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Mate in 1 Puzzles from the French Defence

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 868 · solved 8,691,058 times

Opening: French Defence

These mate in 1 puzzles were set in games that began as the French Defence: 18,497 puzzles, median rating 868, solved 8,691,058 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.

All mate in 1 puzzles Print a worksheet

By the numbers

mate in 1 puzzles from French Defence games: the numbers

There are 18,497 mate in 1 puzzles from French Defence games, solved 8,691,058 times in total. The median rating is 868.

How hard are they?

Foundation
15,960 · 86.3%
Developing
2,125 · 11.5%
Challenging
393 · 2.1%
Advanced
19 · 0.1%

Often combined with

Checkmate · 18,497Middlegame tactics · 14,417Kingside attack · 6,082Opening tactics · 3,855Hanging piece · 918Attacks on f2 / f7 · 767Smothered mate · 633Queenside attack · 438Back-rank mate · 436Pin · 297

Which openings produce them?

French Defence · 18,497

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical mate in 1 solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 mate in 1 puzzles from French Defence games (10.8% of all 18,497).

100% need 1 solver move. Median rating: 870 for the shortest solutions, 870 for the longest.

75.8% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 51.8% and gives check in 100%; 100% end in checkmate, 0% involve a sacrifice, 64.2% have White to move.

51.8%first move captures
100%first move gives check
100%end in checkmate
0%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
100% · median rating 870

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
75.8%
Key move by a knight
10.8%
Key move by a rook
8.2%
Key move by a bishop
4.6%
Key move by a pawn
0.6%

What does the solver win?

Captures nothing along the line
48.2%
Most valuable capture: pawn
40.4%
Most valuable capture: rook
6%
Most valuable capture: knight
2.6%
Most valuable capture: bishop
1.8%
Most valuable capture: queen
1%

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)
48.2%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
40.4%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
4.4%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
6%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
1%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
20.2%
21–27 pieces
76.2%
13–20 pieces
3.6%
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 (30.2%), g7 (15%), f7 (12.8%), e8 (6.8%), d8 (4.9%).

1.24.96.821.78
1.21.41.13.112.81530.27
131.82.22.81.26
15
4
3
2
1
abcdefgh

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

Study positions

The most-solved mate in 1 puzzles, from each difficulty level. Play each one on the board, then open the answer for the full line.

♜♜♚
♗♟♟
♟♛♟
♟♞
♙♙♞
♕♘♙
♙♘♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 743 · solved 1,898 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxe7

Solution: Qh2#

♜♝♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♛♞♟
♟♙
♘♙
♘
♙♙♙♔♝♙♙
♖♕♗♖
Black to move · rating 1012 · solved 2,056 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kd2

Solution: Qe3#

♜♞♛♜
♟♝♝♞♟♟♚
♟♘
♙♟♙
♕
♙♘
♗♙♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 1026 · solved 16,148 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh7

Solution: Qxg7#

♜♚♝♞♜
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♙
♟
♗
♙♝
♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♔♘♛
White to move · rating 1208 · solved 1,870 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxf3

Solution: Qd7#

♜♞♝♛♜
♟♟♟♗♝♚
♟♟
♞♘
♙
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♔♖
White to move · rating 1375 · solved 2,064 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh7

Solution: Qd3#

♜♝♛♜
♟♟♟♟♞♟♚
♞♘
♙♟
♝♗
♘♕
♙♙♙♙♙
♔♖♖
White to move · rating 1469 · solved 2,104 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kh7

Solution: Qxg7#

♜♛♚♝♞♜
♟♝♟♟♟♟
♟♙♟
♞
♘♘
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♕♖♔
White to move · rating 1576 · solved 1,863 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nxc4

Solution: exd7#

♜♛♜
♟♟♟♚♗
♞♝♟
♞♟♙♟
♝♕
♘
♙♙♙♗♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1622 · solved 1,602 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxe6

Solution: Qh6#

♜♞♝♛♚♞♜
♝♟♘
♟♟♟♟
♟♙♟
♙♙
♗♙♙♘♙♙
♖♗♕♖♔
White to move · rating 1628 · solved 890 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kf8

Solution: Rxf7#

♜♚
♟♟♜♟
♛♟♞♕♗
♝♝
♗
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1759 · solved 869 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bh5

Solution: Qxg7#

♜♞♝♚
♟♟♛♞♟♟
♟♝♜
♟♘♕
♙
♘♗
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 2017 · solved 2,018 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rh6

Solution: Qe8#

♜♜
♟♝♚♟♟♟
♟♞
♛♗♟♕
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♔♖♘♖
White to move · rating 2107 · solved 1,292 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qa5

Solution: Qxc5#

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 French Defence

Middlegame tacticsCheckmateOpening tacticsKingside attackForkDiscovered attackMate in 2SacrificePinAttraction

Same theme, other levels

Mate in 1 puzzles by difficulty

Challenging levelDeveloping levelFoundation level