title four years later. \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-fm-peter-hugh-clarke-18-iii-1933-11-xii-2014/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Correspondence,Death Anniversary,History,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201212
DTSTAMP:20260817T135547Z
CREATED:20210125T154414Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135547Z
UID:13467-1607644800-1607731199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Richard Griffith (22-vii-1872 11-xii-1955)
DESCRIPTION:Death Anniversary of Richard Griffith (22-vii-1872 11-xii-1955) \nSee Chess World\, Volume 11\, Number 6\, June 1956\, page 128. \nHere is his Wikipedia entry. \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-richard-griffith-22-vii-1872-11-xii-1955/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,History,Player,Writer
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201212
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201213
DTSTAMP:20201212T190642Z
CREATED:20200407T103614Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201212T190642Z
UID:4127-1607731200-1607817599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of David Pritchard (19-x-1919 12-xii-2005)
DESCRIPTION:We remember David Pritchard who passed away on Monday\, December 12th\, 2005. \nDavid Brine Pritchard was born on Sunday\, October 19th\, 1919. On this day the first US Distinguished Service Medal was awarded to a living female recipient\, Anna Howard Shaw. \nHe was born in Wandsworth taking his mothers’  Winifred maiden name of Brine (as was customary in those days). His father was Arthur Pritchard (DoB : 4th January 1890) and he was the managing director of an Engineering Company. Arthur and Winifred married in Maidenhead\, Berkshire in 1917. \nAt the time of the 1939 census David was a chiropodist and recorded as single and living in Munee Cottage\, Main Street\, Bedford. Main Street appears to have been renamed to Main Road which is in Biddenham. It is likely DBPs cottage was something like : \n48 and 50 Main Road Biddenham\, Bedford\, Hertfordshire\nDuring the second world War David joined the Royal Air Force and was stationed in the Far East and following the war\, he switched to intelligence work also for the RAF. He attained the rank of Squadron Leader and played much chess during this period of his life. \nIn 1950 David completed his first book : The Right Way to Play Chess\, Elliot Right Way Books\, 1950\, ISBN 1-58574-046-2 \nThe Right Way to Play Chess\, Elliot Right Way Books\, DB Pritchard\, 1950.\n(Ed : This was the first chess book of this article’s author and was thoroughly consumed!) \nOn page 224 of said book David wrote : \nChessplayers – and this must be whispered – are generally an egotistical\, ill-mannered crowd. If they conformed to common rules of decorum these words would not have to be written \nfollowed by \nI once carried out a private survey at a well-known chess restaurant where a large number of ‘friendly’ games are always in progress. In less than 30 per cent of those observed was resignation made with a good grace. In two-thirds of the games the loser either knocked his king over\, abruptly pushed the pieces into the centre of the board\, started to set up the men for a fresh game\, or got up and walked away without saying a word to his opponent. \nHe married Elaine Saunders in 1952. \nElliot Right Way Books was an excellent choice of publisher for David and only 36 minutes by car from his new home in Godalming. \nHe won the Singapore Championship in 1954 and the Malaysian Championship in 1955. \nVisiting https://www.chesshistory.com/winter/winter97.html you will find two images of David and Elaine playing chess in Singapore. \nDavid and Elaine had a daughter\, Wanda on March 21st 1958. She became Wanda Dakin who was also a chess player. Wanda attended Guildford High School for Girls and then Royal Holloway College\, Egham. \nDavid was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 1958-59 and 1965-66 seasons. \nFrom the British Championships\, 1959 in York we have this sparkling game with Frank Parr : \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nBy now David had developed an  interest in chess variants and board games in general. \nHe played in and won (several times) the Battle of Britain Chess Tournament : DBP was the organisations President. