History of Chess Openings And Gambits

Chess has a vibrant history. From its inception 1500 years ago, romantic ear in the 1880s and to engine domination ear in 21st century, the game has gone through several transformational stages. During this time chess has evolved significantly delivering us a wide range of openings, gambits, and theories underlying them. In this article, we provide the history of such chess openings and gambits.


 


If you have studied chess, openings theory should not be a new term for you. To avoid getting into trouble at the initial stages of the game, the chess opening theory covers sequences of moves and variations that players can deploy at the beginning of the game. The following table lists some of the well-known openings and the year it has been first believed to be played. It also lists some of the openings also known as defenses to the player playing with black pieces. (Please note that we have used various sources to gather this information, there could be conflicts based on the source you choose.)

Chess openings and gambit t-shirt collection

 

The first column shows the name, then the move order, followed by the historical year of the opening. If you are passionate about one of these openings and would like to get a unique chess t-shirt representing that opening, the last column will take you to a chess t-shirt design produced by zeroblunders.com.

Opening/ Defense

Mainline

Year

 

Italian Game

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4

1620

See design

Ruy Lopez

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5

1490

See design

Réti Opening

1.Nf3

1924

See design

Scotch Game

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4

1750

See design

English Opening

1. c4

1843

See design

Vienna Game

1. e4 e5 2. Nc3

1890s

See design

Bird's Opening

1. f4

1497

See design

King's Indian Attack

1.Nf3 d5 2.g3

1930s

See design

London System

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bf4

1883

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Fried Liver Attack

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5

1606

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Bongcloud

1.e4 e5 2.Ke2

21st Century

See design

Hippopotamus Attack

1.a3 e5 2.b3 d5 3.c3 Nf6 4.d3 Nc6 5.e3 Bd6 6.f3 O-O 7.g3

1858 

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Ponziani Opening

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. c3

1490

See design

Sicilian Defense

1.e4 c5

1594

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King's Indian Defense

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6

1884

See design

French Defense

1.e4 e6

1834

See design

Caro-Kann Defense

1.e4 c6

1885

See design

Slav Defense

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6

1886

See design

Nimzo-Indian Defense

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4

1883

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Grünfeld Defense

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5

1922

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Petrov Defense

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6

1844

See design

Pirc Defense

1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6

1800s

See design

Alekhine Defense

1.e4 Nf6

1821

See design

Scandinavian Defense

1.e4 d5

1475

See design

 

Gambits are the most fun part of chess. It is really awesome when your opponent falls for the gambit, and it sucks to be on the receiving end. A gambit is a way to gain some kind of opening advantage by giving up material at the initial stages of the game. This advantage could help you to start an attack very early and checkmate your opponent soon after. The queen’s gambit is one of the oldest gambits (its history dates back to 1490) popular among top-level grandmasters to this day.

Chess openings and gambit t-shirt collection

 

The following table lists the name, move order, and year of some of the well-established gambits followed by a link to a zeroblunders.com chess t-shirt design representing that gambit.

Gambit

Mainline

 Year

Queen’s Gambit

1.d4 d5 2.c4

1490 

See design

King’s Gambit

1.e4 e5 2.f4

16th century

See design

Evans Gambit

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4

1827

See design

Réti Gambit

1.Nf3 d5 2.c4

1924 

See design

Benko Gambit

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5

1936

See design

Smith-Morra Gambit

1.e4 c5 2.d4

1950

See design

Budapest Gambit

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5

1896

See design

Bishop's Gambit

1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Bc4

16th century

See design

Vienna Gambit

1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.f4

1930 

See design

Danish gambit

1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3

1920s

See design

Stafford Gambit

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 Nc6

1950

See design

Botez Gambit

1. e4 e5 2. d3 Qh4 3. Nf3 Bc5

2021

See design

 

Legendary chess players portrait t-shirts

 

This article covered a list of well-known chess openings and gambits and the year they are first believed to be played. We believe having this historical information in one place will be useful for all chess enthusiasts not only as a reference but also to expand our vast chess knowledge.

 

About the Author

Welcome to Zero Blunders, your one-stop shop for chess-inspired clothing and accessories. We are dedicated to providing chess enthusiasts of all skill levels with high-quality, comfortable, and stylish apparel that celebrates the game we all love. Whether you're a beginner looking to improve your game or a grandmaster competing in tournaments, our selection of chess-themed t-shirts, hoodies, and accessories has something for you.

Our clothing is crafted from the finest materials and printed with the latest technology, ensuring that our products are not only comfortable but also durable. We strive to promote the game of chess and make it more accessible to everyone through our clothing line. Our goal is to spread the love for chess and make it more approachable for all.

At Zero Blunders, we are passionate about chess and committed to providing our customers with the best possible shopping experience. We understand the importance of attention to detail, and we strive to provide our customers with the best quality products and services.

Thank you for choosing Zero Blunders, where we are committed to promoting the game of chess and encouraging a love for the game. We look forward to serving you and hope you enjoy our products as much as we enjoy creating them.


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