Berlin chess society

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The Berliner Schachgesellschaft (BSG) is Germany's oldest still existing chess club . Today it bears the name Berliner Schachgesellschaft 1827 Eckbauer - after a merger in 1949 with the chess association Eckbauer 1925 .

history

founding

Twelve chess players met in 1827 in the "flower garden" on Potsdamer Chaussee , a garden restaurant that existed until 1854. Meetings were held once a week under the direction of Hermann Reinganum and Captain von Carisien. The round held general assemblies every six months and on April 2, 1829 an agreement was reached on the name of the chess society .

There was a good relationship with the more exclusive Berlin chess club from 1803 , also known as the Big or Old Club . In 1837 the possibility of uniting the chess society with the old club was discussed, albeit without result (this was then dissolved in 1847).

Development in the 19th century

The chess society soon developed into the leading club in Germany / Prussia . A group of seven chess masters played a key role in this: The " Pleiades " (the seven stars with Ludwig Bledow , Tassilo von Heydebrand and the Lasa , Paul Rudolph von Bilguer , Wilhelm Hanstein , Bernhard Horwitz , Carl Mayet and Karl Schorn ) were the founders of the Berliners Chess school . Many of the chess rules that are valid today were created in this circle and were then generally recognized. The handbook of the chess game , the Bilguer , was created in this group, as was the German chess newspaper in 1846 .

Important chess players of the club in the century were among others Adolf Anderssen , Johannes Hermann Zukertort , Emanuel Lasker (member from 1891, world champion 1894–1921), Emil Schallopp and Philipp Hirschfeld .

The earliest known club tournament took place in 1853. The winner was Jean Dufresne , who won a playoff against Max Lange .

Development until 1945

Before the Second World War , the chess society was by far the strongest German chess club. On April 26, 1901, the club was a founding member of the General Chess Federation in Berlin . About five months later, the chess society also rejoined the German Chess Federation , which had been abandoned years earlier in a dispute.

The chairman of the chess society between 1911 and the end of the Second World War was the master player and influential chess functionary Ehrhardt Post , who determined the fate of the Berlin Chess Association after the First World War and at the same time served as managing director and central figure of the Greater German Chess Federation after 1933 .

In 1910 the chess society had 275 members. The gambling halls changed often at the beginning of the 20th century, including the Café Kerkau . It wasn't until Kantstrasse 8 (next to the Theater des Westens ) that the club found its own clubhouse, which also served as an office for the Berlin Chess Association . The building was destroyed in World War II and was never rebuilt. The area was only built on with a hotel again from 2005.

Anniversary tournament from 1928

The Berlin Chess Society celebrated its centenary on December 3, 1927 in the Citizens' Hall of the Berlin City Hall . The highlight of the celebrations was a large international chess championship tournament (February 4 to 20, 1928), which Aaron Nimzowitsch won ahead of Efim Bogoljubow and Savielly Tartakower .

Merger to form BSG Eckbauer (1949)

The traditional chess society had to be considered politically charged due to its close ties with the Greater German Chess Federation. The organization was also severely weakened. On July 3, 1949, the remaining members of the Berlin Chess Society and the "Eckbauer Chess Association" founded in 1925 - which until then had been active as the "Charlottenburg Chess Group" - formed the Eckbauer chess society . The Eckbauer association had already achieved major chess successes in the prewar period and offered itself as a partner for a merger.

In 1953 a change of name was decided ( Berliner Schachgesellschaft Eckbauer ). In March 1955, the following paragraph was added to the articles of association: “The company emerged from the merger of the Berlin Chess Society, founded in 1827, and the Eckbauer Chess Association, founded in 1925, and continues their tradition.” By adding the year of foundation, the The club's name is also the current form: Berliner Schachgesellschaft 1827 Eckbauer e. V.

Sporting successes

The BSG 1827 Eckbauer reached the final of the German team championship eight times , with the club becoming German team champions in 1957 and 1961. By 1967 the chess company had won the Berlin team championship fifteen times.

Currently (2018/2019 season) the club's first team plays in the Berlin City League and has around 50 members.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Berlin Chess Association: Berlin Championship 1853 ( Memento from February 12, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ↑ Berlin Chess Association: The centenary of the Berlin Chess Society ( Memento from July 21, 2012 in the web archive archive.today ) Article from Ludwig Bachmann 's 1928 chess yearbook
  3. ↑ Minutes of the founding meeting of the "Schachgesellschaft Eckbauer from July 3rd, 1949"  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , printed (with further information) in the club magazine Der Eckbauer , 1999, No. 2@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.bsg-eckbauer.de  
  4. ↑ Quoted in the article about the (re) foundation "50 years ago"
  5. ↑ DWZ ranking list BSG 1827 Eckbauer e. V. Accessed July 28, 2018 .

literature

  • 140 years of the Berlin Chess Society. In: Bulletin of the Berlin Chess Association . Issue 6/1967.
  • Günther Busse: The Berlin Chess Society 1827 Eckbauer and its predecessors. A historical outline on the occasion of the 150th anniversary. Berlin 1977.
  • Otto Zander : 100th anniversary. The history of the Berlin chess society. Berlin 1928.

Web links