Handbuch des Schachspiels

The game of chess manual ( colloquially the Bilguer ) is the title of the first book published in 1843 about chess history, chess openings and chess endgames.

The design comes from Paul Rudolf von Bilguer, which began with the collection of material for the new book in the 1830s. After the early death Bilguers 1840 sat Tassilo von der Lasa Bilguers Heydebrand and continued work and published the work in 1843.

In the introduction, first the history of chess is treated. Then comes the first part in a concise tabular form a representation of the chess openings after the then state of knowledge of chess theory, enriched with analyzes of the Berlin school of chess and important parts of the individual variants. In the second part can be found in several chapters a systematic overview of the theory of the playoffs with accurate analyzes.

Under the editorial published by the Lasas 1852, 1858, 1864 and 1874 four more runs. For the fifth edition of the Lasa had 10,000 lots, which were published in books and magazines in several languages ​​, compiled. Until the fifth edition was von der Lasa but only of Bilguer as an author on.

The sixth edition was published in 1880 by Constantin Swede, the seventh in 1891 by Emil Schallopp and the eighth edition in 1916 by Carl Schlechter. The eighth edition included more than 1000 pages and contained original analysis of some of the leading contemporary chess masters, such as Rudolf Spielmann, Siegbert Tarrasch and Richard Teichmann. After the eighth edition released yet supplements that of Jacques Lousy (1921) and Hans Kmoch (1930 ) were responsible.

The chess handbook was widespread, and many chess players have learned from him. It was instrumental in the spread of algebraic notation and introduced the tabular presentation of opening theory, which was later adopted by many authors. To date, the manual of chess is considered a classic of chess literature.

Werkausgaben

• Paul Rudolf von Bilguer. Continued and edited by his friends Tassilo von der Lasa and Heydebrand: Handbook of chess, Edition Olms: Zurich 1979 ( reprint of the first edition Berlin 1843). ISBN 3-283-00013-1 ( digitized )
• " Designed and begun by P. R. of Bilguer, continued and edited by vd Lasa ": Manual of Chess, published by Veit and Co., 3rd edition, Berlin 1858 ( digitized ).
• Paul Rudolph of Bilguer, Tassilo von der Lasa and Heydebrand. With the supplementary booklet of Jacques Lousy and the addendum of Hans Kmoch: Handbook of chess, Edition Olms: Zurich 1983 ( reprint of Berlin and Leipzig, 1922-1930 ). ISBN 3-283-00103-0