Get into Chess

Get into Chess — page 1
WORLD S FAVORITE MIND CHALLENGING GAME Chess is the world s most popular board game It s also the world s oldest board game that is still played today Most people agree that chess was invented about 1 500 years ago in India Chaturanga is an Indian military strategy game with pieces that move on a board that is divided into squares The game was introduced to the royalty of Persia in the 7th century and soon after in Arabia As the new religion of Islam spread throughout the world the game followed The Moors introduced chess to Spain starting in the 10th century As the game spread through Europe players changed the style of the pieces and the way they move By the 15th century the game had its modern form There are also strategy games played in China that are similar to chess such as xiangqi But historians believe the game probably spread from India to China and from China to India DID YOU KNOW Staying in shape Early chess pieces were detailed carvings of soldiers elephants and horses The new religion of Islam banned images of humans or animals in art so chess pieces became more abstract The early European chess sets were based on the game played in the Islamic world A group of 12th century chess pieces with the pieces taking on more European Called the Lewis chessmen was identities such as bishop and queen The found in 1831 on the Isle of Lewis official chess set used today was designed in in the Outer Hebrides in Scotland 1849 and named for chess master Howard The pieces represent one of the rare Staunton It combined the simpler abstract style surviving medieval chess sets The top of chess in Islamic countries the European figures row shows king queen and bishop and the artistic style of the day The bottom row shows knight rook and