The Italian Rules
The
Italian rules date back to the end of the 15th century – mid
16th century when the centre of the chess world moves from
Spain to Italy.
They differ from the modern chess rules by the “passar
battaglia” and the free castling. The “passar battaglia”
forbids to take a pawn en passant. The free castling allowed
a player to directly move his king to h1 and his rook to e1
for instance when castling king side, or the king to a1/b1
and the rook to b1/c1/d1 when castling queenside.
These rules were in use in Italy up to the end of the 19th
century and it is generally considered that it was the Third
National Chess Tournament held in Milano in September 1881
that definitively imposed the use of the international rules
in Italy.
Many correspondence games have been played during the 19th
century
according to the Italian rules.
The
game Berlin – Hamburg has been historically the first
correspondence chess game played according the Italian
rules. It is rather surprising that two German clubs used
these rules, but this was probably due to the influence of
the Ponziani’s treatise translated by V. Mosler “Das
Schachspiels nach dem Italienischen des Autore Modenese”,
Coblence in 1822.
Berlin - Hamburg [C54]
corr, 1834
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3
Nc6
3.Bc4
Bc5
4.c3 Nf6
5.d3 0-0
Hamburg used the free casting by playing the King on h8.
6.0-0
Berlin also used the free castling by playing his King on
h1, although this will have no impact for the rest of the
game
6...d6 7.Qe2
Qe7
8.Be3
Bxe3
9.fxe3 Be6
10.Nbd2
Bxc4
11.Nxc4
Rae8
12.Nfd2
£e6 13.h3 g6 14.Qf3
Nd8
15.Raf1
Nd7
16.b3 c6 17.g4
kg7
18.kh2
f6
and
the game was agreed a draw in 83 moves. The free casting was
not necessary and standard rules could have been applied.
The
game played between Modena and Liverno, two italian cities,
is much more interesting. I give here the annotations of
Steinitz published in “the Fields” in 1879 and those of
Count Cassoli one of the member of the Modena club published
in the “Nuova Rivista degli Scacchi” in 1879.
Modena - Livorno [B22]
corr, 1877 - 1879
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3
e6 3.c3
The
move
3.¤c3
followed by 4.d4 was suggested by Paulsen, and gives White a
slight advantage. The text move is worth consideration
because it eases white’s development.
3...Nc6
4.d4
4.Bb5
was perhaps stronger.
4...d5 (4...£b6 5.£e2 ¤f6 6.e5 followed by 7.0-0.) 5.¥xc6+
bxc6 6.£a4 ¥d7 7.d3 (7.¤e5 ¤f6 8.¤xc6? £b6) 7...c4 8.dxc4
dxe4 9.¤e5
with a good game.
4...d5 5.exd5 exd5 6.Bb5
£d6
The
"Neueste Theorie" suggest 6...cxd4. This Queen move seems
not necessary (F. Cassoli)
7.Qe2+
Be7
8.dxc5 Qxc5
9.0-0 -- 10.Re1
The
free casting according to the Italian rules. According to
most players, the possibility to move the Rook directly to
e1 gives White a too big advantage
(RR
to enter such a game into Chessbase, you have to enter a
null move by pressing Ctrl Alt 0 and White is for instance
allowed two moves at the same time. Of course the numbering
of the moves is no more correct)
10...Bg4
11.Be3
11.¥xc6+
was stronger, because after
11...bxc6 12.¥g5
Black had problems to castle.
11...Bxf3
12.Bxc5
12.Bxc6+
was still stronger.
12...bxc6 13.Qxf3
Qd6
14.Bd4
Qg6
(14...f6 15.£g4 followed by b4.)
15.Nd2
followed by
Nb3
gives White the better game.
12...Bxe2
13.Rxe2
0-0-0 14.Kb8
Again
the free castling.
15.Bxe7
Ngxe7
16.Nd2
a6 17.Ba4
Kc7
It
was necessary to bring the King in the center (Steinitz). A
good move to support the isolated pawn (F. Cassoli)
18.Nf3
b5 19.Bb3
h6 20.Ne5
It
was better to play before 20.a4 and if 20...f6 to prevent
¤e5, 21.axb5 axb5 22.¤d4 ¤xd4 23.¦xe7+ ¢d6
24.¦ae1 ¤c6
20...Nxe5
21.Rxe5
Kd6
22.Rae1
Rd7
23.f4 g6 24.a4
Rb8
The
best move (F. Cassoli)
25.axb5 axb5 26.g4
Rbb7
27.h4
27.Kg2
-- 28.Kf3
was better.
27...Kc6
Black
has well played this difficult ending, but the text move
loosed a tempo. (W. Steinitz).
It
was better to play
Kc5
(F. Cassoli)
28.Kg2
Kc5
29.Kf3
b4
Lose
a pawn.
29...Nc6
was better 30.R5e3
(30.Re8
Re7
F. Cassoli.)
30...Na5
followed by
b4 or Nc4.
30.Ba4
Nc6
Risky.
30...Rdc7
was better.
31.cxb4+
Winning a pawn, but White king side remains weak and this
neutralizes the material advantage.
31...Kd6
A
very good move.
31...Rxb4?
32.Rc1+
lose a piece.