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIn 1970 he brought out his third book :  Begin Chess\, David Pritchard\, Elliot Right Way Books\, 1952 \nBegin Chess by David Brine Pritchard\, Elliot Right Way Books\, 1970\nBegin Chess by David Brine Pritchard\, Elliot Right Way Books\, 1970\nDavid became President of British Chess Variants Society and wrote many books on variants and indoor games. \nHere is an interview compiled by Hans Bodlaender about David’s Encyclopedia of Chess Variants : \nEncyclopedia of Chess Variants\, DB Pritchard\, GAMES & PUZZLES PUBLICATIONS\, 1994\nParticularly interesting was this Q&A : \nDo you think computers and the Internet will have effect on chess and on chess variants? If so\, in what way? \nI think that the Internet will inevitably introduce chess to more players but I forsee chess variants\, because of their novelty\, benefitting in particular from publicity on the net. I expect variants to gain more and more adherents in the future. \nDavid was preparing a second edition before he passed away. This was completed and made available on-line by John Beasley. \nThe Pritchard family lived at Badgers Wood\, Hascombe Road\, Godalming\, Surrey\, GU8 4AA in an idyllic location : \nBadgers Wood\, Hascombe Road\, Godalming\, Surrey\, GU8 4AA\nand here is the exceptional interior with games room : \n  \nBadgers Wood\, Hascombe Road\, Godalming\, Surrey\, GU8 4AA\nAt the time of his passing he had five grand children. \nFrom British Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXVI (126\, 2006)\, Number 2 (February)\, page 76 : \n“David Brine Pritchard (19 x 1919 Streatham\, London – 12 xiii 2005\, London) has died following a fall . He was a strong amateur player and a successful author of books on chess and other games. \nDavid Pritchard was a Squadron Leader in the RAF during the war and later rejoined it to work in intelligence. Whilst serving with the RAF he won the Malayan Chess Championships in 195\, and he was also instrumental in the running the UK event known as Battle of Britain Tournament which attracted a strong field in its heyday and generated revenue for the RAF Benevolent Fund. \nHe was a dangerous. attacking played who scored a number of notable scalps in the British Championship including Penrose and Miles\, without ever achieving the consistency required to challenge for the leading positions.  He won the Southern Counties championships in 1959 and 1966. \nAs an author\, Pritchard’s most successful book was The Right Way to Play Chess (Elliott\, 1950\, with numerous reprints). which is still to be found for sale in many British bookshops. \nHe will also be remembered as a leading authority on chess variants : he was reported to be in the process of preparing a second edition of The Encyclopedia of Chess Variants (1994) at the time of his death. He was also a very good correspondence player\, an inventor composer of chess puzzles of all sorts (some of which appeared in BCM) and his interest in Fairy chess dated back to the 1940s. \nHis wife Elaine Pritchard\, the leading woman player of the 1950s and 1960s\, and their daughter Wanda (who also played competitive chess) survive him. We send them our condolences on behalf of BCM and its readers.” \nDavid Pritchard (19-x-1919 12-xii-2005)\, Passport photograph\nHe was a leading member of Godalming Chess Club and played in the Surrey Border League. \nThe David Pritchard Shield from the Surrey Border League\nHere is David’s Wikipedia entry \nThe Family Book of Games\, DB Prichard\, Brockhampton Press\, 1994\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-david-brine-pritchard-19-x-1919-12-xii-2005/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player,Variants,Writer
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201215
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201216
DTSTAMP:20201226T165141Z
CREATED:20190822T163644Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201226T165141Z
UID:1000-1607990400-1608076799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Horatio Caro (05-vii-1862 15-xii-1920)
DESCRIPTION:We remember Horatio Caro who passed away on Wednesday\, December 15th\, 1920. \nHoratio Caro was born on Saturday\, July 5th 1862. On the same day Heinrich Georg Bronn\, German geologist and paleontologist passed away. \nHis parents were (in the 1861 census) Jacob and Mathilda Caro (née Lüpschütz\, possibly Lipschütz) living at 4\, Warwick Place\, Jesmond\, Newcastle upon Tyne. \nHoratio’s birth was recorded at Lombard Street\, Newcastle upon Tyne. \nJacob and Horatio moved to Berlin to live at 2\, Winterfeld Strasse. They both had joint German/British citizenship. \nIn 1896 Jacob passed away and his affairs were handled by family solicitors\, Daggett and Grey of 3 Dean Street\, Newcastle-upon-Tyne : \nThe London Gazette\, 1896\nOn December 15th 1920 JHD Reid\, Master of the Institution of South Grove (a