

White’s Knight moves to c4 (Nc4+…Kb7), not so much to check but to move closer to the opposition King. The Black King goes to b6, trying to stay away from the corners and edges of the board. You have to think in terms of where you don’t want the opposition King to go to. This type of checkmate only works if you can start forcing the opposition King into the mating position. This moves starts to cut off squares the Black King wants access to. Now the Bishop comes into the game, moving to e5 (6.Be5…Kb6). White’s pieces are moving in for the kill together, not individually. White’s immediate goal is to activate his King and minor pieces to start forcing the Black King to its mating square. White’s Knight now comes into the game (4.Ne3…Kb6). The Black King is going to do everything he can off stay off the h8 and a1 squares, trying to avoid the dark squares and thus the White Bishop’s domain. It is crucial to bring our King into the Endgame immediately since our King plays a critical role in this checkmate! After the Black King moves to d7, White continues to bring his King into the game (2.Ke3…Kc6 3.Kd4…Kb5).

Also note that we’re not going to check the King a lot until we have him closer to our target square. The Black King is going to try and stay away from these corner squares for obvious reasons. First, note that the Bishop is a dark squared Bishop which means that we have to drive the opposition King to one of the dark corner squares (either h8 or a1). Rather, try to understand the concepts demonstrated in this example. Therefore, don’t try to memorize the moves played out in this example. It should be noted that the above example is just that, an example of a position that might come up in an endgame. While the Bishop and Knight are minor pieces, when working together, they become a very powerful force. Nc3# * your web browser and/or your host do not support iframes as required to display the chessboard alternatively your wordpress theme might suppress the html iframe tag from articles or excerpts However, knowing the mechanics behind this checkmate will go a long way towards improving one’s chess skills, especially in the endgame. The checkmate we’re going to examine solidifies this point, especially when you’re in an endgame where pawns and pieces are in short supply!Īgain, the Bishop and Knight checkmate is difficult for the beginner and this type of mate is most likely not going to come up in the beginner’s game. Lone pieces attacking or defending a position don’t last long when facing a coordinated team of opposition pieces. By this, I mean that pieces must work together as a team in order to launch successful attacks or defenses. I tell my students that chess is a team sport. Before delving into a move by move example, let’s review a few key points, starting with piece coordination. However, after watching the DVD, I learned a number of valuable lessons regarding piece coordination as well as the correct way to accomplish this type of checkmate. Prior to viewing his DVD, I had attempted to mate my opponent’s lone King with a Knight, Bishop and my King. I first came across a wonderful demonstration of the above ideas while watching an Endgame DVD. A great deal of knowledge can be acquired from learning this method of mating. Lastly it demonstrates the value of minor pieces in the endgame.
BISHOP KNIGHT CHECKMATE HOW TO
It also teaches the art of basic piece coordination as well as how to force your opponent’s pieces to squares you want them on.

First off, it breaks beginners of that bad habit of only trying to checkmate with the major pieces, the Rooks and Queen (or Queen and Bishop). However, a great deal can be learned from this seeming complex checkmate. Some instructors have even considered my teaching of this mating pattern as pointless. Many chess instructors have asked me why I would even consider introducing such a complex mating system to young novice players. A checkmate, using a King, Knight and Bishop against a lone King appears to be extremely difficult to the beginner.
