Dutch defense

Dutch defense

	a	b	c	d	e	f	G	H
8th									8th
7th									7th
6th									6th
5									5
4th									4th
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	G	H

The basic position of the Dutch defense after 1. d2 – d4 f7 – f5

The Dutch Defense is an opening of the game of chess . It is one of the closed games and is classified under A80 – A99 in the ECO codes .

history

The Dutch defense was first mentioned in 1789 by the Dutch chess player Elias Stein in his book Nouvel essai sur le jeu des Echecs . For a long time the most popular variants of the Dutch Defense were the Ilyin-Genewsky variant and the Stonewall construction . Often white uses his draw advantage to gain space advantage. He can't do that against the Stonewall. In the Stonewall, black controls at least as much space as white. Black even controls some squares on the white half of the board, especially e4. However, in the last 30 years these systems have been superseded by the Leningrad system , which was worked out by Leningrad chess players. The Leningrad system combines ideas of the Dutch and the King's Indian defense .

Opening ideas

Black's plan is to control point e4 and possibly occupy it with a knight and to concentrate the pieces on the kingside in order to go on to attack the kings there. The white man, on the other hand, tries to keep the center z. B. to open with e2 – e4 or d4 – d5 , and often combines this with playing on the queenside. In the Stonewall, Black placed all of his pawns on the white squares and thus weakened his black squares. He will especially feel this when the white man succeeds in exchanging the black-field bishops, one of the main goals of the white man for the stonewall. The e5 square in particular tends to be vulnerable because no black pawn can defend it.

Main variants

Each of their main variants starts with the trains:

1. d2-d4 f7-f5

However, if you want to avoid the Staunton Gambit as a Black , you can also build up using 1.… e7 – e6 and then only f7 – f5, provided White does not move 2. e2 – e4. This is how Mikhail Botvinnik opened it more often. After White e2 – e4, Black can then go into the French Defense with d7 – d5 , also a preferred variant of the ex-world champion.

The main variants of the Dutch Defense are (the moves can also be played in a different order):

• Classic system: 2. c2 – c4 Ng8 – f6 3. g2 – g3 e7 – e6 4. Bf1 – g2. After the first 4 white moves, the following continuations are common:
  • Ilyin-Genewsky system: 4.… Bf8 – e7 5. Ng1 – f3 0–0 6. 0–0 d7 – d6 (named after Alexander Ilyin-Schenewski . The former popularity is shown by the placeholders ECO A96 to A99). It is characterized by the structure with e6 and d6 with Be7. Black wants to enforce e5. Then his Bc8 comes into play and he can attack the kingside if necessary. White's plan is to come to e4 and become active in the e-file. After z. B. 7. Nc3 Qe8 8. Re1 Qg6 9. e4 fxe4 10. Nxe4 Nxe4 11. Rxe4 this is caused by the trap 11.… Qxe4 ?? 12.Nh4 realized.
  • Stonewall build-up with Be7 4.… Bf8 – e7 5. Ng1 – f3 0–0 6. 0–0 d7 – d5 (ECO A93 to A95). The structure is called Stonewall because the center rarely opens. When the game is shifted to the wings, Black hopes for a king attack. The exchange of the black-squared bishops via a3 (prepared by 7. b2 – b3) gives White the slightly better endgame. The endgame between knight and bad bishop, which results from exchanging the white, white-squared bishop for a black jumper, would be ideal, because in closed positions the jumper is superior to the bishop.
  • Stonewall build-up with Bd6 4.… c7 – c6 5. Ng1 – f3 d7 – d5 6. 0–0 Bf8 – d6. Qe7 delays the exchange of the black-squared bishops via a3. Alternatively, this exchange comes about via Bf4.
  • Alekhine variant: 4.… Bf8 – e7 5. Ng1 – f3 0–0 6. 0–0 Nf6 – e4
  • Because of the early c2 – c4 maneuvers with 4.… Bf8 – b4 + are possible as in Bogoljubow - Alekhine, Hastings 1922 and Euwe - Alekhine, Zandvoort 1935 . Often Bb4 + is avoided by means of the early development of the white kingside 2. g2 – g3, 3. Bf1 – g2, 4. Ng1 – f3, 5. 0–0.
• Leningrad system : 2. c2 – c4 Ng8 – f6 3. g2 – g3 g7 – g6
• Staunton Gambit : 2. e2 – e4

The Stonewall - with or without a white fianchetto - is an opening variant that has gone out of fashion and therefore offers medium-level players good practical opportunities. Mikhail Botvinnik used the stonewall construction with Be7 for many years . His typical maneuver was Qd8 – e8 – h5 in preparation for the offensive on the kingside.

Minor variants

• Hort-Antoschin variant : 2. g2 – g3 Ng8 – f6 3. Bf1 – g2 d7 – d6 4. c2 – c4 c7 – c6 5. Ng1 – f3 Qd8 – c7
• Change of move: 2. Ng1 – f3 Ng8 – f6 (changes to the above variants)
• Rubinstein system: 2. c2 – c4 e7 – e6 3. Nb1 – c3 (named after Akiba Rubinstein )

The further plan provides for a procedure in the center using Qc2, e3, Bd3, Nge2 and f3 in addition to e4. Both castling opportunities have already been seen for white. Under certain circumstances, the advance g2 – g4 instead of e3 – e4 can make sense.

• Other playable variants are 2. Nb1 – c3 or the 2. Bc1 – g5 assigned to Bogoljubow . With the latter, a harmonious development of the black kingside should be made more difficult. The hunt for the bishop with 2.… h6 3. Bh4 g5 4. Bg3 must be stopped here because after 4.… f4? 5. e3 mate is threatened by Qh5.

Others

With the bird opening (1. f2 – f4) or the stonewall attack , positions of the Dutch defense with reversed colors can be reached.

literature

• Rolf Schwarz : Dutch, Handbook of Chess Openings Volume 12 . The chess archive, Hamburg 1964.
• Mark Taimanow : Dutch to Bird opening. Sportverlag Berlin , 1988, ISBN 3-328-00251-0 .
• Jerzy Konikowski , Olaf Heinzel : Dutch - played right. Joachim Beyer Verlag, Hollfeld 2010, ISBN 978-3-88805-499-0 .