workhouse) recorded the discharge of Horatio. The reason stated was “dead”. \nHis death was registered in Mile End Old Town and he is buried in the East Ham Jewish cemetery\, London Borough of Newham\, Greater London located at Section E Row 18 Plot 14. \nGrave marker for Horatio Caro. Photograph from Gordon Cadden to Ken Whyld Assocation\nAccording to Wolfgang Heidenfeld in The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“A minor English master who spent most of his chess life in Berlin. Though he had indifferent tournament not much better match results (he lost to Mieses\, and Winawer\, drew twice with Von Bardeleben and beat Lewitt)\, his name has become immortal through the Caro-Kann Defence\, which he expounded in his own journal\, Brüderschaft\, in 1886.” \nThe Caro-Kann Defence is characterised by \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n(as an alternative to the French Defence) in which the c8 bishop may be active from an early stage. \nCaro famously was able to overcome Emanuel Lasker in just 14 moves in 1890 : \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nThere is also the Caro Variation of the Ponziani Defence which was known since the 1850s and recommended by Caro in Deutsches Wochenschach\, 1893: \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom Chess\, Facts and Fables (McFarland and Company\, Inc.\, 2006)\, page 12\, Chess Note 3096\, Edward Winter : \n“We can now add a tenth specimen to the collection (of ‘Rare queen sacrifices’)\, having noted the following position on page 81 of Brüderschaft\, 10 March 1888 : \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nThe magazine (see also page 155 of the 12 May 1888 issue) stated that in this game\, played in February 1888 (in Berlin?)\, Horatio Caro mated his unidentified opponent in five moves as above.” \nIn another place we are grateful to Brian Denman who mentioned that  Caro made an  appearance for the Great Britain team in the 1898 cable match against America. He lost on board 3 against John Barry. \nRichard James replied : “He also represented Berlin in a cable match against New York in 1905. EdoChess has his highest rating as 2545 (11th in the world) in 1892.” \nAlso\, according to Richard James : \n“He spent most of his life in Germany. Page 353 of the Jubiläums-Ausgabe (1926) of Kagans Neueste Schachnachrichten (yes\, I also read Edward Winter’s Chess Notes) claims that he lived in Frankfurt up to his 22nd year and in Berlin from 1882 onwards (arithmetic fail). Some sources claim\, incorrectly\, that he died in Berlin. \nHis death was registered in Mile End Old Town. In the 1911 census there are a lot of Caros in St George in the East\, just the other side of the Commercial Road from Mile End Old Town\, from their first names clearly Jewish. There’s also Blanche Caro\, a 65-year-old Polish born widow\, described as a furrier\, in hospital in Mile End Old Town.” \nThere is extensive discussion from the same above source. \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Horatio Caro (5 July 1862 – 15 December 1920) was an English chess master. \nCaro was born in Newcastle upon Tyne\, England\,[1] but spent most of his chess career in Berlin\, Germany. He played several matches. In 1892\, he drew with Curt von Bardeleben (+2 –2 =2)\, lost to Szymon Winawer (+2 –3 =1). In 1897\, he lost to Jacques Mieses (+3 –4 =3). In 1903\, he drew with Bardeleben (+4 –4 =0). In 1905\, he won against Moritz Lewitt (+4 –3 =5). \nIn tournaments\, he won in Berlin (1888\, 1891\, 1894\, 1898 (jointly)\, and 1903). He also took 10th at Berlin 1883\, took 4th at Berlin 1887\, tied for 2nd-3rd at Nuremberg 1888\, took 3rd at Berlin 1889\, took 2nd at Berlin 1890. \nHe took 3rd at Berlin 1894\, took 9th at Berlin 1897\, took 17th at Vienna 1898\, took 4th at Berlin 1899\, tied for 6-7th at Berlin 1902\, tied for 11-12th at Coburg 1904\, tied for 7-8th at Barmen 1905\, took 9th at Berlin 1907\, tied for 3-5th at Berlin 1908\, and took 4th at Berlin 1911. \nCaro died in London at age 58. \nHis claim to fame is linked to the opening Caro-Kann Defence (B12)\, which he analysed along with Marcus Kann and jointly published about on the German journal Bruederschaft in 1886.” \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-horatio-caro/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201216
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201217
DTSTAMP:20201216T152412Z
CREATED:20190823T104100Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201216T152412Z
UID:1076-1608076800-1608163199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Thomas Dawson (28-xi-1889 16-xii-1951)
