Even more of the people, places and stories behind the chess openings and their names When we play chess, the first few moves define the game . You may know the names already: the Italian Game, the Cambridge Springs Defense, the Smith-Morra Gambit, the Max Lange Attack, the Colle System, the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit, the Paulsen Variation, the Damiano Defense, and so on. But most chess players don't know WHY the openings are called what they are. In this entertaining book, bestselling author Nathan Rose lays out the origins of over more 50 chess openings and their names. This second volume of Chess Opening Names dives deeper into the history of the lesser-known openings, because the stories behind the lesser-known chess opening names are every bit as interesting as the better-known ones. The names of the chess openings tell the history of chess. You will meet seminal chess figures such as Anatoly Karpov, Judit Polgár, Tigran Petrosian, Emanuel Lasker, Saviely Tartakower, José Raúl Capablanca, Mikhail Botvinnik, and Viktor Korchnoi. Some of them won their fame in the world chess championship, while some gained renown for reasons other than their ability to play chess. You will also travel through the places and events that defined chess in the early years. As David Shenk showed in "The Immortal Game", the history of chess has often mirrored the history of society. There's the 1972 world chess championship that pitted the Soviet Union's Boris Spassky against America's irascible Bobby Fischer in the "Match of the Century". The 1939 chess olympiad in Argentina which coincided with the outbreak of World War II. The unveiling of the "Mechanical Turk" chess-playing contraption in 18th-century Vienna. And let's not forget the triumph of Deep Blue over Garry Kasparov. Over 50 standard chess openings and variations. The 19th Century & Earlier: Lucena Defense Damiano Defense Polerio Gambit Salvio Gambit Greco Gambit Allgaier Gambit Napoleon Opening Cochrane Gambit Lewis Countergambit McDonnell Gambit Bourdonnais Attack Urusov Gambit Horwitz Attack Kieseritzky Gambit Barnes Defense Max Lange Attack Paulsen Variation Blackburne Shilling Gambit Zukertort Opening Lasker Variation Pillsbury Attack The 20th Century & Later: Mieses Opening Schlechter Defense Janowski Variation Spielmann Variation Colle System Sämisch Variation Tartakower Attack Capablanca Freeing Maneuver Bogoljubov Defense Euwe Variation Trompowsky Attack Blackmar-Diemer Gambit Keres Attack Botvinnik System Bronstein Variation Smyslov Variation Tal Variation Petrosian System Taimanov Attack Donner Variation Spassky Variation Smith-Morra Gambit Sveshnikov Variation Korchnoi Variation Karpov Variation Kasparov Variation Polgár Variation The Others: Italian Game Swiss Gambit Yugoslav Variation Russian Defense Chinese Variation Cambridge Springs Defense Frankenstein-Dracula Variation Impress your friends with superior opening knowledge - without the tedious study! Knowing the history of chess will prove your cleverness even more effectively than winning over the board. Once you have read this book, you can speak of your temptation to play the Tal Variation, but instead play the Keres Attack. Then, you can explain the origins of the names to your opponent. Even if you lose the game, your opponent will still be impressed! Enjoy this capitvating romp through the names of the first few moves. Grandmasters and patzers alike are sure to enjoy this entertaining tour through the people, places, and events which have given their names to the first few moves.