Gambit - what is this? Meaning of the word

During the Soviet Union, most boys and girls were perfectly familiar with the meaning of the word "gambit" (as well as the terms "castling", "combination", "time trouble"). After all, one of the most popular games in the family circle and in the summer camp, in the courtyard and in the park were chess, which gave the world this term. Unfortunately, with the advent of computers, modern gadgets and the Internet, the fashion for the intellectual game has passed. The notion was also forgotten. However, recently the word "gambit" seems to have acquired a second birth. In dictionaries, while its portable meaning is not indicated, but in living speech is used regularly and everywhere. But first things first.

A little chess theory

Specialists divide any chess game into 3 parts. The initial stage is familiar to everyone with the name "debut". The middle one is the "middlegame" (the German word, which translates this way - "the middle of the game"). The final of the game is called "endgame" ("the end of the game," as you might guess). In each of the periods, players face their own tasks. Inattention to them can be disastrous at any stage of the party.

Basic Rules of Debut

Any chess coach teaches his players that in the opening it is necessary to withdraw their figures from the initial positions, taking the most advantageous position, to reliably protect the king and take control of the central fields of the board. It is necessary to develop quickly, without losing tempo, if possible, avoiding unnecessary moves by the same figure. In this case, it is necessary to prevent the enemy from carrying out the same actions. The game is already at the debut stage should be built according to a certain plan, a clear scheme. Therefore, only beginning chess players go "as God puts a soul". Experienced players use ready-made options, which thousands are known for. There are collections of debuts in which proven schemes are placed. Gambit is also a debut, but special, about which a little lower.

Types of debuts

Each debut has its name, history of creation and possible options for continuations. The initial stages of the party are usually classified into three groups depending on the first move of whites and the opponent's response.

• Open debut begins with the moves: 1. e2-e4 - e7-e5.
• A semi-open debut will arise if on 1. e2-e4 black will respond by any move, except 1. ... e7-e5.
• The closed debut begins with any move of whites, except for the 1. e2-e4 mentioned earlier.

Now we can talk about what the word "gambit" means.

Terminology

Gambit is the beginning of the game in which one of the opponents sacrifices a pawn or figure. Why does he do this? To win a pace, speedy development, take advantage of your position with your figures or impose an acute struggle. Depending on the actions of the opponent such sharp debuts are divided into 3 groups. The adopted gambit is the beginning of the game in which the opponent accepted the victim. Refused - if he did not take a "podstavlennuyu" pawn or figure. Finally, the player can sacrifice in response - then they say about countergambit.

What does the word "gambit" mean?

The first serious textbook of the chess game appeared in the 16th century. They became a book published by the Spanish priest Rui López de Segura "Book of ingenuity in chess" (1561). It is in it for the first time that the word "gambit" occurs. The origin of the term most researchers associate with the French gambit, inherited from the Italian gambetta - "step", dare il gambetto - "put the bandwagon."

The most famous gambit

Royal . One of the most ancient debuts is the royal gambit described by Lopez. He got his name thanks to the sacrificed royal pawn:

1. E2-e4-e7-e5. 2. f2-f4 ...

Until the twentieth century it was very popular, even special thematic tournaments were held, in which all participants played only this debut. He was adored by Boris Spassky and Judit Polgar, Robert Fisher and Paul Keres, and David Bronstein believed that it was only for him that he should play chess. Specialists are convinced that the royal gambit is an ideal choice for a beginner chess player. In this debut, the struggle arises from the first moves. Thus, a beginner learns to attack first, and only then to defend himself. Gambit has many variations, maybe both accepted and refused. Sometimes black in return sacrifices a pawn. Such a variant is called the countergamme of Falkbeer:

1. E2-e4-e7-e5. 2. f2-f4-d7-d5.

Loopback . This debut begins with movement, and then with a sacrifice of pawns on the queenside.

1. D2-d4-d7-d5. 2. c2-c4 ...

Gambit was used for a long time, but it became especially popular in the XIX century. Often found in tournaments today. Famous for his aphorisms grandmaster Savely Tartakover called the royal gambit "a leap into the abyss," and the queen was "jumping into a ditch." In this debut, Black can also accept the white victim, reject it, or offer Counterbomb to Albina (the latter was given the name of the chess player who first used the scheme in the game against Emanuel Lasker in New York in 1883):

1. D2-d4-d7-d5. 2. c2-c4-e7-e5.

Let's sum up the results

Thus, a gambit in chess is a beautiful sharp start to the game, in which the player goes to a sacrifice in order to benefit from a different character: positional advantage, pace, seizure of strategic fields. As a rule, a chess player gives a pawn, but sometimes he can sacrifice a figure. This is what happens in the Cochrane gambit:

1. E2-e4-e7-e5. 2. Kg1-f3-Kg8-f6. 3. Kf3: e5-d7-d6. 4. Ke5: f7 ...

The scrappy gambit

What does it mean? The fact is that the term in question has long gone beyond the framework of a chess game. Academic explanatory dictionaries do not fix the figurative meaning of the word, but it exists in a living speech! So, in 1966 on the screens there was an American film-robbery "Gambit", and in 2012 - its the same name remake. The English gambit has several meanings, including "sacrifice, concession, maneuver, the first step". The name was automatically translated into Russian as a "gambit", but it did not embarrass anyone! The chess gambit is beautifully reinterpreted by the native speakers of the Russian language. Today, it means (sacrificed, in a living, unofficial speech) a victim or a concession made with definite goals. Most often the term sounds in the political arena and in journalistic materials. Not always such terminology seems to be successful, however, as mushrooms after the rain, gambits are growing that are not listed in any of the chess directories: Russian, Ukrainian, Crimean, Syrian, gambits of Putin and Yanukovych. The whole world is turning into a grandiose party in which no country, no leader wants to be a pawn.

How it all began

Many people are convinced that the word "gambit" in our everyday life was introduced by none other than the most famous contemporary writer Boris Akunin. In 1998, from his pen, the second book in the series, dedicated to Erast Fandorin, "The Turkish Gambit", is published. Such a debut in chess does not exist. There are Belgrade, Budapest, Sicilian and Volga, but there is no Turkish. And the book is not about the ancient game. However, the name subtly rethought the chess term. And that no one has any doubts - the author put into the mouth of the main "negative" hero, Anwar-effendi, a detailed explanation. He argues that for the sake of the triumph of progress and democracy (which connects with the United States and Western Europe), Russia has been sacrificed by a tasty but weak Turkey. The Emperor Alexander accepted the sacrifice, but the overall result of the party will not be in his favor. Gambit is a victim, which rarely leads to the win of the opponent who thoughtlessly accepted it. To win, it is necessary to predict all conceivable variants of the development of the situation, to count on many moves ahead - be it chess or geopolitics.