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Checkmate Puzzles from the Italian Game

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 950 · solved 31,280,550 times

Opening: Italian Game

These checkmate puzzles were set in games that began as the Italian Game: 26,319 puzzles, median rating 950, solved 31,280,550 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 checkmate puzzles Print a worksheet About the Italian Game

By the numbers

checkmate puzzles from Italian Game games: the numbers

There are 26,319 checkmate puzzles from Italian Game games, solved 31,280,550 times in total. The median rating is 950.

How hard are they?

Foundation
19,968 · 75.9%
Developing
4,342 · 16.5%
Challenging
1,622 · 6.2%
Advanced
387 · 1.5%

Often combined with

Middlegame tactics · 19,797Mate in 1 · 18,119Kingside attack · 8,776Mate in 2 · 6,468Opening tactics · 5,908Attacks on f2 / f7 · 2,222Sacrifice · 2,009Back-rank mate · 1,660Mate in 3 · 1,489Hanging piece · 1,141

Which openings produce them?

Italian Game · 26,319

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 Italian Game games (7.6% of all 26,319).

69.6% need 1 solver move, 24.2% need 2 solver moves, 5.2% need 3 solver moves, 0.8% need 4 solver moves. Median rating: 863 for the shortest solutions, 1644 for the longest.

73.6% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 46.4% and gives check in 100%; 100% end in checkmate, 10.4% involve a sacrifice, 55.4% have White to move.

46.4%first move captures
100%first move gives check
100%end in checkmate
10.4%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
69.6% · median rating 863
2 solver moves
24.2% · median rating 1168
3 solver moves
5.2% · median rating 1427
4 solver moves
0.8% · median rating 1644

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
73.6%
Key move by a rook
10.4%
Key move by a knight
9.9%
Key move by a bishop
5.5%
Key move by a pawn
0.6%

What does the solver win?

Captures nothing along the line
42.5%
Most valuable capture: pawn
34.9%
Most valuable capture: rook
12.1%
Most valuable capture: queen
4%
Most valuable capture: knight
3.4%
Most valuable capture: bishop
3.1%

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)
49.6%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
33.3%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
5.2%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
9.5%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
2.5%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
18.2%
21–27 pieces
75.6%
13–20 pieces
6.2%
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: f7 (24.2%), h7 (13.2%), g7 (11.1%), e8 (8.8%), d8 (5.3%).

5.38.84.41.58
1.3324.211.113.27
2.73.63.62.56
1.21.32.35
1.24
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 1073 · solved 2,598 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: b6

Solution: Qxf8+ → Kxf8 → Rd8+ → Ne8 → Rexe8#

♜♜♚
♟♟♙♟♟
♞♖
♗
♟
♕♝♛♙
♙♙♙
♖♗♔
Black to move · rating 1104 · solved 2,850 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bd5

Solution: Qxf2+ → Kh1 → Qf1#

♜♝♚♜
♟♟♟♟♟
♝♙
♛♟♗♕
♞
♙♙♙♙
♖♘♖♔
White to move · rating 1111 · solved 2,682 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Be6

Solution: f7+ → Bxf7 → Qxf7#

♜♛♚♝♞♜
♟♟♟
♟♟
♘
♙♙♗♞♙♟
♘♙
♙♙♙
♖♗♝♔♖
White to move · rating 1275 · solved 4,123 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxd1

Solution: Bf7+ → Ke7 → Nd5#

♜♝♚♞♜
♟♛♟♕
♞♟
♟♝
♗♙
♙♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♔♖
White to move · rating 1286 · solved 3,534 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Be5

Solution: Qf8#

♜♝♛♜
♟♟♚♟♟
♟♟♞
♘♟♙♗
♕♙
♙♙♙♙
♞♔♖
White to move · rating 1298 · solved 2,903 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: c6

Solution: Qe6#

♜♝♛♜
♟♟♟♙♚♟
♞♞♟
♟♕
♘
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
White to move · rating 1351 · solved 4,352 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Kg7

Solution: Qh6#

♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟♟
♞
♗♛
♕
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1652 · solved 1,175 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qxd4

Solution: Qxf7+ → Rxf7 → Re8#

♜♚♜
♟♟♟♟
♙♟
♕♝♛♞
♙
♙♘♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1667 · solved 2,314 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: a3

Solution: Ne2+ → Kh1 → Rxh2+ → Kxh2 → Qh4#

♚♜♝♜
♟♟♟
♛♞♟
♝♟
♘
♙♗♙
♙♙♘♕♙
♔♖♖
Black to move · rating 1965 · solved 1,832 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd4

Solution: Qxc3+ → bxc3 → Ba3#

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♘♟
♟♛♟
♝♗♙
♙
♙♙♙
♛♕♖♔
White to move · rating 2003 · solved 216 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: bxa1=Q

Solution: Ng5+ → Rf7 → Qh7+ → Kf8 → Qh8#

♜♚♘
♟♟♟♟♟
♞♝♞
♟
♛♟
♙♝
♙♙♙♘♗♙♙
♖♗♕♖♔
Black to move · rating 2201 · solved 367 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Re1

Solution: Qxf2+ → Kxf2 → Bc5#

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 Italian Game

Middlegame tacticsOpening tacticsKingside attackForkMate in 2Discovered attack

Same theme, other levels

Checkmate puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelChallenging levelDeveloping levelFoundation level