32.Bxc6
Kxc6
33.Rc1+
Kd6
34.Rc5
Rxb4
35.Rcxd5+
Kc6
36.Rc5+
Kd6
37.Rb5
37.¦c2
followed by
¦5e2 to
support the pawn provides no advantage (F. Cassoli)
37...Rb7
38.Rbd5+
Kc6
39.Rd2
Rb3+
Black’s defense is correct and White has to exchange a pair
of Rooks. (W. Steinitz).
39...Rxb2
is a mistake 40.Rxb2
Rxb2
41.Re7
Rb7
(41...Rb3+
42.Ke4
Rb4+
43.Ke5
f6+ 44.Rxf6
Rxf4+
45.Kxg6
Rxg4+
46.Rh5
wins) 42.Rxb7
Kxb7
43.Ke4
Kc7
44.Ke5
Kd7
45.Kf6
Ke8
46.Kg7
h5 47.gxh5 gxh5 48.Kh6
and White wins
(F. Cassoli).
40.Re3
40.Ke4
R7b4+
41.Rd4
Rxb2
threatening
...Re2+
hindering White to hold the strong square e7.
40...Rxe3+
41.Kxe3
Rb3+
42.Ke4
Rh3
43.Ke5
Rxh4
44.Rg2
Kd7
45.Kf6
h5
The
best move.
45...Ke8
46.f5
A)
46...g5 47.Kg7;
B)
46...h5 47.fxg6 fxg6 (47...hxg4 48.Re2+
wins.)
48.g5²;
C)
46...gxf5 47.gxf5
46.Kxf7
Rxg4
47.Rc2
Kd6
48.f5 gxf5 ½-½
Another interesting game has been played by Hamburg and
Breslau (now Worclaw in Poland) in 1840.
Hambourg - Breslau
(Worclaw) [C41]
Corr 1840
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3
d6 3.d4
Qe7
4.Nc3
c6 5.h3 h6 6.Bc4
Nf6
7.dxe5 dxe5 8.Be3
b5 9.Bb3
a5 10.a4 b4 11.Ne2
Be6
12.Ng3
Bxb3
13.cxb3
Qe6
14.Qc2
Nfd7
15.0-0-0 -- 16.Kb1
-- 17.Rc1
White’s free castling.
17...c5 18.Rhd1
g6 19.Rd5
Nc6
20.Ne1
Nd4
21.Bxd4
exd4 22.f4
Qb6
23.Nd3
f6 24.f5 g5 25.e5
Qb7
26.Qc4
0-0-0 27.--
Kb8
28.-- Rc8
Black’s free castling.
29.Rxd7
Qxd7
30.exf6
Qb7
31.Re1
Rh7
32.Re6
Rd7
33.Ne4
Qd5
34.g4 Qxc4
35.bxc4 b3 36.Ne5
Rdd8
37.f7 Kb7
38.Nf6
Rc7
39.Nh7
Rcc8
40.Ng6
Rd7
41.Re8
Rxf7
The
game was stopped in this position, but White should have a
winning position after
42.Rxc8
Kxc8
43.Nhxf8.
There are much less games where the “passar battaglia” rule
had to be taken into
account and the following one played in 1877
between the Ferrera and the Modena chess clubs is one of
them:
Ferrara - Modena [C54]
corr, 1877
( Annotations by Comte
Fernandino Cassoli)
1.e4
e5 2.Nf3
Nc6
3.Bc4
Bc5
4.c3 Bf6
5.d3 d6 6.Qe2
h6 7.Be3
Bb6
8.Nbd2
0-0 9.--
Re8
The
free catling accoring to the Italian rules, but
8...£e7 was
maybe better.
10.h3
Ne7
11.g4 Bxe3
12.Qxe3
Ng6
13.g5 Nf4
14.0-0-0 -- 15.Kb1
-- 16.Ka1
Again
the free castling.
16...hxg5 17.Nxg5
Be6
18.Bxe6
Nxe6
19.Nxe6
Rxe6
20.Rdg1
Nh5
21.Nf1
Bf6
22.Ng3
Nxg3
23.Rxg3
Qf4
24.Rhg1
g6 25.Qxf4
exf4 26.Rf3
Rd8!
27.Rxf4
d5 28.exd5
Rxd5
29.d4 Rg5
30.Rf1
Kg7
31.a3 Rg2
32.d5 Rf6
33.Rb4
b6 34.Rc4
c5 35.b4
White cannot take en passant !
35...cxb4 36.axb4
Rfxf2
37.Rxf2
Rxf2
38.Rd4
Kf8
39.c4 Ke7
40.Kb1
Rf3
41.Kc2?
Better was:
41.c5 bxc5 42.bxc5
Rb3+
43.Kc1
Rb8=
41...Rxh3
42.c5 Kd7
43.d6 Rh8
44.Kc3
A
draw was maybe still possible after 44.Re4!
bxc5!
45.bxc5
Kc6
46.Re7
Kxc5
47.Rxf7
Kxd6
48.Rf6+
Kc5
49.Rxg6=
44...Kc6
45.Kc4
bxc5 46.b5+
Kb6
47.Re4
Rh1
48.Re3
Rd1
49.Rd3
Rxd3
50.Kxd3
Kb7
0-1
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