Chapter 3, Part I — Modern Ideas in Chess: Tarrasch

This is the first part of the third chapter of Richard Réti's Modern Ideas in Chess (1922): the three sections on Siegbert Tarrasch and two of his games, in the order the book gives them, narrated in Réti's own words. Réti calls it the Steinitz school: the young masters who took Steinitz's technique but not his scheme of the game, and joined it to quick development. Its leader was Dr. Tarrasch, who also worked out how to treat an opponent's cramped position. What you'll take away: • The "surrender of the centre": White forces Black to exchange his centre pawn, and White's pawn on e4 against Black's on d6 leaves White the larger amount of space (§11, §12). • Black defends the attacked pawn by a counter attack on e4, White covers it, and Black attacks it once more — the opening as a struggle over one square (§12). • Against a cramped position, do not free the opponent by exchanging: Black's pieces come to stand in one another's way (§12). • The chance Black passed up to free himself with the pawn to d5, and why Tarrasch's Knight route to e2, d4 and f5 could no longer be prevented (§12). • How an attack on the Knight's file is prepared: the major pieces first, where Black cannot oppose them, and only then the exchanges that open the file (§13). • A pawn break-through at the right moment, which leaves White a protected passed pawn and decides the game on the King's side (§13). Chapters 0:00 §11 Siegbert Tarrasch — the Steinitz school, and the surrender of the centre 3:13 §12 Tarrasch–Schlechter — the counter attack on e4, the cramped defence, and the Knight's route to f5 12:06 §13 Tarrasch–Walbrodt — the major pieces on the Knight's file, and the break-through Modern Ideas in Chess is in the public domain. Book adapted from the 1923 English edition. Captions available.