Skip to content
TheChessWorld.com
TheChessWorld Facebook TheChessWorld Twitter TheChessWorld Pinterest TheChessWorld YouTube
  • Start Here
  • Play
  • Learn
    • Training Techniques
    • Openings
    • Middlegame
    • Endgames
    • General Information
  • Tournaments
  • Academy
  • 21-Day Course
  • Store
    • TheChessWorld
    • iChess
    • ChessTeacher
    • Modern Chess
    • Roman`s Chess Lab
    • Foxy Series
    • Grandmaster Magazine
    • ChessLecture
    • ICC
  • Contact
TheChessWorld.com
Close

Attacking the Kingside Castle on the H-file

WGM Raluca Sgîrcea, IM Renier Castellanos
WGM Raluca Sgîrcea, IM Renier Castellanos
12.20.2017
Category: Middle Game
Tags: attacking, attacking chess, attacking secrets, castle, h-file, king's side attack, middlegame,
Attacking the Kingside Castle on the H-file

Attacking is one of the most attractive skills for every chess player.

Being a positional genius, a boa constrictor, squeezing the small advantages is great, but the ability to find tactics and create direct attacks is something that makes everyone’s eyes sparkle.

Like every other chess skill attacking can be learned and trained, it is not something you’re born with.

In this article, we are going to go over some very nice attacking examples in a common pawn structure, see the next diagram.

 

***

Attacking the Kingside Castle

This structure is quite common; it arises very often when a trade takes place on g6. Now, when the king is still without castling black sometimes can make use of the open H-file, but once the king has castled these doubled pawns are not always good.

One of the main defects of this pawn structure is that the square g5 becomes a good square for an enemy knight, and of course the H-file Open.

Let’s see some examples:

attacking chess

We start with a classic. This position occurred in the game Colle, E – Yates, F Hastings 1927. We have a typical Queen’s Gambit position. Black should now trade on e5 followed by Nd7 with an inferior, but playable game. Clearly, Yates was not up for passive defense and tried to simplify with 11…Ne4? Allowing a series of exchanges that favored white and led to black’s collapse.

See the explanation here:

Attacking Chess

Another game from a very long time ago; the classics knew what they were doing! Fritz Saemisch versus Koller in a simul game played in Bern 1949. We chose this starting point because white began an entertaining adventure that led to a beautiful finish. Here white decided to launch an attack with 20.f5!?

A very logical move; however, he had to foresee and evaluate the complications arising after the move 20…Bg5 which was met with 21.Ned5! A beautiful knight sacrifice that opens the diagonal for the bishop on b2 and brings this strong N on d5 to cooperate with the kingside attack.

See the details here:

The rook h8+ motif

The combination of a knight on g5 or on e5 plus a rook on the H-file seems to be lethal for the defensive side. In many occasions, the idea of Rh8+ followed by a fork on f7 arises.

Let’s see the following positions:

Yates – Reti
New York 1924

Here white correctly played 18.Bxg6! opening the H-file and creating the potentially weak g5 spot. After 18…hxg6 he continued with 19.Ne4 already setting up the scenario for an attack on the H-file.

Black did not play the best defense from here and was driven into the following position:

attacking chess

White to move: 24.Ng5! 1-0

The knight is immune because of Rh8+ followed by Nf7+ .

Another example can be seen in the following position:

attacking chess

Marovic – Tsagan
1964

As we can see here black has just played the move 18…Bg6 hoping to defend against white’s pressure on f7/h7. It must have been a total shock over the board when he saw white’s next move, a beautiful combination that involves all of white’s pieces, including the rook on e1!

Dare to find it? Or you can see the details here:

The hunter hunted

Even the world’s best players can succumb to the risks of this pawn structure. In the USSR Championship 1969 the magician of Riga Mikhail Tal found himself in the following position

attacking chess

Apparently, everything is normal; black is under attack but he is trying for some counterplay on the C-file. However, it is already too late and nothing can save him from an attack against his king.

Grandmaster Savon with the white pieces correctly played 22.Nxg6! followed by 23.Bxd6 and 24.Qe1 with a winning attack. The queen transfer to h4-turns out to be deadly.

See details here:

Thank you for reading; we hope you have enjoyed going through the examples and learned something new about a position that is found quite often in our games.

Find this post useful? Share it?
Become a Chess Player You've Meant to Be!
TCW Academy is the fast, fun & convenient way to become a MUCH better chess player.
Join Academy Today!

Related Posts

  • Development Advantage – How to Win Games?Development Advantage – How to Win Games?
  • Fighting against the Pawn CenterFighting against the Pawn Center
  • destroying the castled kingDestroying the Opponent’s Castled King
Related Products
0 0 votes
Article Rating
Login
3 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
check'n'mate
12.22.2017 03:37

Great article! It looks the games aren’t loaded properly (no piece movement, no text)

0
Reply
Yury Markushin
Author
Reply to  check'n'mate
12.22.2017 06:39

Hi check’n’mate, please reload the page it should be working!

0
Reply
ayush gupta
12.21.2017 06:25

outstanding topic to be discussed in this series thanks, sir you are the best yuri sir

0
Reply
Join the FREE Road to 2200 Masterclass (and learn how to Attack Like a Chess Master)
We value your privacy
Supercharge Your Chess in 21 Days!
Join Academy Today!
TheChessWorld.com
http://pogonina.com/
Company
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • F.A.Q.
  • Partnership
  • Blog
  • Grandmasters
  • Jobs
Chess Resources
  • TCW Academy
  • The Store
  • 21 Day Course
Top Resources
  • Opening Lab
  • Mastermind
  • Chess Mastery Series
  • Academy
100% Secure Purchase
Customer Support +1 (410) 656-9104
Email Us [email protected]
Contact Us
Facebook Twitter Mail Pinterest Youtube
Copyright 2007-2023 • TheChessWorld.com • All Rights Reserved
Cookie Policy | Acceptable Use Policy | Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of all the cookies.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT
wpDiscuz
wpDiscuz