DESCRIPTION:We remember Thomas Dawson who passed away on Sunday\, December 16th\, 1951. \nHe was also known by the pseudonym T. Dyke Robinson (we are looking for a primary source for this) \nThomas Rayner Dawson was born on Thursday\, November 28th 1889 in Leeds\, Yorkshire to Henry and Jane Dawson (née Rayner). \nThe early history of TRD and his family has been meticulously researched by Yorkshire chess historian\, Steve Mann. We recommend you visit this page to discover the detail. \nAccording to Edward Winter in Chess Notes TRD lived at the following addresses : \n\n5 Clyde Road\, Wallington\, Surrey\, England (Ranneforths Schachkalender\, 1925\, page 139)\n2 Lyndhurst Road\, Thornton Heath\, Surrey\, England (Ranneforths Schach-Kalender\, 1930\, page 65).\n31 Clyde Road\, Croydon\, England (Fairy Chess Review\, issues from 1946 to 1949*).\n\nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984 & 1996)by Hooper & Ken Whyld : \n“English composer\, pioneer of both fairy problems and retrograde analysis. His problems in these fields form the greater part of his output (about 6\,500 compositions) and are better remembered than his studies and orthodox problems. For fairy problems he invented new pieces: grasshopper (1912) LEO (1912)\, NEUTRAL MAN (1912) NIGHT RIDER (1925)\, and VAO (1912); he codified new rules such as the maximummer (1913) and various kinds of series-mover; and he used unorthodox boards. \nIn 1915 he wrote Retrograde Analysis\, the first book on the subject\, completing the project begun several years earlier by the German composer Wolfgang Hundsdorfer (1879-1951). \nRetrograde Analysis\, Thomas Dawson & Hundsdorfer\, 1915\nFrom 1919 to 1930 Dawson conducted a column devoted to fairy problems in the Chess Amateur\, In 1926 he was a co-founder of The Problemist \, which he edited for its first six years and he founded and edited The Problemist Fairy Supplement (1931-6) continued as The Fairy Chess Review (1936-51). \nAsymmetry\, TR Dawson & Wolfgang Pauly\, Chess Amateur\, 1927\nBesides conducting columns in several newspapers and periodicals\, one of them daily and one in the Braille Chess Magazine\, Dawson edited the problem section of the British Chess Magazine from 1931 to 1951; he devised and published in its pages (1947-50) a systematic terminology for problem themes in the hope that it would supplant the extensive jargon then and now in use\, Dawson wrote five hooks on fairy problems: Caissa’s Wild Roses (1935); C. M. Fox\, His Problems (1936); Caissa’s Wild Roses in Clusters (1937); Ultimate Themes (1938); and Caissa’s Fairy Tales (1947). \nCaissa’s Wild Roses in Clusters\, TR Dawson\, Chess Amateur\, 1937\nCharles Masson Fox (1866-1935) was a patron whose generosity made possible the publication of four of these books and the two fairy problem magazines founded by Dawson. Ultimate Themes deals with tasks\, another of Dawson’s favourite subjects. In 1973 all five books were republished in one volume. Five Classics of Fairy Chess. \nFive Classics of Fairy Chess\, TR Dawson\, Dover Publications Inc.; Revised edition (1 Sept. 1973)\nDawson found it difficult to understand the problemist’s idea of beauty because it is not susceptible to precise definition. The artist talks of “quiet” moves\, oblivious that they are White’s most pulverizing attacks! This aesthetic folly\, reverence\, response thrill to vain-glorious bombast runs throughout chess.(See Bohemian for a problem showing 16 model mates\, a task Dawson claimed as a record but a setting Bohemian composers would reject.) His genius did not set him apart from his fellows; he could find time for casual visitors and would explain his ideas to a tyro with patience\, modesty\, and kindness. Although he won many tourney prizes much of his work was designed to encourage others\, to enlarge the small band of fairy problem devotees\, He composed less for fame than to amuse himself\, confessing to another composer ‘We do these things for ourselves alone.’ \nCaissa’s Fairy Tales\, TR Dawson\, Chess Amateur\, 1947\nA chemistry graduate\, Dawson took a post in the rubber industry in 1922 and rose to be head of the Intelligence Division of the British Rubber Manufacturer for which he founded\, catalogued\, and maintained a technical library. Unwell for the last year of his life\, he died from a stroke. K. Fabel and C. E. Kemp\, Schach ohne Grenzen or Chess unlimited (1969) is a survey\, written in German and English\, of Dawson’s contribution to the art of fairy problems.” \nThomas Rayner Dawson (28-xi-1889 16-xii-1951)\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale 1970 & 1976)\, Anne Sunnucks : \n“British problemist. Born on 28th November 1889. Died on 16th December 1951. Universally known as TRD.