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DTSTART:20190101T000000
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20220401
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20220402
DTSTAMP:20220404T160618Z
CREATED:20200401T115720Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20220404T160618Z
UID:3917-1648771200-1648857599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of CM David Anderton OBE (02-viii-1941 01-iv-2022)
DESCRIPTION:BCN remembers CM David Anderton OBE who passed away on Friday\, April 1st\, 2022 aged 80. \nIn the 1977 New Years Honours List\, Civil Division\, David was awarded the OBE. The citation read simply : “For services to Chess” \nDavid William Anderton was born in the district of Walsall\, Staffordshire\, West Midlands. His mother’s maiden name was Coltart and David resided in Walsall. \nDavid was married to Doreen in 2005. \nDavid Anderton (rhs) congratulates Sir Philip Stuart Milner-Barry for winning the “Board of Honour ” game versus Edward Lasker at the 1976 Lloyds Bank Match by Telex\, London – New York. From BCM\, volume XCVI (96) Number 11 (August)\, Page 494. The venue was the Bloomsbury Hotel\, London. Photo courtesy of Lloyds Bank\nDavid was an Honorary Life Vice-President of the English (formerly British) Chess Federation. \nJohn Nunn\, David Anderton and Jonathan Speelman\n“David won the ECF President’s Award in 2009 following his stepping down as ECF legal expert. This is the citation from the 2010 ECF Yearbook : \n“As this is Gerry Walsh’s last year as President it was considered appropriate that he be allowed to choose someone receive the award. Gerry has worked with David for all his time with BCF and ECF and has selected him due to his tireless and selfless devotion to both the BCF and ECF over many years. \nDavid Anderton OBE\, ? and Teresa Needham\nMost of you will know David and will agree that this is a well deserved award. It is fair to state that David’s assistance over the years has been invaluable and that without it many areas of the Federation would have found it difficult\, if not impossible to operate. \nJim Plaskett with David Anderton OBE at the 1983 Benedictine International (Manchester)\nSince my election David has been a constant friend and confidante. He has invariable given sound advice throughout my term of office. It was John Wickham who rang me and suggested that due to my length of tenure\, a special award might be in order. \nJim accepts the 1981 Grand Prix shield from David Anderton OBE\nAfter years of selfless and generous devotion serving as ECF President\, International Director\, Captain of the England Team and legal adviser\, this seems to be a fitting tribute. \nFrom the Praxis Bath Zonal Tournament of 1987. David Anderton OBE is second from right\nDavid’s advice both legal and general\, has been invaluable in such matters as the John Robinson legacy and the change of name from BCF to ECF Limited\, and I certainly hope that this advice will continue. \nGerry Walsh” \nBob Wade OBE\, Murray Chandler MNZM and David Anderton OBE\nDavid is a FIDE Candidate Master (CM). \nFrom the BCF 1979-80 Year Book of Chess : Robert Bellin\, the new British Champion\, explains the secret to the Mayor of Chester (?) and to David Anderton\, BCF President\nWith the White pieces David exclusively plays 1.d4 aiming for a Queen’s Gambit and main lines. \nWith Black David plays the Winawer and the Classical French plus the Lenningrad Dutch. \nMrs. Joan Agar; Chairman of Leigh Interests\, presents the Leigh trophy (for 1981) to Mark Hebden. Left\, David Anderton\, BCF President; on the right Malcolm Wood\, Leigh’s Chief Executive. BCM\, 1981\, page 104\nHere are his games. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nDW Anderton OBE plays BH Wood MBE in 1981 in a Blitz tournament outside of the National Film Theatre. Photograph courtesy of John Saunders\nDuring 1989-93 David was an Executive Board Member of FIDE. \nThe England Team from the 1990 Novi Sad Olympiad : John Nunn\, Jon Speelman\, Julian Hodgson\, David Anderton OBE (Captain)\, Nigel Short\, Michael Adams and Murray Chandler\nIn 2002 David was awarded the title of International Master by the ICCF (correspondence chess) \nIn 2015 David stood down from all of his roles within the ECF. \nDavid Anderton OBE\, Paul Bazalgette (Senior Partner at Philips & Drew) and Tony Banks (GLC Arts & Recreation Department) at the 1982 Philips and Drew Kings Tournament Opening Ceremony. Photograph by Clive Field\nDavid has won the British Seniors Championship in 2003 (shared)\, 2005\, 2007 (shared)\, 2009 (shared) and 2011. \nHere is a potted biography from The Express and Star Newspaper \nDavid Anderton OBE at the 2019 British Championships in Torquay\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nDavid is Head of Regulatory Law at Anson’s Solicitors. He is also Secretary of the Erasmus Darwin Foundation (03270753) and Director of Unionist Buildings Ltd.\, Wallsall Conservative Investments Ltd. and Wallsall Unionist Holdings Ltd. \nCM David William Anderton OBE
