Philipp Stamma
Philipp Stamma (* 1705 in Aleppo, Syria; † circa June or July 1755 in London) was a Syrian chess master. He was the author of the best-known older chess books, the Essai sur le jeu des échecs.
Biography
Philipp Stamma was born in Aleppo, as he himself admitted. His first name is spelled differently in European languages and in written documents ( " Filippo ", " Phillip ", " Philippe "). According to recent evidence Stamma is originally Fathalla, son of Safar Shtamma told and have belonged to a Syrian Catholic Notabelnfamilie.
From his life only a few messages are delivered. As a grown man he emigrated to Europe, there to gain a living as a translator and chess players. Stamma even mentioned in the preface Paris Stays in Italy and France. According to the (unknown ) author of the first German translation is Stamma to " 1730 in Londen [sic ], but nachgehends stopped a long time in Paris" have.
The French edition of his work, which appeared in 1737, Stamma devoted a patron, the British statesman Lord Harrington. According to the scanty evidence he lived thereafter, mainly in London. There he played chess in "Slaughter 's Coffee House ". In addition, since July 1739, he worked in the service of King George II as a translator of Oriental Languages .
Stamma wore in 1747 in London a match against François -André Philidor Danican from which he lost. The ten games in question are not obtained. Philidor is said to have always left his opponent's suit; also drawn games were considered to be won for Stamma. According to tradition, Philidor won eight games, Stamma two ( which according to the rules mentioned a draw ).
In the British National Archives was a few years ago ( on August 28, 1755 opened ) discovered Testament Stammas. Thus he died about in June or July 1755, leaving two sons.
The chess book
Stammas fame rests on the chess book written by him, which was widespread in Europe in the 18th century in numerous editions. The Paris edition included one hundred chess compositions. In 1745, followed in London improved English edition, The Noble Game of Chess, which additionally contained 74 game starts.
The work continued the previously interrupted in the two centuries tradition of artificial tasks. The mediated " Chess Secrets " should enable the learners to be able to escape in the practical game with tactical resources from difficult situations. In Stammas tasks that were borrowed in part, older models, mating threats were set against the white king usually. These were then repulsed with sacrifice and by a series of chess commandments to Matt circuit (a typical example of a composition Stammas can be found in the article for chess study).
Among the openings he stressed the importance of the Queen's Gambit. In his famous textbook Philidor described the opening after Stammas hometown therefore also called " Gambit of Aleppo ". The Gambit openings in the narrower sense, in which a farmer is sacrificed Stamma was more reluctant. Anyway, he criticized the predilection of his predecessor Gioachino Greco specifically for the King's Gambit: "No one plays the gambit, if he does not want to lose or play against a beginner. "
In terms of chess literature Syrian Master comes to importance also for another reason. Stamma was the first author who applied the algebraic notation using letters and numbers. The success of his book has helped, particularly in Germany to popularize this modern common notation. The first German translation appeared in 1754 in King Amand in Strasbourg - and as an appendix to Philidor's textbook. The opening part, the Amand published separately as a treaty by the King 's Gambit game, is also missing from the later German editions. Moses Hirschel then used algebraic 1784 at his Breslau edition enhanced ( detailed ) notation.
In 1856 appeared on the basis of a processing Ludwig Bledows is oriented to scientific criteria edition of the " hundred playoffs " Stammas.
Werkausgaben
- Philippe Stamma: Essai sur le jeu des échecs, Antoine van Dole, La Haye 1741 ( reprint of the first French edition )
- Phillip [sic ] Stamma: The Noble Game of Chess, J. Brindley, London 1745
- Philip the Arab Stamma, a native of Aleppo in Syria, discovered chess Secrets, published by Amand King, Strasbourg 1754 ( appended to Philidor: to be The art in the game of chess a masterpiece, from page 231)
- Philipp Stamma: Treatise from Gambit Game, Strasbourg 1754
- Moses Hirschel: The Chess of the Lord Gioachino Greco Calabrois and the chess game Secrets of the Arab Philip Stamma, Wroclaw 1784 (reprint Zurich 1979, ISBN 3-283-00014- X)
- Stamma 's wholly- finals, processed according to the output of 1745, translated by L. Bledow and O. von Oppen, Veit & Comp, Berlin 1856
- Stamma on the Game of Chess, T. and J. Allman, Second Edition, London 1819 ( full English edition, edited by William Lewis)