Paul Morphy: Confederate Spy
by Stan Vaughan
Three Towers Press (2010)
soft cover, 402 pages
descriptive notation
I could hardly wait to pick up Paul Morphy: Confederate Spy. The American chess champion from Louisiana, cast as an undercover agent during the War Between the States!
First, though, I had to set aside my concerns about the author, Stan Vaughan, of the American Chess Association (as opposed to the better known United States Chess Federation) and claimant to the World Chess Federation World Champion title (as opposed to the better known FIDE). There was more than a bit of trepidation in reviewing the July 1, 2011 WCF Top rating list, since there seemed to be a few players missing:
1. Stan Vaughan 2965 (current WCF "The World Chess Champion" after 2011 ACA Nevada State Open)
2. Bobby Fischer (deceased) 2897 (after WCF "The World Chess Championship" title match of 1992 versus Spassky)
3. Boris Spassky 2805 (after WCF "The World Chess Championship" title match of 1992 versus Fischer)
4. Ron Gross 2575 (after WCF 2011 Starbucks International- official WCF 2012 title match challenger after winning the 2010 WCF Candidates matches Final at Las Vegas Riviera Hotel Casino).
However, I took the leap.
The author writes from the omniscient, third person point-of-view, fully strident in a way that befits the Southern perspective of American Civil War
According to Article I, section 8 of the US Constitution, only US Congress has the power to call forth state militia (and even then it must be as a result of a call for assistance from a state legislature, or when said state's legislature is not in session, its governor). Yet, once the trespassers had been evicted from Fort Sumter, which should have been the end of the matter, Lincoln usurped this authority and issued his own illegal proclamation call on April 15, 1861. Not only was it illegal from the standpoint that he had no authority to issue it, it called for suppression of a so-called insurrection in South Carolina, a state no longer even part of the Union, as South Carolina had seceded the previous year!
Whew! As a Yankee, I was quickly getting schooled on Dishonest Abe Lincoln and his War of Northern Aggression. Of course, I awaited the author's treatment of the "Peculiar Institution", which was not immediately forthcoming...
I tripped over an occasional mismatch in verb tenses and some misspellings that should not have been there, but I was settling into a tale set in a vibrant time in chess and non-chess history.
The presentation of the chess games seemed a bit silly, however, placing "annotations" within the dialogue, e.g.
[After 1.P-K4 P-K3 2.P-Q4 P-Q4 3.PxP] Talking with some nearby spectators, Morphy commented, "This is my favorite treatment of the French Defense, whereby I get an open game."
4.Kt-Kb[sic]3 B-Q3 5.B-Q3 Kt-KB3 6.Castles, castles 7.Kt-B3 P-B3 8.B-KKt5 [Black's move is missing; it should be 8...B-KKt5] 9.P-KR3 BxKt 10.QxB QKt-Q2 11.KR-K1 Q-B2 12.P-KKt4
De Maurian, in a low voice to a fellow spectator, so that Jose Maria [Sicre] could not overhear, re marked, [sic] "This is one of his patented P.C. (Paul Charles) moves. Not only is it justified in a position like the present, but it is twice as strong, for it provokes anxiety, confusion and fear!"
Awkward.
Still, things moved along, and Morphy, in the role of diplomat, found himself across the Atlantic, in Spain... and the style of writing in Paul Morphy: Confederate Spy changed from politics and intrigue to more of a travelogue. I rode it out for about a dozen pages (like so much of the book, the places and buildings were interesting, even if I struggled with the prose), and then parked myself on a couple.
The phrase "characterized by a magical use of space, light, water and decoration" (page 62) describing a particular piece of architecture caught my eye, and I Googled it. Hmmm... That phrase shows up in the DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Seville & Andalusia (page 194).
Somewhat disappointed, I then chose "where the reigning sultan listened to the petitions of his subjects and held meetings" (page 62) and Googled that, only to find that the phrase is also from DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Seville & Andalusia (page 194).
It turned out that "an undigested cube of rock, and whoever designed it failed to realize that when plumped down beside the delicate Moorish palaces upon which it encroaches, it could only look ridiculous" (page 63), however, appears in Iberia, (page 227) by James A. Michener.
I set the book down. I do not know if I will pick it back up again.
Pity. I was just getting into the story.
I wonder how things turned out in the end.
A short excerpt from the ever-informative and very readable Chicago Chess Blog reminds me of that famous comment from a contemporary of Alonzo Wheeler Jerome, P.T. Barnum, that “there’s no such thing as bad press, as long as they spell your name right.” Wow! Such company!
Apart from the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+?? Kxf7 5.Nxe5+) and the Chicago Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nxe5??), the weakest opening that has a generally accepted name may be Damiano's Defense (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f6?).
