Selfmate

The self- Matt is a form of chess composition, forces in the White that Black checkmates him. Black tries to avoid this at all costs.

History

The earliest surviving selfmates date from the late 13th century. However, they were not delivered in Arabic Mansuben collections, but first shown in the task collection of Bonus Socius. The first known self- Matt had there the number 57a and contained a Fers, the precursor figure of the lady. Later it was found that this problem is incorrect. The self- Matt was very popular in the mid-19th century. Characteristic were difficult and often dreaded tasks with long puff count.

Typical tasks

In the self- Matt even those can be displayed in addition to many Orthodox subjects that can not be represented in orthodox Matt tasks. Unlike these tasks multiple Matt possibilities are not considered defects in self- Matt. Selfmates with einzügigem " set Matt" - this is a position meant in the black, he would be the train, can checkmate - are called " Fata Morgana " means. If the mat -setting in the set character was beaten during the solution, one speaks of the " Weber- type " (after Wolfgang Weber).

Example

An example of a self- Matte:

Set of games: 1 .. A1d or A1t matt; 1 .. A1l 2.Dg6 or DF7 Bb2 matt; 1 .. a1S 2.Dg6 Sb3 matt. However, the set of games can not be triggered as long as the black king is zugfähig. There are two ways to take the black king all trains.

Seduction: 1.Dg6? a1S! and white is in zugzwang: 2.Df7 Sb3 3.Dxb3

Solution: 1 Qf5 - f7! a2 - A1l or a2 - a1S ( conversion to lady or tower would checkmate immediately) 2 DF7 - g6 La 1- b2 -b3 matt matt or Sa1

More self- Matt tasks are discussed in the articles of Udo Degener, Heinrich Albert Kniest, Miodrag Mladenovic, Jeremy Morse and Wolfgang Weber.

Further use of the term

When does a surprisingly bad moves in the game of chess a player (or a blunder, the only possibility to checkmate the opponent admits ), it is said, " he alludes to self- Matt".