Howard Staunton

Howard Staunton
File:Staunton2.jpg
Full name	Howard Staunton
Country	England

Howard Staunton (April 1810 – June 22, 1874) was an English chess master who was probably one of the world's two or three strongest players from 1843 to 1851. His chess articles and books were respected for the quality of their analysis and for the encouragement they gave to the development of chess, especially in the United Kingdom. He also proposed and was the principal organizer of the first international chess tournament in 1851, which made England the world's leading chess center and caused Adolf Anderssen to be recognised as the world's strongest player.

There are no reliable sources for Staunton's early life. He took a serious interest in chess in 1836; by 1843, he was the strongest British player with the possible exception of Buckle, and also the United Kingdom's most influential chess writer. From 1843 to 1849 he won matches against chess masters Cochrane, Saint-Amant, Horwitz, and Harrwitz. After his 1843 victory over Saint-Amant, some hailed him as the world's strongest player.

In 1847 Staunton also entered a parallel career as a Shakespearean scholar. After the London 1851 International Tournament, in which he took fourth place, his poor health and his two writing careers prevented him from playing serious competitive chess. Although it is often alleged that Staunton avoided playing Morphy in 1858 and deliberately misled him about the prospects of arranging a match, the evidence suggests that Staunton quite likely overestimated his chances both of getting physically fit and of making available the time for a match. Staunton continued to write about both chess and Shakespeare, and died while working at his desk in 1874.

Staunton was not an all-out attacking player, but was known for accurate and incisive attacks when he thought his preparations were complete. Despite a story that Morphy described him as "the author of ... some devilish bad games", Morphy thought highly of his judgement and accuracy, although he thought Staunton lacked the imagination necessary to deliberately create opportunities for combinations. The chess openings the English Opening and Staunton Gambit were so named because of Staunton's advocacy of them. He was one of the earliest advocates of the Sicilian Defense, today the most-played opening and the most successful response to 1.e4.

His chess articles and chess books were respected for the quality of their analysis, and his 1847 book The Chess-Player's Handbook was a standard reference for decades. His work as a Shakespearean scholar, although relatively minor, is still well regarded. He also wrote a book about English public schools, in which he presented some progressive ideas. Staunton's chess writings could be spiteful, especially when he thought someone was opposing him with insufficient reason or when he was disappointed by an unexpected defeat. On the other hand he was charming and witty in conversation, he maintained good working relationships with several strong players and influential chess enthusiasts, and he showed excellent management skills in making a success of the first international chess tournament.

Staunton's life

Staunton around 1860

Little is known about Staunton's life before his appearance on the chess scene; his registration of birth has never been found, and most other information about his early life is ultimately based on claims made by Staunton. The chess historian H.J.R. Murray summarized the information that he found, and its sources: Staunton was born in 1810, and was reputed to be the natural son of Frederick Howard, fifth Earl of Carlisle; Staunton was neglected in youth, and received little or no education, and although he spent some time in Oxford, he was never a member of the University; when he came of age he received a few thousand pounds under his father's will, a fortune which he soon squandered; in later life Staunton often used to tell how he had once played the part of Lorenzo in the Merchant of Venice, with the famous English actor Edmund Kean playing Shylock. One of chess historian Edward Winter's sources is sceptical about several of the "facts" about Staunton's life.

First steps in chess

In 1836, Staunton came to London, where he took out a subscription for William Greenwood Walker's book Games at Chess, actually played in London, by the late Alexander McDonnell Esq. Staunton was apparently twenty-six years old when he began to take a serious interest in the game. He said that at that time the strongest players he saw in London, Saint-Amant and George Walker, could easily have given him rook odds.

In 1838 he played many games with Captain Evans, inventor of the Evans Gambit. The same year he also lost a match against the German chess writer Aaron Alexandre. He had improved sufficiently by 1840 to win a match against the German master H.W. Popert, who was known as a slow, cautious player with great defensive skill.

From May to December 1840 Staunton edited a chess column for the New Court Gazette. He then became chess editor of the magazine British Miscellany, and his chess column developed into a separate magazine, Chess Player's Chronicle, which Staunton owned and edited until the early 1850s.

1843 - Staunton's competitive peak

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The English Opening, named for Staunton's use of it against Saint-Amant.

Early in 1843 Staunton was the victor in a long series of games against John Cochrane, a strong player and chess theoretician. Chessmetrics treats these games as one match and lists it as Staunton's best performance.

A little later that year he narrowly lost a short match (2½-3½) in London against the visiting French player Saint-Amant, who was generally regarded as the world's strongest player.