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-cm-david-william-anderton-obe-02-viii-1941/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Honours,Official,Player,Remembering
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200809
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200810
DTSTAMP:20210802T084332Z
CREATED:20200408T212410Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210802T084332Z
UID:4215-1596931200-1597017599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Angus Dunnington (09-viii-1967)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM Angus Dunnington (09-viii-1967) \nAngus James Dunnington was born in Wakefield\, West Yorkshire\, his mother’s maiden name was Townend. \nHe has lived in Castleford\, West Yorkshire and most recently in Lockerbie\, Dumfriesshire. \nAngus became a FIDE Master in 1990 and an International Master in 1991. \nAngus has been a recipient of a Chess Journalists of America award and was chess correspondent for The Yorkshire Post. He has been an Olympiad trainer. \nAngus has played for 4NCL White Rose and his peak FIDE rating was 2450 in January 1996\, aged 29. \nHe won Toulouse 1993 with 6.5/9\, we was first equal (3) in the London Agency tournament on 1997 with 6/9\, we was equal first in the 1999 Hampstead IM tournament with 6.5/9. \nAs White Angus prefers a Reti style double fianchetto\, the King’s Indian Attack and also the Queen’s Gambit and is an expert on the Catalan and KIA. \nAs Black Angus essays the Modern Defence for most of the time. \nHis most recent ECF grading was 212E in 2005 and was 232A in 1996. \nIn 2018 after a lengthy absence Angus made a welcome return to the Scottish Championship Open with a strong =3rd place. \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\nIM Angus Dunnington\, photograph by Gisbert Jacoby\nHere is his Wikipedia entry \nThe Ultimate King’s Indian Attack\, 1993\nPawn Power !\, 1994\nWinning with the Catalan\, 1997\nEasy Guide to the Reti Opening\n101 Winning Chess Strategies\, 1999\nWinning Unorthodox Openings\, 2000\nMastering the Middlegame\, 2001\nChess Psychology\, 2003\nNimzo-Indian Rubinstein: Complex Lines with 4e3\, 2004\nBlunders and How to Avoid Them\, 2004\nIM Angus Dunnington\, photograph by Cathy Rogers
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-angus-dunnington-09-viii-1967/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Poker,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200812
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200813
DTSTAMP:20210805T102719Z
CREATED:20190822T222527Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210805T102719Z
UID:1016-1597190400-1597276799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Bill Hartston (12-viii-1947)
DESCRIPTION:IM William Hartston\, FIDE Candidates\, 2013\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nOn the “glorious twelfth” of August we celebrate the birthday of one of England’s most popular chess players and writers\, IM Bill Hartston. \nWilliam Roland Hartston was born in Willesden\, Middlesex on Tuesday\, August 12th\, 1947. His father was William Hartston\, a significant member of the Royal College of Physicians who was married to Mary Rowland. Bill has a sister. \nBill Hartston\nHe studied at the City of London School and then studied mathematics at Jesus College\, Cambridge and graduated with a BA in 1968 and an MA in 1972\, but did not complete his PhD on number theory. \nAn early Bill Hartston\, event unknown\nWhile studying for his PhD at Cambridge\, Hartston developed an intricate system for balancing an entire chess set on top of a single rook. Here is an article with an explanation letter from Bill. \nBill married Dr. Jana Malypetrova in January\, 1970 in Cambridge. In 1978 Bill married Elizabeth Bannerman\, also in Cambridge and from that marriage he had two sons\, James and Nicholas. \nBill and Dr. Jana Hartston (née Malypetrova)\nBill became an International Master in 1972 and his highest FIDE rating was 2485 in January 1979. \nWith the white pieces Bill almost exclusively played 1.e4 and the Ruy Lopez. \nWith the black pieces Bill played the Sicilian Taimanov and the Czech Benoni. \nBill plays his trusty Sicilian