Chess

Objective

The objective of chess is to checkmate your opponent's king. Checkmate means the king is in check (under attack) and there is no legal move that removes the check.

You can also draw a chess game in several ways (for example stalemate), which is covered later in this guide.

Board and Setup

The Chess Board and Coordinates

Chess is played on an 8×8 board with 64 squares. Squares are usually identified by a letter (file) and number (rank):

• Files: A through H (left to right from White's perspective)
• Ranks: 1 through 8 (bottom to top from White's perspective)

Example squares: E2, A1, H8.

Starting Position (Setup)

Each player starts with 16 pieces:

• 1 King
• 1 Queen
• 2 Rooks
• 2 Bishops
• 2 Knights
• 8 Pawns

White pieces begin on ranks 1–2. Black pieces begin on ranks 7–8. White moves first.

Turns and Moves

Players alternate turns. On your turn you:

1. Choose one of your pieces
2. Move it to a legal destination square (or capture an opponent piece if allowed)
3. End your turn

A move is legal only if it follows the piece's movement rules and does not leave your king in check.

Capturing is generally done by moving onto a square occupied by an opponent piece (except for special pawn rules).

How the Pieces Move

Each diagram below shows a single piece on a mostly empty board to make its movement pattern clear. In a real game, other pieces may block the path (except for knights, which jump).

Pawn

Pawns move forward (toward the opponent's side).

• A pawn moves forward 1 square if that square is empty
• On its very first move, a pawn may advance 2 squares if both squares ahead are empty
• Pawns capture diagonally — 1 square forward-left or forward-right

Diagram: Pawn on E2

The green dots show where this pawn can move on its first turn.

Knight

Knights move in an "L" shape:

• 2 squares in one direction (horizontal or vertical), then 1 square perpendicular
• Knights are the only piece that can jump over other pieces

Diagram: Knight on D4

The knight can reach up to 8 squares from the centre of the board.

Bishop

Bishops move diagonally any number of squares. A bishop stays on its starting square colour for the whole game and cannot jump over pieces.

Diagram: Bishop on D4

Rook

Rooks move horizontally or vertically any number of squares. Like the bishop, a rook cannot jump over pieces.

Diagram: Rook on D4

Queen

The queen combines rook and bishop movement — it can move any number of squares horizontally, vertically, or diagonally (but cannot jump).

Diagram: Queen on D4

King

The king moves 1 square in any direction — horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. The king cannot move to a square that is attacked by an opponent piece.

Diagram: King on D4

Special Rules

Check and Checkmate

• A king is in check when an opponent's piece is attacking it.
• You must immediately deal with the check — by moving the king, blocking the attack, or capturing the attacking piece.
• Checkmate means the king is in check and there is no legal way to escape. The game is over and the player delivering checkmate wins.

Stalemate (draw)

If it is your turn but you have no legal moves and your king is not in check, the game is a stalemate — a draw. Neither player wins.

Castling

Castling is a special move that lets you tuck your king into a safe corner and activate your rook in a single turn. It is the only move in chess where two pieces move at once.

How it works: the king slides two squares toward a rook, and that rook jumps over the king to land on the other side.

Castling is only allowed when:

• Neither the king nor the chosen rook has moved yet
• There are no pieces between them
• The king is not currently in check
• The king does not pass through or land on an attacked square

Diagram: Ready to castle kingside

The squares between the White king on E1 and the rook on H1 are empty, so castling is available. The green dot on G1 shows where the king will land.

Diagram: After castling

The king is now safely on G1 behind its pawns, and the rook has moved to F1 where it can join the action along the centre files.

Pawn Promotion

When a pawn reaches the far end of the board (the 8th rank for White, the 1st rank for Black), it must be promoted — replaced by a queen, rook, bishop, or knight of the same colour. Most players choose a queen because it is the most powerful piece.

En Passant

En passant ("in passing") is a special pawn capture rule. It only applies in one specific situation:

1. Your pawn has advanced to the 5th rank (for White) or 4th rank (for Black).
2. An opponent pawn on an adjacent file moves two squares forward from its starting position, landing right next to your pawn.
3. On your very next move (and only that move), you may capture the opponent's pawn by moving your pawn diagonally to the square the opponent's pawn skipped over.

If you do not capture en passant immediately, the opportunity is gone.

Diagram: En passant opportunity

White's pawn on E5 can capture the Black pawn that just advanced from D7 to D5. The green dot on D6 is the capture square — even though no piece is standing there.

Diagram: After the en passant capture

White moved the E5 pawn diagonally to D6 and removed the Black D5 pawn from the board.

End of Game

How a Chess Game Ends

• Win by checkmate
• Draw by stalemate, repetition, insufficient material, the 50-move rule, or agreement
• A player may also resign

Common Beginner Questions

Can you move into check?

No. Any move that leaves your king in check is illegal.

Can pieces jump over other pieces?

Only the knight can jump over pieces. All other pieces require a clear path.

How do captures work?

Most captures happen by moving onto an enemy-occupied square. Pawns capture diagonally forward rather than straight ahead.

Summary

Chess is about controlling space, developing your pieces, and protecting your king while creating threats against your opponent. Start by learning how each piece moves, then focus on basic principles: develop your knights and bishops, control the center, and keep your king safe.