Staunton challenged Saint-Amant to a longer match to be played in Paris for a stake of £100; this would be equivalent to about £73,000 in 2006's money. Then, helped by Cochrane and Popert, he prepared by working out some new opening lines, especially those beginning 1.c4, which became known as the English Opening following this match. He also took Thomas Worrall and Harry Wilson to Paris as his assistants (Wilson was a substitute for Captain Evans, who had to go elsewhere); this is the first known case where seconds were used in a match. Staunton gained a seven-game lead but then struggled to keep it before winning the match 13-8 (eleven wins, four draws, and six losses) in December 1843.

Saint-Amant wanted a third match, but Staunton was initially unwilling as he had developed heart trouble during the second match. Von der Lasa later suggested this was why Staunton faded badly in the second match. However after a long and difficult negotiation, which he reported in the Chess Player’s Chronicle, Staunton went to Paris intending to start their third match in October 1844. Unfortunately he caught pneumonia while traveling and almost died; the match was postponed and never took place.

After Saint-Amant's defeat, no other Frenchmen arose to continue the French supremacy in chess established by Philidor, Deschapelles, La Bourdonnais and Saint-Amant. Some contemporary English commentators (mainly in Staunton's Chess Player’s Chronicle) and some later writers hailed Staunton as the world champion. The response was less enthusiastic elsewhere in Europe. Even in England some writers suggested other players, notably Buckle or von der Lasa, were stronger.

Chess writer and promoter

In 1845 Staunton began a chess column for the Illustrated London News, which became the most influential chess column in the world and which he continued for the rest of his life. Although most of his articles focused on over-the-board play, a significant number featured correspondence chess. Some followed with enthusiasm the progress of promising young players, including Paul Morphy.

The first chess match by electric telegraphic took place in 1844, between Washington and Baltimore, just after a link had been built. In April 1845 Staunton and Captain Kennedy traveled to Gosport, near Portsmouth Harbour, to play two games against a group of four players in London. Staunton took a long-term interest in this means of overcoming the difficulties of travel in Victorian times, and reported telegraph games in the Illustrated London News. His report of a contest by telegraph between teams in Liverpool and Manchester, in April 1856, noted that the English Telegraph Company had been reluctant to leave open a line exclusively for telegraphic chess between London and any other major English city, but had done so for the Liverpool-Manchester contest. In 1871 his report of a telegraphic match between Sydney and Adelaide calculated that the 74 moves of the longest game had traveled a total of 220,000 miles (not much less than the distance between Earth and Moon).

In 1847 Staunton published his most famous work, The Chess-Player's Handbook, which was still in print in 1993. It contained over 300 pages of analysis of the openings, and almost 100 pages of analysis of the endgame. Staunton's Handbook was based on Bilguer and von der Lasa's Handbuch des Schachspiels (first published in 1843), but enhanced by many variations and analyses of Staunton's own. His book The Chess-Player's Companion followed in 1849, and is available online.

He still found time for two matches in 1846, comfortably beating the professionals Bernhard Horwitz (fourteen wins, three draws, and seven losses) and Daniel Harrwitz (seven wins, no draws, and no losses). The match against Harrwitz was set up in a very unusual way: seven games in which Staunton gave Harrwitz odds of pawn and two moves (Staunton won four and lost three), seven games where he gave pawn and move (Staunton lost six and won one), and seven at no odds (Staunton won all seven).

On July 23, 1849 Staunton married Frances Carpenter Nethersole, a widow who had had eight children by a previous marriage.

Original Staunton chess pieces, left to right: pawn, rook, knight, bishop, queen, and king.

Staunton pattern chess pieces

Main article: Staunton chess set

In 1849, a chess set designed by Nathaniel Cook was registered, and the manufacturing rights were obtained by Jaques of London. Staunton advertised the new set in his chess Illustrated London News column, pointing out that the pieces were easily identifiable, very stable, and good-looking. Each box was signed by Staunton, and Staunton received a royalty on each set sold. The design was very attractive, became popular, and has been the standard for both professional and amateur chess players ever since. Anthony Saidy and Norman Lessing wrote that, "if a vote was taken among chess-players as to which pieces they most enjoyed playing with, there can be no doubt that the Staunton chessmen would win by an overwhelming margin. ... They afford the most pleasing combination of utility and aesthetic appeal."

The front entrance of the Great Exhibition.