Taimanov against an unknown opponent\nBill is a self-proclaimed follower of Prof. AJ Ayer (See the Acknowledgements in “Soft Pawn”) Clint Eastwood and Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. \nBill and Jana Hartston are shown with some of their many chess sets. CHESS\, August 1973\, page 323\nBill was the chess correspondent of The Independent and The Mail on Sunday. He was also a regular presenter and commentator for television. He worked with Jeremy James on the BBC’s Master Game. \nThe Master Game\, Series 6&7 with Jeremy James and Bill Hartston\nBill is an industrial psychologist. \nCuriously the 1984 edition of the usually reliable The Oxford Companion to Chess by Hooper and Whyld does not have an entry for the twice British Champion : was this simply an oversight ? Jana is also not mentioned. \n\nBill wrote about himself in British Chess (Pergamon\, 1983) : \n“To summarise more than 20 years of playing competitive chess in a few hundred words is an impossible task. My attitude to the game has changed a great deal\, especially in recent times\, but I have always enjoyed and felt at home in the tense and lively atmosphere of chess tournaments\, whether as a competitor\, spectator or journalist. \nCaption as per photograph below\nCaption for above photograph\nI consider myself lucky to have been a ‘promising junior’ just at the time when chess was beginning to be taken seriously as a sport in England. The English team consisted mainly of amateurs and there were clear opportunities for anyone willing to work at the game. As a result of the changing attitudes to the game in this country\, the development between 1965\, when I first played for the national team\, and 1975 was far greater than in any other decade. One statistic which I have always found personally amusing is that I progressed from youngest player in 1967 for the Clare Benedict tournament to become the oldest in the 1971 team. From promising junior to veteran in four years = is this a record ? \nBill Hartston commentating on games from the Phillips & Drew King’s 1982\nSince my second British Championship win in 1975\, I have been writing more and playing less. I always realised that I was not going to become a sufficiently strong player to be happy just wandering round the tournament circuit\, but giving up chess entirely is\, of course\, unthinkable. I believe now that the time is ripe for chess to be presented to far wider audiences and I like to think that some of what I do will help in that aim. If the Master Game television series and “Soft Pawn” cannot sell chess to the masses then nothing will.” \nBill was always a keen supporter of junior chess. Here at the Teachers Assurance National Schools Championships in 1980\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHarry Golombek wrote the following in a 1980 Dataday chess diary : \n“Hartston played hardly at all during the period from my last entry of him in the 1977 diary and that little\, though respectable\, was hardly the performance of an active master. His equal 3rd to 5th at the big Aaronson’s Masters Tournament (a swiss system event with 72 players) did not really affect his rating and indeed he finished up without changing his Elo rating at all. \nNevertheless\, this glimpse of his true powers was impressive as can be seen in the following game which was played in the 6th round of the Aaronson tournament.” \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess(Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976) by Anne Sunnucks : \n“International Master (1972) and British Champion (1973) William Hartston was born in London on the 12th August 1947. He was taught to play chess by his father when he was seven and five years later joined Enfield Chess Club. His results in junior events included 1st in the London Boys’ Under 16 Championship and 2nd in the British Boys’ Under 15 Championship in 1962 and =2nd in the British Boys Under 18 Championship in 1963. \nBill had a keen interest in computer chess and technology\nIn 1965\, Hartston made his first appearance in the British Championship and came =5th. In the same year he won the Ilford and Paignton Premier tournaments. Playing on board 3 for England in the 1966 Olympiad. Hartston scored the best result of any British player\, 66.7%. In the Olympiad of 1970\, he had the best overall score on board 3\, 12.5 out of 16 and in the Olympiad of 1972 he won the prize for the 3rd best score on board 2\, 12.5 out of 18. In 1972 he narrowly failed to qualify for the Interzonal tournament\, when he came 3rd in the Zonal tournament at Vranjacka Banja.” \nMike Basman plays Bill during the play-off for the 1973 British Championship\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977) by Harry Golombek : \n“British International Master and twice British Champion. Hartston was born in London and his early chess was played there.