The Basic Moves of Chess

A student at the Village School in Marblehead, Massachusetts, Alex Parkman has consistently demonstrated a high degree of athleticism, teaching himself how to ride a bike just at the age of three and playing hockey at the age of eight. In addition, Alex Parkman enjoys playing chess with his father.

Chess is one of the most popular and oldest board games, played by two competing players on a chequered board with 64 squares, usually white and black. Each chess player has 16 pieces: a king, a queen, two rooks, two knights, two bishops, and eight pawns. Every kind of chess piece moves differently on the chequered board.

The pawn, known to be the least powerful, can only move forward one step (or two for the first move) and capture the opponent’s piece diagonally. The bishop can diagonally capture or move any step if no piece(s) is blocking their path. On the other hand, the Knight is a special piece that can capture or move in an L-shape; either two move horizontally or vertically, and then one moves diagonally or vice versa.

The rook, the third most powerful piece in chess, can move or capture in a straight line horizontally or vertically in any number of squares. Relatedly, the queen, the second most important piece in a Chess game, combines the moves of a rook and a bishop, moving horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.

Lastly, the King is the most crucial piece in chess. And although it can only make one move horizontally, vertically, and diagonally, when an opponent piece captures it, the game ends no matter how many pieces the player still has. Capturing the King, referred to as Checkmate or mate, is when an opponent piece or pieces blocks the King, and the King has no legal move to make to escape.