London International Tournament, 1851

Main article: London 1851 chess tournament

In May 1851, London staged the Great Exhibition to showcase British industry and technology, and London's thriving chess community felt obliged to do something similar for chess. Staunton proposed and then took the lead in organizing the first ever international tournament, to be held in London at the same time. He thought the Great Exhibition presented a unique opportunity because the difficulties that obstructed international participation would be greatly reduced, for example it would be easier for contestants to obtain passports and leave from work. In 1848 a letter had been published in which Bledow proposed that he and von der Lasa should organize in Trier (Germany) an international tournament whose winner should be recognized as the world champion (Bledow died in 1846; it is not known why publication was delayed). News of this may also have motivated Staunton to organize the tournament.

He and his colleagues had ambitious objectives for this tournament, including convening a "Chess Parliament" to: complete the standardization of the moves and other rules, as there were still very small national differences and a few self-contradictions; to standardize chess notation; and to agree upon time limits, as many players were notorious for simply "out-sitting" opponents. Staunton also proposed the production of a compendium showing what was known about chess openings, preferably as a table. Since he thought there would not be time for a single "Chess Parliament" session to handle this as well, he suggested further congresses, some perhaps including knowledgeable enthusiasts of below top-class playing strength, and a review process for dealing with contentious issues and possible mistakes in earlier decisions. Before the tournament started two commentators wrote that the winner should be regarded as "the World’s Chess Champion"; one was Captain Hugh Alexander Kennedy, one of the tournament's organizers and competitors, while the other was the Liberty Weekly Tribune in Missouri.

Masters and enthusiasts in Europe, the USA and Asia welcomed these proposals when they were published at an early stage in the project, and the organizers obtained financial contributions from all of these continents, enabling the committee to set up a prize fund of £500 (about £359,000 in 2006 money). Surprisingly, the London Chess Club opposed the tournament, but some of its members made donations to the tournament, and some of its strongest players entered the International Tournament.

Adolf Anderssen.
Staunton offered to pay Anderssen's travel expenses if necessary. Anderssen won the London 1851 chess tournament and the rival tournament organized by the London Chess Club.

Despite these efforts and the eager responses from would-be contestants, several major players were unable to participate: von der Lasa (Germany) and Saint-Amant (France), possibly the strongest players in their respective countries, were engaged in diplomatic duties; Cochrane was back at his post in India; at least four other well-known masters were unable to play. Adolf Anderssen was reluctant to accept his invitation, as he was deterred by the travel costs. However, Staunton offered to pay Anderssen's travel expenses out of his own pocket if necessary, should Anderssen fail to win a tournament prize; Anderssen accepted this generous offer. As part of the project the London International Tournament's committee also organized a "London Provincial Tournament" for British players who were not strong enough to be invited to play in the International Tournament. To make up the numbers the committee "promoted" the strongest of the Provincial Tournament's entrants to play in the International Tournament.

The tournament was a success, but disappointing for Staunton personally; in the second round he was knocked out by Anderssen, who won the tournament convincingly; and in the play-off for third place Staunton was narrowly beaten by his former pupil Elijah Williams. Staunton's defeat by Williams suggests that Staunton had over-stretched himself by acting as both a competitor and the Secretary of the organizing committee, since he had been successfully giving odds to Williams just before the tournament.

The London Chess Club, which had fallen out with Staunton and his colleagues, organized a tournament that was played a month later and had a multi-national set of players (many of whom had competed in Staunton's tournament), and the result was the same - Anderssen won.

In 1852 Staunton published his book The Chess Tournament, which recounted in detail the efforts required to make the London International Tournament happen and presented all the games with his comments on the play. Unfortunately some of Staunton's comments in the book and in the Illustrated London News were intemperate, because he was so disappointed with the placing he achieved.

Final stages of playing career

Immediately after the London International tournament Staunton challenged Anderssen to a match of 21 games, for £100. Anderssen accepted the challenge but the match could not be arranged: Staunton was physically unfit for an immediate contest, and Anderssen had to return to work.

Carl Jaenisch had arrived too late for the tournament; Staunton convincingly won a match with him soon after (seven wins, one draw, and two losses). Later in 1851 Staunton played a match against his former pupil Elijah Williams, who had won their play-off for third place in the London International tournament. Staunton won more games (six wins, three draws, and four losses) but lost the match because he had given Williams a three-game start.

In 1853, while trying to arrange a match against Anderssen, Staunton met von der Lasa in Brussels. The two began a match, but had to abandon it in the middle of the 13th game, with von der Lasa leading (five wins, four losses, and three draws). Staunton was unfit to continue because of heart palpitations, which had also nearly cost him the return match against Saint-Amant in December 1843. In von der Lasa's opinion there was no chance that Staunton's health would be good enough for a serious contest from 1853 onwards.

