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Checkmate Puzzles from the English Opening

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 919 · solved 11,213,232 times

Opening: English Opening

These checkmate puzzles were set in games that began as the English Opening: 12,245 puzzles, median rating 919, solved 11,213,232 times. The twelve below are among the most-solved of them; try each on the board, then read the numbers further down to see how the solutions are built.

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By the numbers

checkmate puzzles from English Opening games: the numbers

There are 12,245 checkmate puzzles from English Opening games, solved 11,213,232 times in total. The median rating is 919.

How hard are they?

Foundation
9,654 · 78.8%
Developing
1,929 · 15.8%
Challenging
545 · 4.5%
Advanced
117 · 1%

Often combined with

Mate in 1 · 9,573Middlegame tactics · 9,387Kingside attack · 4,939Opening tactics · 2,732Mate in 2 · 2,214Attacks on f2 / f7 · 743Sacrifice · 527Hanging piece · 405Mate in 3 · 378Back-rank mate · 372

Which openings produce them?

English Opening · 12,245

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical checkmate solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 checkmate puzzles from English Opening games (16.3% of all 12,245).

79.2% need 1 solver move, 17.2% need 2 solver moves, 3% need 3 solver moves, 0.6% need 4 solver moves. Median rating: 847 for the shortest solutions, 2000 for the longest.

71.8% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 55.5% and gives check in 99.6%; 100% end in checkmate, 5.8% involve a sacrifice, 56% have White to move.

55.5%first move captures
99.6%first move gives check
100%end in checkmate
5.8%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
79.2% · median rating 847
2 solver moves
17.2% · median rating 1167
3 solver moves
3% · median rating 1469
4 solver moves
0.6% · median rating 2000

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
71.8%
Key move by a knight
14.8%
Key move by a rook
6.2%
Key move by a bishop
6%
Key move by a pawn
1.3%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: pawn
43.9%
Captures nothing along the line
37.2%
Most valuable capture: bishop
6%
Most valuable capture: rook
5.6%
Most valuable capture: knight
5.4%
Most valuable capture: queen
1.8%

Material balance along the whole line, counting every capture by both sides (pawn 1, minor piece 3, rook 5, queen 9):

No material gained (mating or positional)
42.3%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
44.2%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
8.1%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
4.2%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
1.2%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
29%
21–27 pieces
67.9%
13–20 pieces
3%
12 pieces or fewer
0%

How it is counted: every puzzle in the sample is replayed move by move with a chess rules engine. A sacrifice means a piece that is captured on the very next ply and was worth more than what it captured itself (pawn 1, minor piece 3, rook 5, queen 9). Sample of 2,000 puzzles. Percentages are shares of the sample.

Where it happens

Where the key move lands

Where the solver’s first move ends, drawn from their own side (rank 1 is their back rank). Busiest squares: h7 (21.8%), g7 (19.8%), f7 (13.5%), f6 (7.3%), d8 (3.7%).

1.13.73.11.72.28
1.11.31.52.513.519.821.87
2.21.37.33.32.36
35
4
3
2
1
abcdefgh

Counted from the same 2,000-puzzle sample. Squares under 1% are left blank.

Study positions

The most-solved checkmate puzzles, from each difficulty level. Play each one on the board, then open the answer for the full line.

♜♝♚♜
♟♛♝♟
♟♟♕♟
♗
♙
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 983 · solved 2,448 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxf7

Solution: Qd8#

♜♛♜♚
♝♟♟♟
♞♟♝♞
♟♟♟♘
♟♘
♙♙♙♙
♗♕♙♗♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1084 · solved 2,211 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: c4

Solution: Nxf6+ → gxf6 → Qxh7#

♜♜♚
♟♝♟♟♟
♟♟
♞
♙
♙♘♞♗♙♙
♙♘♔♙
♖♖
Black to move · rating 1173 · solved 2,601 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rhd1

Solution: Ng3#

♜♛♚♜
♟♟♟♟
♟♝
♞♟
♙
♙♘♟
♙♙♙
♖♗♕♖♔♗
Black to move · rating 1230 · solved 3,522 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ng3

Solution: h2+ → Kg2 → Qh3#

♚♜♝♜
♟♟♛♟♟
♟♟♞
♙♟
♘♗
♙♙♗♙♙♘
♖♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 1251 · solved 3,423 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxf3

Solution: Qxh2#

♛♜♚
♝♟♞♟♟
♟♟♟
♙♙♙♞♙
♘♙
♙♕♙
♖♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1262 · solved 2,239 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: hxg4

Solution: Qg2#

♜♛♜♚
♟♟♝♟♟
♟♝♞♟
♘♟♘
♞♙
♙♙
♙♙♕♙♙♗
♖♗♔♖
White to move · rating 1294 · solved 2,329 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nb4

Solution: Nxf6+ → gxf6 → Qh7#

♜♝♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♛♟
♘♝♞♟
♙♙♙♞
♘♙
♙♙♗♙
♖♕♔♗♖
Black to move · rating 1619 · solved 533 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: f4

Solution: Bf2+ → Ke2 → Qxc4#

♜♝♛♚
♝
♟♟♜♕
♟♟♘
♞♙
♘♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1703 · solved 581 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rf6

Solution: Rh8+ → Kxh8 → Qh7#

♜♚♞♜
♟♞♟♗♝♟
♟♟
♛♙
♘
♘♗
♙♙♙♙
♖♝♖♔
White to move · rating 1833 · solved 758 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxd1

Solution: Ne6#

♗♚♜
♟♟♛♟♟♟
♞♝
♘
♕♞♙♙
♙♙♙
♖♗♔♖
Black to move · rating 2047 · solved 541 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxd4

Solution: Nf3+ → Kf1 → Bh3#

♜♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♞♝♛
♟
♙
♗♙♙♙
♙♕♘♗
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 2220 · solved 393 times · Mate in 5.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: fxe3

Solution: Qxe3+ → Kf1 → Rh1+ → Bxh1 → Bh3+ → Bg2 → Qf3+ → Kg1 → Qxg2#

Positions and move sequences come from real rated games (CC0 data). Engine evaluations, where shown, are stored evaluations of the position (CC0).

Same opening, other tactics

More puzzles from the English Opening

Middlegame tacticsOpening tacticsKingside attackFork

Same theme, other levels

Checkmate puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping levelFoundation level