Every Form

Here is the third of three Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) games, printed in the Preston Guardian, provided by Tim Harding, from the deep resources of his correspondence chess databases. (See also "Preston Guardian" and "Rematch".)

The notes are by Harding, and from the Preston Guardian of April 26, 1882.

Lowe,E - Cudmore,D

Preston Guardian consolation-2 rd1 corr, 1881

Preston Guardian, April 26, 1882, notes Monck (abbreviated) Dublin chess club minutes show Daniel Cudmore elected August 25, 1880

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+?!

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4

Every form of the Jerome Gambit is, I believe, unsound and this is no exception.

8...Qf6 9.fxe5+ Qxe5 10.Qf3 b5

11.d4 Qxd4 12.c3 Qf6 13.Bf4+ Ke7 14.Rf1 Bb7

15.Qh5 Qc6 16.Qe5+ Kd8

17.Qxg7 Qxe4+ 18.Kd1 Bd5 19.Be5

19...Kc8 20.Nd2 Qxg2 21.b4

21...Be7 22.Qxh8 Bg5 23.Bf4 Bxf4 24.Rxf4 Qxh2 25.Qe5 Qg2

26.Kc2 Bc6 27.Qe3 Qg6+ 28.Kb2 Kb7

29.Rg1 Qe6 30.Ne4 Bxe4 31.Rxe4 Qc6 32.Rf1 Nf6 33.Rd4 Nd5 34.Qd3

34...Nxc3 35.Rc1 Na4+ 36.Kb1 Qb6 37.Qe4+ Ka6 38.Qxa8 Qxd4 39.Qc8+ Kb6 40.Qxc7+ Ka6

41.Qa5+ Kb7 42.Qxb5+ Nb6 43.a3 a6 44.Qf5 Nc4 45.Qf3+ Kb6

46.Qc3 Qxc3 47.Rxc3 d5 48.Rd3 Kc6 Drawn, but White should have won this game.

It is not clear who the comment "White should have won this game" can be attributed to, the Preston Guardian or Harding, but I would imagine it to be the latter.

Certainly one of White's oversights late in the game was not to have seen 41.Qc8+ (instead of 41.Qa5+) Kb6 42.Qd8+ Ka6 (42...Kb7 allows mate in 3) 43.Rc6+ and Black will lose Queen for the Rook.