\, where he became London Boy (Under-16 Champion in 1962. \nHe was educated at the City of London School and Jesus College\, Cambridge\, where he took a degree in mathematics. \nIt soon became clear that he was one of the leading young players in England and a rivalry developed between him and Raymond Keene in which first one and then the other obtained the upper hand. \nAfter a number of near misses he won the British Championship at Eastbourne in 1973 and again at Morecambe in 1975. \nJana & Bill Hartston celebrate a family double at the British Championships in 1973 at Eastbourne\nInternationally he has already had a distinguished career and has been especially good and consistent in his representation of England at the Olympiads. At Havana in 1966 he scored 66.7% on board 3 but did not play at Lugano in 1968. Again on board 3 at Siegen in 1970 he obtained the best score on board 3 with 78.1%. At Skopje 1972 he fulfilled the second norm of the international master title with 12.5 points out of 18 on second board. Playing on first board at Nice 1974 he attained 52.7% and had a most meritorious and well fought draw with the World Champion\, Karpov. \nBill Hartston draws with Anatoly Karpov at Nice 1974\nHe achieved a breakthrough in the field of international tournament chess when he came third in a strong Premier tournament at Hastings 1972/3 \nHastings\, England\, 4th January 1972\, Chess\, Russian Grand Master Viktor Korchnoi (right) is pictured in a match with William Hartston (UK) during the 47th Hastings International Chess Tournament (Photo by Popperfoto via Getty Images/Getty Images)\nand in 1973 he scored a first at Alicante. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHis best tournament result came three years later when he won 1st prize at Sarajevo 1976. \nSarajevo 1976 Crosstable from English Chess Explosion (1980)\nHis style of play is sound and competent in all the spheres of the game. That he can be brilliant when necessary he demonstrated his beautiful brilliancy game against the Finnish grandmaster Westerinen at Allicante in 1973. He has a fine\, broad knowledge of the openings and has written a number of articles and books on that theme. \nBill was always a keen supporter of junior chess. event unknown.\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nDanish chess grandmaster Bent Larsen (1935 – 2010\, left) takes on English player William Hartston (right) during the annual Hastings International Chess Congress\, UK\, 13th January 1973. Larsen won the game. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)\nA lucid and entertaining writer\, he has also appeared with success in BBC Television chess programmes. \nBill Hartston at a promotional event\nAmong his chief works are : \nThe Benoni\, London\, 1969\nThe Grunfeld Defence\, London\, 1971\nThe Best Games of CHO’D Alexander (with H. Golombek)\, Oxford\, 1976.” \nIn modern times Bill has made regular appearances with World Cluedo champion\, Josef Kollar on Channel Four’s Gogglebox with a pair of painted breasts as background. \nHere is his Wikipedia article \nSee his entry from the Jewish Lives Project \nThe King’s Indian Defence\, 1969\nThe Benoni\, 1969\nHow to Cheat at Chess\, 1976\nThe Best Games of C.H.O’D. Alexander\, 1976\nThe Grünfeld Defence\, 1977\nBenoni\, 1977\nKarpov-Korchnoi\, 1978\nSoft Pawn\, 1980\nThe Phillips & Drew King’s Chess Tournament\, 1980\nThe Penguin Book of Chess Openings\, 1981\nThe Psychology of Chess\, 1984\nShort vs Kasparov\, 1993\nThe Kings of Chess\, 1995\nThe Guinness Book of Chess Grandmasters\, 1996\nWilliam Hartston
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-william-hartston/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,History,Journalist,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200814
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200815
DTSTAMP:20210812T112950Z
CREATED:20200414T001037Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210812T112950Z
UID:4419-1597363200-1597449599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Malcolm Pein (14-viii-1960)
