The Chess Philosopher, Part 2

We left off last week after the opening of the game Lasker-Bauer. The chess philosopher Emanuel Lasker played "Bird's Opening" and prepared an attack on Black's kingside.

Lasker realized that to win by an attack he would have to remove the defenders. What are the black king's most loyal defenders? The knight on f6 (as usual) and the pawns in front of his king. The knight was sent on a long journey from c3 in order to challenge the one on h5. As for the pawns...you will see.

Black was surely expecting that Lasker would now take back the knight with the queen, 15.Qxh5. But then he would reply 15...f5 and there would be no attack. Instead Lasker started a combination which became a classic.

The king's defense has been broken down; he is out in the open. What to do now though? The queen by itself cannot checkmate. She can only give checks forever. White needs reinforcements! So he makes a rook lift, threatening a corridor mate.

White won the queen, but Black has lots of pieces for it: a rook and two bishops. But now Lasker played the move he had seen since the beginning, which wins another bishop, leaving him up too much material.

The combination became a classic which shows how to prepare an attack on the king and break through.