In the mid-1850s Staunton obtained a contract with the publishers Routledge to edit the text of Shakespeare. This edition appeared in parts from 1857 to 1860, and Staunton's work was praised by experts.

Paul Morphy
Staunton has often been accused of misleading Morphy into thinking he would play a match against him, but it is just as likely that they had a misunderstanding.

While Staunton was busy with the Shakespeare edition, he received a courteous letter from the New Orleans Chess Club, inviting him to that city to play Paul Morphy, who had won the recent First American Chess Congress. Staunton replied, thanking the New Orleans Chess Club and Morphy "for the honor implied in your selection of me as the opponent of such a champion" and pointing out that he had not competed for several years and was working six days a week (on editing Shakespeare), and that he could not possibly travel across the Atlantic for a match. He also wrote in the Illustrated London News, "If Mr. Morphy — for whose skill we entertain the liveliest admiration — be desirous to win his spurs among the chess chivalry of Europe, he must take advantage of his purposed visit next year he will then meet in this country, in France, in Germany and in Russia, many champions ... ready to test and do honor to his prowess." Chess historian H.J.R. Murray said that Staunton's letter and article should have been interpreted as a courteous refusal of the offer, but that Morphy interpreted them differently, and one of the main reasons for his visit to Europe in 1858 was the hope of playing a match with Staunton.

Upon arriving in England, Morphy promptly challenged Staunton to a match. Staunton agreed provided he was given time to get back into practise and to bring the Shakespeare project to a stage where he could take time off. Staunton entered the 1858 Birmingham tournament to gain practise, but this was a knock-out tournament and he was eliminated in the second round by Johann Löwenthal, after playing a total of four games. This was to be Staunton's last public chess competition. Staunton had overexerted himself and damaged his health by trying to get ahead of schedule on the Shakespeare project and play some competitive chess. The match negotiations dragged on and the relationship between Staunton and Morphy turned sour, but Staunton's main fault had been over-optimism about his prospects of getting ready to play Morphy – he should have declined the challenge earlier and more plainly.

Later life

Staunton became an influential writer about several subjects. He continued writing the chess column in Illustrated London News until his death in 1874, greeting new developments with enthusiasm. In 1860 Staunton published Chess Praxis, which was a supplement to his 1847 work The Chess Player's Handbook. In the new book he devoted 168 pages to presenting many of Morphy's games and praised the play of the American.

In 1865 Staunton published Great Schools of England (1865), whose main subject was the history of major English public schools but which also presented some very progressive ideas: learning can only take place successfully if the active interest of the student is engaged; corporal punishment is to be avoided and fagging should be abolished.

But most of his later life was occupied in writing about Shakespeare, including: a photolithographic reproduction of the 1600 Quarto of Much Ado about Nothing in 1864 and of the First Folio of Shakespeare in 1866; and a series of papers on Unsuspected Corruptions of Shakespeare's Text, published from 1872 to his death. All these works were highly regarded at the time. When he died suddenly of heart disease, on June 22, 1874, he was seated at his desk and writing one of these papers.

At the time of his death Staunton was also working on his last chess book, Chess: Theory and Practice, which was published posthumously in 1876 after being edited by R.B. Wormald. The New York Times' review in 1888 of another book by another author noted that Staunton's book was very up-to-date and contained examples of the play of Steinitz, Zukertort, Lange and Mackenzie (all of whom entered top-class competition between 1863 and 1871, 5 to 13 years after Staunton's last competitive games).

A memorial plaque now hangs at his old residence of 117 Lansdowne Road, London W11. In 1997 a memorial stone bearing an engraving of a chess knight was raised to mark his grave at Kensal Green Cemetery in London. His grave had previously been unmarked and neglected.

Assessment

Playing strength and style

There is a famous story that Paul Morphy described Staunton as the author of "some devilish bad games". Chess historian Edward Winter traced this back to a book published in 1902, whose author said he had seen a copy of Staunton's The Chess Tournament in which Morphy had written "some devilish bad games" on the title page; Winter was unable to trace the copy. Around the time of Staunton's death Morphy is said to have given a balanced assessment, saying that Staunton had great analytical ability and judgement of positions but his play showed a lack of imagination, and that Staunton may have been the strongest player of his time.

The website Chessmetrics ranks Staunton as world number one from May 1843 to August 1849, in the top ten from July 1851 to May 1853, and in the top five from June 1853 to January 1856.

