Cecil De Vere

Cecil De Vere, ca.1865
Association	United Kingdom
Born	February 14, 1845 Montrose , United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
Died	Torquay February 9, 1875
Best Elo rating	2697 (October 1866) ( historical rating )

Cecil De Vere (born February 14, 1845 in Montrose as Cecil Valentine Brown, † February 9, 1875 in Torquay ) was a British chess player .

He was born out of wedlock in 1845, presumably in Montrose, County Angus, Scotland, but possibly also in Stirling . A birth certificate was never found and his father is unknown. Since he changed his name to Cecil De Vere after coming of age, it has been speculated that this was his father's family name. He came to London at a young age and learned to play chess at the age of twelve under the guidance of Francis Burden. As a result, he regularly visited the Simpson's Divan chess cafe in London. Here he made friends with the chess master and chess writer George Alcock MacDonnell (1830-1899), with whose help he was able to increase his skill level.

He caused a stir in December 1865 when he won a duel against Wilhelm Steinitz (7-3 in two draws). However, Steinitz had underestimated the junior champion and given a pawn and a move in each game . Steinitz then compared his talent with that of the young Paul Morphy . In June 1866, however, Steinitz won a match without a handicap 2-0 in two draws.

In the same year, the first English championship was held in London. De Vere won this in a convincing manner (twelve wins, no losing game) before Macdonnell and thus became the first official British champion. In 1867 he played his first international tournament in Paris, finishing fifth.

He earned his living as an employee at Lloyd's . At the end of 1867, De Vere learned that he was terminally ill with pulmonary tuberculosis . His mother had also died a year earlier. De Vere couldn't cope with this. He became depressed and addicted to alcohol. He quit at Lloyd's and from then on lived on the maternal inheritance and bonuses from the chess game.

Twice he finished first in the British championship: 1868/1869 with Joseph Henry Blackburne , 1872 with John Wisker (1846-1884), but he lost both playoffs.

In 1870 he achieved some spectacular victories at the tournament in Baden-Baden, he finished 6th to 7th in the strong tournament. Space.

He oversaw a chess column for the London newspaper The Field , but had to give it up in 1872 for health reasons. His successor in this post was Steinitz. In February 1874 he played another competition with Johannes Hermann Zukertort at the City of London Chess Club , which he lost 2-1.

During a spa stay in Torquay, he died in 1875 and was buried there.

Since De Vere did not reach the absolute top of the world, posterity almost forgot about him.

literature

• Owen Hindle and Bob Jones: The English Morphy? The life and games of Cecil De Vere, first British chess champion . Keverel Chess Books, Exmouth 2001. ISBN 0-9531321-4-5

Web links

Commons : Cecil De Vere  - Collection of Images

• John Upham: Remembering Cecil Valentine De Vere , British Chess News, February 14, 2020