March 4th

Hans Wilhelm Klüver (04-03-1901 - 26-02-1989) German composer and Honorary Master of Chess Composition

Hans Klüver & John Niemann
[© Hannu Harkola]

Hans Klüver
[© Hannu Harkola]

Hans Klüver learnt chess at 13 and composed his first problem one year later. He has been interested in retroanalytical problems and in fairy chess: for instance he promoted Dynamo chess and Marseillais chess.
He also invented the concept of metacritical move.

Klüver held chess problem columns in 16 newspapers (in Die Welt during 40 years, from 1946 until 1989!) and wrote more than 150 articles, as well as several books, among which the famous "Erich Brunner - ein Künstler und Deuter des Schachproblems" (1958). More details in German on Wikipedia, thanks to Rainer Staudte.

Klüver, Hans Wilhelm
Deutsche Schachzeitung, 1981
2^nd HM

#6

4 + 8

Show Solution

1.Rd8! a4 2.Bd7 Kd1/Kd2 3.Be6+ Kc1 4.Bb3! axb3 5.Bd6 Kd1/Kd2 6.Bf4#
Critical moves, zugzwang.

Attila Benedek (04-03-1921 - 02-02-2010) Hungarian composer and FIDE Master

Attila Benedek
[magyarsakkszerzok]

Attila Benedek started composing at the age of 40 and is the author of about 800 problems in all genres. He was also an International Judge and the Hungarian delegate at the PCCC meetings during 20 years.
He published a 82 page book about his career which can be downloaded and read from here.

Benedek, Attila
Magyar Sakkélet, 1977
1^st Prize

h#2

3.1.1.1

7 + 15

Show Solution

1.Sc6 Rxe5 2.Sd8+ Rb5#
1.Se6 Sxe5 2.Sd8+ Seg4#
1.Sf7 Rxe5 2.Sd8+ Re7#

Triple switchback by bSd8 and switchback by each thematical white piece.

Станислав Максимович Толстой (04-03-1944 - 29-06-1985) Russian composer (Stanislav Maksimovich Tolstoy)

Stanislav Tolstoy
Problem, May 1979
[Thanks to Александр Никитин ]

Stanislav Maksimovich Tolstoy is the author of about 500 problems.

Толстой, Станислав Максимович
Mat (Beograd) 1976
3^rd Prize

#5

5 + 14

Show Solution

1.e7! ZZ
1...f4 2.e8=R! g5/c6 3.Re4 c6/g5 4.Rc4 Sc1/Sc3/Sd4/Sf4 5.Rxc1/Rxc3/Rxd4/Rxf4#
1...g5 2.e8=B! f4/c6 3.Bg6 c6/f4 4.Bb1 Sc2/Sd3 5.Bxc2/Bxd3#
1...c6 2.e8=S! f4/g5 3.Sd6 g5/f4 4.Sc4 Se2~ 5.Se3#
Underpromotions and dual avoidance.

Толстой, Станислав Максимович
Pedagogusok Lapja, 1980
1^st Prize

#2*

14 + 8

Show Solution

Set play:

1...Qxd4[a] 2.Qf5#[A]
1...Sxd4[b] 2.Sd6#[B]

1.Sd5! (2.Sf6#)

1...Qxd4[a] 2.Sc3#[D]
1...Sxd4[b] 2.f3#[C]
1...cxd5[c] 2.Qf5#[A]
1...Bxd5[d] 2.Sd6#[B]

Anti-Somov A1, Somov B2, Rukhlis.

Zoltán Laborczi (04-03-1949) Hungarian composer

Zoltán Laborczi
[magyarsakkszerzok]

Zoltán Laborczi replaced Attila Benedek as the Hungarian delegate at PCCC.
He composes in all genres, but lately seems to have preferred seriesmovers.

