How the Bishop Moves in Chess
Each side has two bishops, one on a light square and one on a dark square. They start next to the king and queen.
Step 1 of 4
Diagonals only
A bishop moves diagonally, any number of squares, in any of the four diagonal directions. Like the rook, it cannot jump over pieces, and it captures by moving onto an enemy piece.
Collect the stars
Every star here is on a diagonal from where the bishop will be.
Your move
Move the bishop onto each of the three stars.
Capture the rook
A bishop on a long diagonal reaches right across the board.
Your move
Capture the black rook.
Always the same colour
Because a bishop only moves diagonally, it never changes colour. The bishop on d4 started on a dark square. Which squares can it ever reach?
What you learned
- A bishop moves any number of squares diagonally.
- It cannot jump, and it captures by moving onto an enemy piece.
- It stays on the same colour all game.
In this course
Unit 1The pieces
Unit 2Special moves
Unit 3Winning the game
Unit 4Your first tactics
Unit 5Checkmate patterns
Unit 6More tactics
Unit 7Opening principles
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