The 7...Ke6 line in the Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit is a difficult one for both players. Black holds onto the second sacrificed piece, planning to return it for a pawn or two, and the chance to castle-by-hand – on the Queenside. While White is objectively worse, he has the chance for an attack on the Black King, and an opportunity to produce some spectacular chess, as the following game showcases.
olpaBlind - engnader
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6
The Semi-Italian Opening.
4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ Ke6 8.Qf5+ Kd6 9.d4
White has already castled, while Black retains his dark-squared Bishop, so the standard f2-f4 pawn advance is not possible; the center thrust seems best.
9...Bxd4 10.Rd1 c5 11.b4
A new move (11.c3 has been seen several times before) that opens very interesting possibilites. White's game goes from "bad" to "worse", but he is counting on the swirling fog of war to increase his chances.
11..Qf6 12.bxc5+ Kxc5 13.Ba3+ Kc4
At first glance, we see that Black is up two pieces, with better development to boot. He even threatens to trade off White's "attacking" Queen. Some gambit!
Furthermore, Black owns the a1-h8 diagonal, and is beginning to add pressure to f2 along the a7 to g1 diagonal.
This being a blitz game, I have to wonder: did either player realize that at this point Black is busted!?
14.Qh3 Qxf2+
Since this appears to be crushing, it seems silly to mention that Black has better chances for survival by returning a piece with 14...Nf3+ or trying the alternative check 14...Bxf2+; in each case, followed by 15...Kb5.
15.Kh1
So, what, exactly, is going on here?
Well, as sharp-eyed Readers no doubt have noticed, White inconveniently threatens checkmate.
At first this seems simple to deal with: Black has 15...Qxc2, covering the b3 square and ending the mate threat. He seems ready to allow White to pin his Queen to his King with 16.Rc1, as 16...Qxc1 17.Bxc1 Bxa1 actually gives him two Rooks for the Queen. Plus his additional two pieces.
analysis diagram
The issue for Black here, though is that his extra pieces are undeveloped. Over time, White can both harass the King and win back material, e.g. 18.Qb3+ Kc5 19.Qd5+ Kb6 20.Qd6+ Nc6 21.Be3+ Ka6 22.Qa3+ Na5 23.Qd3+ Nc4 24.Qxc4+ b5 25.Qc5 Bb2 26.Qd6 Kb7 27.Nd2 Ne7 28.Qxe7
Of course, not every defender is ready to part with his Queen, anyhow. Black might simply prefer to block White's Queen's access to b3 with 15...Be3 (instead of 15...Qxc2). Still, this is inadequate: 16.Bd6 (locking in the undeveloped pieces) Kb5 (the only move) 17.Na3+ Ka6 18.Rf1 Qd2 19.Rad1 Qc3 20.Bxe5
analysis diagram
and it is again a question of developed pieces vs a vulnerable King that gives White the better game.
Black can also block White's Queen's transit to b3 with the counter-sacrifice 15...Nf3. After the cheeky 16.Nd2+!?, however, Black's King is on the run with 16...Kb5, when a sequence like 17.Rab1+ Ka6 18.Nxf3 d5 19.Qh5 Nf6 20.Qg6 b6 21.Rxd4
analysis diagram
shows Black developing more pieces, but losing two of them...
Black's best defense is to acknowledge that his 13th move was unlucky and to evacuate his King with 15...Kb5. White's followup if familiar by now, 16.Qb3+ Kb6 17.Qa4+ Kb6 18.Bd6. Storm clouds are gathering around Black's King... Black can try the very funny 18...Ng4!?, threatening the mate by ...Qg1+ and ...Nf2; but this is well met by 19.Bg3, e.g. 19...Be5 20.Nc3 a6 21.Bxf2+ Nxf2+ 22.Kg1 Nxd1.
analysis diagram
Black temporarily has three minor pieces and a Rook for his Queen, but his King is too open and White's Queen is too active, e.g. 23.Qb4+ Ka7 24.Qc5+ b6 25.Nb5+!? axb5 26.Qxe5 Ne3 27.Qxg7 Bb7 28.Qxh8 and White is still not through collecting material.
What to do? What to do? What to do?
Black's actual move in the game "solves" everything.
15...d6 16.Qb3 checkmate
I think that it is worth the time to play over this game and examine the lines of play available to Black at move 15 onward. I have only touched upon how spectacular the chess is at that point.
Fantastic game, gentlemen!
When it comes to a happy-to-see-it defense from Black when White offers the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) there's nothing quite like the "Optical Illusion variation": a little bit of the "Halo Effect" and a whole lot of the "Disdainful Defender Defense".
