François Antoine de Legall

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François Antoine de Legall, Sire de Kermeur (born September 4, 1702 in Versailles , † 1792 probably in Paris ) was a French chess player . He was the chess teacher of François-André Danican Philidor and after that the strongest French master of the 18th century.

Name and origin

Legall came from a noble Breton family. In the literature, there are often different spellings for the name, such as Legal or Légal or Legalle or Kermur and Kermuy . In the list of subscribers to the second edition of Philidor's textbook (published in 1777), the name form “De Kermur Sire de Legalle” can be found.

According to Ken Whyld, his father was General René François (de) Legall (1652-1724). This is mentioned in the sources primarily because of his services in the War of the Spanish Succession . The chess player, the older of two sons, was to reach the same age as his mother, who was called Françoise-Marie de Vitart Saint-Clair before she married. She was still alive in 1775 when she was 88 at the time; so she would have been fifteen when Legalall was born.

Chess career

The French encyclopaedist Denis Diderot described Rameau's nephew Légal (sic) as a permanent guest in the famous Café de la Régence . Legall can be seen as the first professional chess player who played for bets in the Café de la Régence, and did so for decades into old age. The difference in skill level between the professional player and his opponent was compensated for by appropriate specifications (pawn and move, light piece, tower, etc.).

From 1741 Legall was the teacher of François-André Danican Philidor , the most important chess master of the 18th century. Philidor is said to have defeated him after three years. According to tradition, the last match between the two rivals took place in 1755; it again underlined the superiority of the former student. In the decades that followed, Legall maintained the second position behind Philidor, who later shifted his focus to London . Nothing is known about his relationship with the younger generation of Parisian masters around Verdoni , whose emergence he saw from the 1770s.

In the history of chess Legall's name as the creator of Seekadettenmatts received the most outside Germany as Legalls Matt is called. Apart from this, no other part of him has survived.

literature

Web links

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ So far only the year was known. Dominique Thimognier recently determined the exact date, place of birth and first names from the baptismal register (see web link). See also Edward Winter : Chess Notes , No. 7143;
  2. ^ Philidore: Analyze du jeu des Échecs , list of subscribers
  3. ↑ Edward Winter: Chess Notes , No. 5720
  4. ↑ Dominique Thimognier: de Legall François Antoine (sire de Kermeur) (French)
personal data
SURNAME Legall, François Antoine de
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Légal, François Antoine de
BRIEF DESCRIPTION French chess player
DATE OF BIRTH September 4, 1702
PLACE OF BIRTH Versailles
DATE OF DEATH 1792
Place of death uncertain: Paris