DESCRIPTION:BCN sends IM Malcolm Pein best wishes on his 61st birthday. \nIM Malcolm Pein at the King’s Place Rapidplay 2013\, photograph courtesy of John Upham\nMalcolm Bernard Pein was born in Liverpool (South). South Lancashire and his mother’s maiden name is Max. (Gaige\, Felice and chessgames.com all incorrectly have Malcolm L. Pein). \nMalcolm Pein\nThis was written about Malcolm aged 19 just prior to the 1979 Spassky vs the BCF Junior Squad simultaneous display : \n” London University and Liverpool\, Rating 199. British under-18 co-champion\, 1977. Currently No.1 player for London University.” \nMalcolm hard at work\nMalcolm studied Chemical Engineering at University College\, London entering in September 1978. He won The University of London championship in February 1979. \nHe became an International Master in 1986 and is a FIDE Delegate (for England) and an International Director. \nMalcolm’s peak rating was 2450 in January 1992 at the age of 32. \nMalcolm Pein (third from  right) and a victorious Wood Green team. Trophy presented by Magnus Magnusson\nWith the white pieces Malcolm prefers the Queen’s Gambit almost exclusively with 1.e4 rarely seeing the light of day scoring 62% \nAs the second player\, Malcolm champions the Pirc\, Modern and Grunfeld defences scoring 49% which MegaBase 2020 claims is “above average”. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIM Malcolm Pein at the Bristol heat of the British Blitz Qualification  event in 2019\nIn addition to his newspaper column and magazine editorial\, Malcolm has written a number of chess books and booklets\, including : \nGrunfeld Defence (Batsford\, 1981) – ISBN 978-0713435948\nBlumenfeld Defence [with Jan Przewoznik] (Everyman\, 1991) – ISBN 978-0080371337\nDaily Telegraph Guide to Chess (Batsford\, 1995) – ISBN 978-0713478143\nThe Exchange Grunfeld [with Adrian Mikhalchishin] (Everyman\, 1996) – ISBN 978-1857440560] \nNigel Short’s Chess Skills (1989)(was ghost written by Malcolm)\nMalcolm won the ECF President’s Award in 2017: \n“Malcolm Pein’s contribution to English Chess is well known.  He is CEO of Chess in Schools and Communities\, has been largely involved in the organisation of the London Chess Classic and is currently the ECF’s Delegate to FIDE and International Director.  On top of all that he is also an IM\, writes the ‘Daily Telegraph’ Chess Column\, and edits CHESS Magazine.” \nIM Malcolm Pein at the London Chess Classic 2013\, photograph courtesy of John Upham\nMalcolm is also owner (and a director) of the London Chess Centre (a company incorporated on May 1st 1997) which has relocated to 44\, Baker Street\, former home of the British Chess Magazine retail premises.  This was purchased from Stephen Lowe and Shaun Taulbut in 2010 when the leasehold on the Euston Road premises expired. Another director is Henry Gerald Mutkin who is the main organiser of the annual Varsity match. \nHere is his Wikipedia entry \nMalcolm has a son\, Jonathan who is a strong player and he resides in London\, NW7. \nJonathan and Malcolm Pein at the 2016 Michael Uriely Memorial Tournament\nMalcolm Pein & Dominic Lawson
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-malcolm-bernard-pein-14-viii-1960/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Organiser,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200822
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200823
DTSTAMP:20200822T155428Z
CREATED:20200822T155428Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20200822T155428Z
UID:8788-1598054400-1598140799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of William Lewis (09-x-1787 22-viii-1870)
DESCRIPTION:We note the passing today (August 22nd) in 1870 of William Lewis of the Lewis Counter Gambit. \nThe Lewis Counter Gambit\nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984) by Hooper & Whyld : \n“English player and author. He left his native Birmingham as a young man and worked for a time with a merchant in London. He learned much of his chess from Sarratt\, a debt that was not repaid.  \nAround 1819 he was operator of the Turk\, meeting all-comers successfully. With Cochrane he visited Paris in 1821\, received odds of pawn and move from Deschapelles\, and defeated him in a short match (+ 1=2)\, Lewis had already begun to write and of the more useful books he published around this time were translations of Greco and Carrera which appeared in 1819 and 1822 respectively. Although he considered Sarratt’s A Treatise on the Game of Chess (1808) a poorly written book\, Lewis published a second edition in 1822 in direct competition with Sarratt’s last book\, published in 1821 by his impoverished widow\, (In 1843 many Englishmen contributed to a fund for Mrs Sarratt in her old age\, Lewis’s name is not on the subscription list\,}  \nWilliam Lewis\, George Walker and Augustus Mongredien\nIn 1825 Bourdonnais visited England. Lewis recalled that they played about 70 games\, and according to Walker seven of them constituted a\nmatch which Lewis lost (+2—5). With no significant playing achievements to his credit Lewis acquired such a high reputation that a correspondent writing to the weekly magazine Bell’s Life in 1838 was moved to call him grandmaster.  \nFrom 1825 he preserved this reputation by the simplest means: he declined to play on even terms. In the same year he opened a club where he gave lessons at half a guinea each. McDonnell and Walker were among his pupils. Speculating unwisely on a piano-making patent\, Lewis went bankrupt in 1827\, and the club closed. After three precarious years of teaching chess (rich patrons were becoming fewer) Lewis became actuary of the Family Endowment Society and enjoyed financial security\nfor the rest of his life.  \nWilliam Lewis\nCircumstances now made it possible for him to concentrate on his writing and he published his two most important works: Series of Progressive Lessons (1831) and Second Series of Lessons (1832)\, both republished with various revisions. Lewis continued to write but gradually withdrew from other chess activities; his last notable connection with chess was as stakeholder for the Morphy-Lowenthal match of 1858.  \nChess Board Companion by William Lewis\nLewis’s Lessons contain extensive analyses of many opening variations\, examined in the closeness of his study. Subsequent writers\, notably Lasa\, were influenced by these books\, but more on account of the form than the content\, which\, adequate for the 1830s\, were soon out of date.  \nAround 1840 writers no longer worked in isolation (a circumstance Lewis found unavoidable) and new positional ideas were being shaped. Because Lewis failed to assimilate these his judgements were faulty\, and his voluminous Treatise on the Game of Chess (1844) was out of date when published. \nIndustrious rather than inventive\, he made only one innovation\, the Lewis Counter-Gambit; but it had no practical value in 1844\, for simpler defences had already been discovered. Lewis’s work commands respect\, but he is more aptly described as the last and one of the best of the ‘old’ writers than the first of the new\, a more fitting description for Jaenisch and the authors of Bilguer’s Handbuch. ” \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976) by Anne Sunnucks : \nChess theoretician\, teacher\, author and one of the leading players in England in the nineteenth century.  \nWilliam Lewis was born in Birmingham on 9th October 1787. As a young man he went to London and took chess lessons from JH Sarratt. Within a short time he was making chess his principal means of livelihood. \nIn 1819 he was engaged as the player concealed in the chess-playing automaton\, ‘The Turk’\, when it was exhibited in London. In 1825 he opened some chess rooms in St. Martin’s Lane in London\, where he taught chess. Among his pupils was Alexander McDonnell. After going bankrupt in 1827\, the chess rooms were closed\, and Lewis decided to put his lessons into a book. He soon became a highly-successful writer\, His Chessboard Companion published in 1838 ran into nine editions\, and his Series of Progressive Lessons of the Game of Chess has been described as one of the landmarks in the history of the game. This book included some completely new analyses of various chess openings and later formed the basis of the Handbuch des Schachspiels. Lewis also translated the work of Greco and Stamma and was author of The Elements of Chess (1882)\, Fifty Games of Chess (1832) and Chess for Beginners (1835). \nChess Board Companion by William Lewis\nTowards the end of his life\, Lewis rarely played chess\, and his last public appearance in chess circles was 12 before he died\, when he acted at stake-holder in the match between Morphy and Lowenthal in 1858. He died on 22nd August 1870. \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977) by Harry Golombek : \n“Author of The Chessboard Companion\, London\, 1838\, and several other popular works on chess (including translations of Greco and Stamma). Lewis was also a leading chess teacher – his most famous pupil was Alexdander McDonnell – and for a time he ran chess rooms in St. Martin’s Lane. In 1819 he operated the chess-playing automaton ‘The Turk’ when it was exhibited in London. The Lewis Counter-Gambit is 1.P-K4\, P-K4; 2.B-B4 B-B4; 3.P-QB3\,P-Q5!?” \nChess for Beginners\nFrom “Chess : A History” by Harry Golombek there are two references to WL on pages 98 and 123 alluded to above. \nHere is an interesting article from Chess.com  \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“William Lewis (1787–1870) was an English chess player and author\, nowadays best known for the Lewis Countergambit and for being the first player ever to be described as a Grandmaster of the game.