You are always welcome, old friend!
perrypawnpusher - recreation
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6
Last year my opponent played the equally fine 6...Kf8 in perrypawnpusher - recreation, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 13).
7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Qf6
A very sound and practical move.
9.fxe5+ Qxe5 10.Qf3 Nf6 11.d3 Rf8
The moves have been flying quickly, as Black first held onto his extra material with 6...Ke6; then brought out a strong defender with 8...Qf6, threatening to diffuse the attack with the exchange of Queens; then hammered at White's e-pawn with 10...Nf6; and finally with 11...Rf8 lined up heavy artillery on the f-file with White's Queen. Take that, you impudent Jerome Gambiteer!
This is all well and good – unless Black has temporarily, momentarily and inexplicably, but unquestionably and unfortunately, overlooked something.
12.Bf4
Black resigned
(I am sure that if we were playing a standard game, and not blitz, that he would have ripped my lungs out...)
Why not take a moment to check out a pleasant discussion on the Blackburne Shilling Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4?!, including the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit, 4.Bxf7+!?, at RedHotPawn.com, initiated by Honorable Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member Geoff Chandler?
Dear Defender,
This is a blog for those interested in the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and related openings.
I am sure that you can tell, if you read a few posts, that I like the Jerome, I play the Jerome, and I celebrate Jerome Gambit victories.
If you stick around this blog and look a bit deeper, you will also see that I try to be fair in my evaluations. After all, the Jerome Gambit was practically born refuted.
So, this post is for you, and everyone else who wishes to rain on my parade. Just a little tip...
perrypawnpusher - AcesFullofKings
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6
The Semi-Italian Opening, the name given in Euwe and Meiden's Chess Master vs Chess Amateur (1974).
4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit, so named because it transposes after the Black King captures the White Bishop to a "modern" variation of the Jerome Gambit: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.0-0 – "classical" Jerome Gambit variations continue with 5.Nxe5+, "modern" Jerome Gambit variations try something else – 5...h6, etc.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Qxe5
Here, Black resigned. He looks to lose a Rook or a Bishop, remaining with an uneasy King, down a couple of pawns.
But – look closer.
As I pointed out in the notes to my game with alekbb a year ago (and a couple of times before that, going back 3 years) Black is actually better in the final diagram.
The resolute 8...Bf8 ("box" as they say) saves the Black Bishop and poisons the Black Rook: 9.Qxh8? Bg7 10.Qh7 Nf6 and the White Queen is lost.
I am sure that the following game does not show my opponent at his best. He was probably just having a bad day, maybe experiencing some kind of an attack... Perhaps a bad case of Jerome Gambit-itis?
perrypawnpusher - Valseg
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
The Jerome Gambit.
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6
7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Ng6
This move transposes to the 6...Ng6 line, although a comparison, i.e. 7.Qd5+ Ke7 8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3, will show that in the current game White picks up the extra move f2-f4.
9.Qd5+ Ke7 10.Qxc5+ d6 11.Qe3
Although Rybka 3 and Fritz 8 still see Black as better (i.e. the extra piece outweighs the extra pawns) my opponent was uncomfortable enough with his King's placement to now move it off of the e-file.
11...Kf8 12.0-0 Nf6 13.f5 Ne5 14.d4 Neg4
While this position seems to be unique in The Database, there are 20 games with the particular arrangement of Black Knights and White Queen with her d-, e- and f-pawns. White scores 78%.
Instead of kicking the Queen, the Knight should have retired to c6.
15.Qg3 Kf7
Still nervous about the placement of his King. After the game, Rybka 3 suggested 15...h5.
16.e5
This is premature, as after 16...dxe5 17.dxe5 Black has the simple 17...Qd4+ followed by 18...Qxe5.
16...Bxf5
Probably an oversight. Black's game now falls apart, despite strong effort on his part.
17.Rxf5 Rg8 18.exf6
Relying on the pin, 18.Qxg4 first was stronger.
18...gxf6
19.Qf3 c6 20.Nc3 d5 21.h3 Qe7 22.hxg4 Qe1+ 23.Qf1 Qh4 24.Be3 Rae8
25.Re1 Rxg4 26.Bf2 Qh6 27.Rxe8 Kxe8 28.Qe2+ Re4 29.Nxe4 Qc1+
30.Be1 Kd8 31.Nxf6 Qxb2 32.Qe8+ Kc7 33.Bg3+ Kb6 34.Nd7+ Ka6 35.Qe2+ b5 36.Nc5+ Kb6 37.Qd2 Qxa2 38.Rf7 Qa3 39.Rb7 checkmate