\, the great master of Fairy problems. His wealth of invention held the chess world enthralled. His output comprised about 6\,400 problems and 150 studies. \nDawson was a nephew of the late James Rayner\, himself a noted chess problemist . From as early as about 1910\, TRD had conducted the ‘Chess Endings‘ section in the Chess Amateur\, and its Fairy section from 1919. He worked with BG Laws from Mark 1930 conducting the problem pages of the British Chess Magazine\, and following Laws’ death he assumed complete charge of the section from October 1931 to February 1951 when ill health forced him to relinquish the work. \nFairy Chess Review\nThe Problemist Fairy Chess Supplement subsequently renamed The Fairy Chess Review was started by TRD in August 1930. TRD was concerned in a number of other chess publications ; chess for the Blind\, several books of the AC White Christmas series\, BCPS Honours 1926-29\, and the CM Fox series. \nHe was largely instrumental in the publication of the first issue of The Problemist on 1st January 1926\, and was editor until May 1931. He was President of The British Chess Problem Society from September 1931 to 1943. \nUltimate Themes\, TR Dawson\, Chess Amateur\, 1938\nApart from chess\, Thomas Dawson\, MSc\, FRIC\, FIRI was an international authority on rubber\, and was responsible for the creation of the world-famous rubber library at Croydon\, as well as its ‘Dawson’ system of rubber literature documentation. A Guide to Fairy Chess and The Problemist March 1952 detail the remarkable life-time accomplishments of TRD.” \nFrom British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXI (71\, 1951)\, Number 3 (March) pp. 78-80 we have notice of the retirement of TRD written by Brian Reilly : \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXX1 (71\, 1951)\, Number 3 (March) pp. 77 – 80.\nFollowing that we have this appreciation from the incoming Problem Editor\, Stanley Sedgwick of 337 Strone Road\, Manor Park\, London E12 : \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXX1 (71\, 1951)\, Number 3 (March) pp. 77 – 80.\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXX1 (71\, 1951)\, Number 3 (March) pp. 77 – 80.\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXX1 (71\, 1951)\, Number 3 (March) pp. 77 – 80.\nUnfortunately TRD was to pass away not much more than a year after the retirement notice and in British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 4 (April) pp. 107 – 108 we have this obituary also from Stanley Sedgwick : \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 4 (April) pp. 107 – 108\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 4 (April) pp. 107 – 108\nThe same obituary contains the following appreciate by Gerald Abrahams : \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 4 (April) pp. 107 – 108\nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Thomas Rayner Dawson (28 November 1889 – 16 December 1951) was an English chess problemist and is acknowledged as “the father of Fairy Chess”.[1] He invented many fairy pieces and new conditions. He introduced the popular fairy pieces grasshopper\, nightrider\, and many other fairy chess ideas. \nDawson published his first problem\, a two-mover\, in 1907. His chess problem compositions include 5\,320 fairies\, 885 directmates\, 97 selfmates\, and 138 endings. 120 of his problems have been awarded prizes and 211 honourably mentioned or otherwise commended. He cooperated in chess composition with Charles Masson Fox. \nDawson was founder-editor (1922–1931) of The Problemist\, the journal of the British Chess Problem Society. He subsequently produced The Fairy Chess Review (1930–1951)\, which began as The Problemist Fairy Chess Supplement. At the same time he edited the problem pages of The British Chess Magazine (1931–1951). \nPublications \nCaissa’s Playthings a series of articles in Cheltenham Examiner (1913)\nRetrograde Analysis\, with Wolfgang Hundsdorfer (1915)\nFata Morgana\, with Birgfeld\, Nanz\, Massmann\, Pauly (1922)\nAsymmetry\, with W. Pauly (1928)\nSeventy Five Retros (1928)\nCaissa’s Wild Roses (1935)\nC. M. Fox\, His Problems (1936)\nCaissa’s Wild Roses in Clusters (1937)\nUltimate Themes (1938)\nCaissa’s Fairy Tales (1947)\nThe last five titles were collected as Five Classics of Fairy Chess\, Dover Publications (1973)\, ISBN 978-0-486-22910-2.” \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-thomas-rayner-dawson/
CATEGORIES:Composer,Death Anniversary,History,Problemist
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