Laborczi, Zoltán
Bakcsi 75 JT, 2008
1^st Prize

Ser-h#7

6 + 8

Show Solution

1.Re5 2.Bg5 3.Sc4 4.Be4 5.Rd5 6.Sce5 7.Bg6 8.Rf5 9.Be7 10.Sf6 11.Be8 dxe8Q =
A festival of consecutive self-pinnings and unpinnings.

Stephen Rothwell (04-03-1969) German composer

Stephen Rothwell
[Lüneburger Problemfreundetreff 2014 - Niedersächsischer Schachverband]

Stephen Rothwell composes in all genres, with a predilection for selfmates and fairy problems.

Rothwell, Stephen
feenschach, 1997 (7274)
2^nd Prize

#6

AndernachChess

6 + 10

Show Solution

1.Be2! (2.Sc6#)
1...fxe2[=wP] 2.e3+ Sxe3[=wS] 3.Sf5+ Rxf5[=wR] 4.Rf4+ Sxf4[=wS] 5.Sfe2+ Bxe2[=wB] 6.Sc6#
5 black pieces consecutively capture and are captured. Specific Andernach strategy.

Jakob Robert Emden (04-03-1862 - 08-10-1940) Swiss composer

Robert Emden (left) in company of painter C. Steiger (right)
["Robert Emden - Wanderer zwischen Welten" page 7]

Robert Emden was a meteorologist, physicist and astrophysicist. As a member of the Akademische Schachclub München (A.S.C.M.) he was the editor of their monthly review Akademischen Monatshefte für Schach.
More information about him can be found on die Schwalbe website and a longer biography in "Robert Emden - Wanderer zwischen Welten - zu seinem 150. Geburtstag"" by Alfred Gautschy.

Emden, Jakob Robert
Akademisches Monatsheft für Schach 1894-05

#4

7 + 4

Show Solution

1.Rh3!
1...Kd5 2.Rh4
2...c6 3.Bg4 K~ 4.Be6# {Nice Indian}
2...Kc6 3.Rh5 (or 3.e4) d5 4.Rh6#

Note: it is possible to avoid the dual 3.e4/3.Rh5 in the second variation by moving wPe2 to c2 and wKh2 to g2 (version by Frank Müller, 2012)

Hermann Stapff (04-03-1899 - 01-07-1952) German composer

Hermann Stapff suffered a stroke in 1932 and his right side was paralysed. He started started chess composition at the age of 35 with direct mates but soon he mostly composed helpmates, selfmates, fairy problems and some retros.
In 1948 die Schwalbe published his 24-page Introduction to fairy chess (Einführung in das Märchenschach).

Stapff, Hermann
Die Schwalbe 1951
1^st Prize

s#15

5 + 4

Show Solution

1.♖e3! ♔g7 2.♕a1+ ♔g8 3.d4 ♔g7 4.d5+ ♔g8 5.♔f6 ♔f8 6.♕a3+ ♔g8 7.d6 ♔f8 8.d7+ ♔g8 9.♔e7 ♔g7 10.♕c3+ ♔g8 11.♖e5 ♔g7 12.♖f5+ ♔g8 13.♕c7 ♔g7 14.♖f7+ ♔g8 15.♔d8 ♔×f7#
Systematic manoeuvres.

Stapff, Hermann
Feenschach 1952

s#12

Checking Zigzag

2 + 4

Checking Zigzag: Black moves only to check. White can not capture (unless he has no other legal moves), nor check.

Show Solution

If the white King stood on a1, there would be mate in one with ♘b3#.
1.♔e8! ♗a4+ 2.♔f7 ♗e8+ 3.♔f8 ♘d7+ 4.♔g7 ~ 5.♔h6 ~ 6.♔g5 ~ 7.♔f4 e5+ 8.♔e3 ~ 9.♔d3 ♘c5+ {the black Knight is back to c5} 10.♔c2 ♗a4+ 11.♔b1 ♗c2+ {the black Bishop is back to c2} 12.♔a1 ♘b3#