Johannes Hermann Zukertort

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Zukertort.jpg
Johannes Hermann Zukertort in the 1880s
Association Congress PolandCongress Poland Congress Poland North German Confederation England
North German ConfederationNorth German Confederation 
EnglandEngland 
Born September 7, 1842
Lublin
Died London June 20, 1888
Best rating 2798 (February 1886) ( historical rating )

Johannes Hermann Zukertort (born September 7, 1842 in Lublin , Russian Empire , † June 20, 1888 in London ) was a Polish- German chess player . As a professional player, he spent most of his career in England. In 1886 he was defeated by Wilhelm Steinitz in the first competition for the world chess championship , making him the first official vice world champion.

Earlier career

Zukertort was of Jewish origin. His father, Jankiel Ezechiel Cukiertort (1801–1887) - since 1833 Gottlieb (Bogumił) Jan Zukertort - was a Jew converted to Protestant Christianity who worked as a missionary among the Polish Jews . This activity was not tolerated by the tsarist state , and the Zukertort family was expelled from Russian-ruled Poland in 1855 .

In the Prussian Wroclaw gained Zukertort 1861 on the Mary Magdalene School his high school and enrolled to study medicine at the local university one. Contrary to popular legends, Zukertort never finished his studies and did not get a doctorate , as the Polish historians Tomasz Lissowski and Cezary W. Domański convincingly demonstrated.

He first achieved his chess merits as a student of Adolf Anderssen in Breslau, who was considered by many to be the most important player in the world at the time. In 1871, Zukertort succeeded in defeating his teacher in a competition. Before that, in 1867, Zukertort moved to Berlin . There he became a member of the Berlin Chess Society and took over the editing of the Neue Berliner Schachzeitung , whose official, but not practicing, main editor was Adolf Anderssen. Finally, in 1872, Zukertort took up permanent residence in London. There were much better chances of making a living as a professional player there.

Rivalry with Steinitz and end of life

In addition to Wilhelm Steinitz , he was soon considered the best player in England. First, however, he lost a match against Steinitz in October 1872 with 9: 3 (seven Steinitz wins, one Zukertort win, four draws ). Steinitz withdrew from the practical game for seven years in 1875 because he no longer saw any serious opponents. Meanwhile, Zukertort was able to continuously improve his chess skills. In 1877 in Leipzig he was second behind Louis Paulsen together with Adolf Anderssen . At the beginning of the 1880s he was already clearly the best player after Steinitz. His greatest success, the overwhelming victory in the great London tournament of 1883 , which he won by three points over Steinitz, led the chess world to believe that Steinitz's claim to the "Champion of the World" was over, and that honor now belongs to Zukertort .

After lengthy negotiations, donors were found in the USA who financed a competition for the “Championship of the World” . From January 11 to March 29, 1886, the competition was played on ten winning games (draws did not count) between the two in New York , St. Louis and New Orleans . Steinitz won with 12.5: 7.5 (ten wins, five defeats and five draws) points. Zukertort, who had been warned by his doctor about this renewed effort, collapsed mentally and physically after a high lead (4: 1 after the start in New York). After Steinitz was able to equalize 4: 4 (in only four games) in St. Louis, he needed eleven more games in New Orleans to get the ten winning games required.

Zukertort never recovered from this collapse and was only "a shadow of himself" ( Siegbert Tarrasch ) in the following few tournaments, which he held until his stroke- induced death in 1888 (during a handicap tournament in London) played.

Zukertort system

An opening system is named after Zukertort . It arises after the moves 1. Ng1 – f3 (Zukertort was the first world-class player who regularly played this move, which was considered bizarre at the time, in tournament practice) 1.… d7 – d5 2. d2 – d4 Ng8 – f6 3. e2 – e3 e7 – e6 4. b2 – b3. This is the Zukertort system , which can also arise from other train sequences. Zukertort himself usually developed the white-squared bishop after e2, in the modern style of play it is more likely to be positioned on d3. One of the world's best current experts in this system is Grand Master Artur Yusupov .

Zukertort's highest historical rating was 2798 in February 1886. During Steinitz's inactivity (and a short time after his return), he led the retrospectively calculated world rankings from August 1878 to November 1882, again from July to September 1883 and in February 1886.

Lots

Zukertort - Blackburne, London 1883

literature

  • Cezary W. Domański, Tomasz Lissowski: The Grand Master from Lublin. Truth and legend about Johannes Hermann Zukertort. Exzelsior Verlag, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-935800-03-7 .
  • Anton Olson: JH Zukertort. 201 partier . Stockholms Schackförbund, Stockholm 1912 (Swedish).
  • Jimmy Adams: Johannes Zukertort Artist of the Chessboard . Caissa Editions, Yorklyn 1989, ISBN 0-939433-09-5 .

Web links

Commons : Johannes Hermann Zukertort  - Collection of Images

swell

  1. ↑ The final years of Zukertort , on en.chessbase.com
  2. ^ Annual report 1861 of the St. Maria Magdalena grammar school in Breslau.
  3. ^ Tomasz Lissowski, Cezary W. Domański: Arcymistrz z Lublina , Warsaw 2002; German: The Grand Master from Lublin. Truth and legend about Johannes Hermann Zukertort. Exzelsior Verlag, Berlin 2005.
  4. ^ The International Tournament Leipzig 1877 (MDSB Congress) on TeleSchach (cross table and all games)
  5. ↑ Stephan Oliver Platz: Zukertort's last years In: de.chessbase.com. January 16, 2018, accessed November 15, 2019.
  6. ↑ Chessmetrics Player Profile April 17, 2006
personal data
SURNAME Zukertort, Johannes Hermann
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Chess player
DATE OF BIRTH September 7, 1842
PLACE OF BIRTH Lublin
DATE OF DEATH June 20, 1888
PLACE OF DEATH London