Chess in Europe History Origin of Chess in Europe

Europe

Shatranj made its way via the expanding Islamic Arabian empire to Europe.It also spread to the

Byzantine empire, where it was called zatrikion. Chess appeared in Southern Europe during the end

of the first millennium, often introduced to new lands by conquering armies, such as the Norman

Conquest of England.Previously little known, chess became popular in Northern Europe when

figure pieces were introduced.

In the 14th century, Timur played an enlarged variation of the game which is commonly referred to

as Tamerlane Chess. This complex game involved each pawn having a particular purpose, as well

as additional pieces.

The sides are conventionally called White and Black. But, in earlier European chess writings, the

sides were often called Red and Black because those were the commonly available colours of ink

when handwriting drawing a chess game layout. In such layouts, each piece was represented by its

name, often abbreviated (e.g. "ch'r" for French "chevalier" = "knight").

The social value attached to the game – seen as a prestigious pastime associated with nobility and

high culture – is clear from the expensive and exquisitely made chessboards of the medieval

era.The popularity of chess in the Western courtly society peaked between the 12th and the 15th

centuries.[38] The game found mention in the vernacular and Latin language literature throughout

Europe, and many works were written on or about chess between the 12th and the 15th centuries.

[38] H. J. R. Murray divides the works into three distinct parts: the didactic works e.g. Alexander

of Neckham's De scaccis (approx. 1180); works of morality like Liber de moribus hominum et

officiis nobilium sive super ludo scacchorum (Book of the customs of men and the duties of nobles

or the Book of Chess), written by Jacobus de Cessolis; and the works related to various chess

problems, written largely after 1205.[38] Chess terms, like check, were used by authors as a

metaphor for various situations. Chess was soon incorporated into the knightly style of life in

Europe. Peter Alfonsi, in his work Disciplina Clericalis, listed chess among the seven skills that a

good knight must acquire.Chess also became a subject of art during this period, with caskets and

pendants decorated in various chess forms.Queen Margaret of England had green and red chess

sets made of jasper and crystal.[39] Kings Henry I, Henry II and Richard I of England were chess

patrons.King Alfonso X of Castile and Tsar Ivan IV of Russia gained a similar status.

Saint Peter Damian denounced the bishop of Florence in 1061 for playing chess even when aware of

its evil effects on the society.The bishop of Florence defended himself by declaring that chess

involved skill and was therefore "unlike other games," and similar arguments followed in the coming

centuries.Two incidents in 13th-century London, in which men of Essex resorted to violence

resulting in death as an outcome of playing chess, caused further sensation and alarm. The growing

popularity of the game – now associated with revelry and violence – alarmed the Church.

The practice of playing chess for money became so widespread during the 13th century that Louis

IX of France issued an ordinance against gambling in 1254.This ordinance turned out to be

unenforceable and was largely neglected by the common public, and even the courtly society, which

continued to enjoy the now-prohibited chess tournaments uninterrupted.

No comments:

Post a Comment