[1] \nBorn in Birmingham\, William Lewis moved as a young man to London where he worked for a merchant for a short period. He became a student of chess player Jacob Sarratt\, but in later years he showed himself to be rather ungrateful towards his teacher.[1] Although he considered Sarratt’s Treatise on the Game of Chess (1808)[2] a “poorly written book”\, in 1822 Lewis published a second edition of it three years after Sarratt’s death in direct competition with Sarratt’s own superior revision published posthumously in 1821 by Sarratt’s poverty-stricken widow. In 1843\, many players contributed to a fund to help the old widow\, but Lewis’ name is not on the list of subscribers.[1] \nAround 1819 Lewis was the hidden player inside the Turk (a famous automaton)\, meeting all-comers successfully. He suggested to Johann Maelzel that Peter Unger Williams\, a fellow ex-student of Sarratt\, should be the next person to operate inside the machine. When P. U. Williams played a game against the Turk\, Lewis recognised the old friend from his style of play (the operator could not see his opponents) and convinced Maelzel to reveal to Williams the secret of the Turk. Later\, P. U. Williams himself took Lewis’ place inside the machine.[3] \nLewis visited Paris along with Scottish player John Cochrane in 1821\, where they played with Alexandre Deschapelles\, receiving the advantage of pawn and move. He won the short match (+1 =2).” \n“Lewis’ career as an author began at this time\, and included translations of the works of Greco and Carrera\, published in 1819[5] and 1822[6] respectively. \nHe was the leading English player in the correspondence match between London and Edinburgh in 1824\, won by the Scots (+2 = 2 -1). Later\, he published a book on the match with analysis of the games.[7] In the period of 1834–36 he was also part of the Committee of the Westminster Chess Club\, who played and lost (−2) the match by correspondence with the Paris Chess Club. The other players were his students McDonnell and Walker\, while the French line up included Boncourt\, Alexandre\, St. Amant and Chamouillet.[8] When De La Bourdonnais visited England in 1825\, Lewis played about 70 games with the French master. Seven of these games probably represented a match that Lewis lost (+2 -5).[9] \nLewis enjoyed a considerable reputation as a chess player in his time. A correspondent writing to the weekly magazine Bell’s Life in 1838 called him “our past grandmaster”\, the first known use of the term in chess.[1] Starting from 1825 he preserved his reputation by the same means that Deschapelles used in France\, by refusing to play anyone on even terms. In the same year Lewis founded a Chess Club where he gave lessons to\, amongst others\, Walker and McDonnell. He was declared bankrupt in 1827 due to bad investments on a patent for the construction of pianos and his chess club was forced to close. The next three years were quite difficult until in 1830 he got a job that assured him of solid financial security for the rest of his life. Thanks to this job\, he could focus on writing his two major works: Series of Progressive Lessons (1831) and Second Series of Progressive Lessons (1832). The first series of the Lessons were more elementary in character\, and designed for the use of beginners; the second series\, on the other hand\, went deeply into all the known openings. Here\, for the first time we find the Evans Gambit\, which is named after its inventor\, Capt. Evans.[10] \nThe works of Lewis (together with his teacher Sarratt) were oriented towards the rethinking of the strictly Philidorian principles of play in favour of the Modenese school of Del Rio\, Lolli and Ponziani.[11] When he realised that he could not give an advantage to the new generation of British players\, Lewis withdrew gradually from active play[1] (in the same way that Deschapelles did after his defeat against De La Bourdonnais). \nAfter his retirement he wrote other chess treatises\, but his isolation prevented him from assimilating the positional ideas of the new generation of chess-players. For this reason\, Hooper and Whyld in their Oxford Chess Companion describe the last voluminous work of Lewis\, A Treatise on Chess (1844)\,[12] as already “out of date when published”.”
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-william-lewis-09-x-1787-22-viii-1870/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player,Writer
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