From the early 1840s to 1851 Staunton could successfully give odds to almost any UK-based player, including eventually Cochrane; the exceptions were Buckle, to whom Staunton gave pawn and move in 1843 and lost their match (6 losses, 1 draw, no wins), and Elijah Williams in 1851, against whom Staunton won more games but lost the match because he had given Williams a 3-game start. The only players on record who were successful against Staunton at evens (i.e. without receiving odds) from 1840 to 1852 were: Saint-Amant, who won the first and lost the second and longer of their matches in 1843; Anderssen, who eliminated Staunton from the 1851 London International tournament; and Williams, who beat Staunton in the play-off for third place in the same tournament. Before 1840 Staunton was still a relative beginner, and after 1851 his health was not good enough for serious competition. In the late 1840s the other player who was regarded as possibly the world's best was von der Lasa, but they did not play each other until 1853 and Staunton's ill-health forced him to abandon their match.

In his own time Staunton was regarded as a member of the "closed" school of chess players (along with for example Philidor and József Szén) rather than of the "heroic" school (whose members included La Bourdonnais, Morphy and Anderssen) - in other words instead of seeking immediate combat Staunton deferred it until he was ready. The closed English Opening got its name from Staunton's frequent use of it, especially against Saint-Amant in 1843. However he was noted for the accuracy and incisiveness of his combinations, although Morphy thought he lacked the imagination required to deliberately create opportunites for such combinations.

Personality

Many articles and books from the early 20th century onwards depict Staunton as a vain, spiteful man who avoided playing the strongest opponents, most notably Morphy. Staunton had been eager for a third match against Saint-Amant in 1844 (despite Saint-Amant's making the negotiations very difficult) and for a match against Anderssen in 1851 to 1853, but illness frustrated his plans; Staunton was likewise over-optimistic about his chances of getting ready for a match with Morphy, and both sides then got drawn into a blame game.

Even contemporaries sympathetic to Staunton admitted that he could be spiteful in response to unexpected defeats (notably against Lowe in the winter of 1847-1848) and to proposals or arguments that he considered ill-founded or malicious. Staunton had a highly volatile relationship with George Walker, the founder of the London Chess Club, a dedicated popularizer of chess and one of Staunton's earliest supporters: in 1841 Staunton published a scathing attack on Walker; in February 1844 Walker wrote for Staunton's Chess Player's Chronicle a mildly pro-Staunton article on the second Staunton vs Saint-Amant match (Paris, 1843); but later in 1844 Staunton threatened to sue Walker over the use of some of Staunton's games in Walker’s 1844 book Chess Studies. However Staunton's often-criticized description of Anderssen as Germany's second best player, after Anderssen had won the 1851 London International tournament, may have been reasonable on the basis of what is now known about von der Lasa's skill. Staunton was sometimes a very objective chess commentator: a large percentage of his 1860 book Chess Praxis was devoted to Morphy's games, which he praised highly; and in The Chess-Player's Companion (1849) Staunton sometimes criticized his own play, and presented a few of his losses. In conversation Staunton was charming and witty.

Staunton showed excellent management skills in building the team to organize the London International tournament of 1851 and in making the tournament a success. He even offered to pay Anderssen's travel expenses if necessary. Staunton also maintained good working relationships with several strong players, for example: Popert and Cochrane helped him to prepare for his second match against Saint-Amant; Captain Evans, the inventor of the Evans Gambit, agreed to be one of his seconds in that match and later helped Staunton to organize the 1845 telegraphic match; Cochrane organized a large contribution from the Madras Chess Club to help finance the London International tournament in 1851; Staunton corresponded with von der Lasa for over 30 years, although they only met once; Staunton's last letter to von der Lasa (November 1873) expressed his sorrow at the deaths of various masters and enthusiasts, including Saint-Amant.

Despite the disappointing way in which his playing career ended, Staunton continued to write with enthusiasm about the progress of new technologies, players and developments in chess theory. At the time of his death his last book, Chess: Theory and Practice, was sufficiently complete to be published posthumously in 1876, and it was described as up-to-date 14 years after his death.

Modern reputation

Despite his many contributions to the game, Staunton remains controversial. His unspectacular style of play, his combative personality and writings, and the widespread perception that he treated Morphy shabbily have combined to make him an unpopular, even reviled, figure to many. The British International Master William Hartston wrote that Staunton's many achievements were all done "with the full weight of an arrogant and pompous nature which has scarcely been matched in the history of the game." Hartston wrote of Staunton's avoidance of a match with Morphy, "Sadly, this blemish on Staunton the man also did considerable harm to the reputation among later generations of Staunton the chess player." The American International Master I.A. Horowitz was particularly scathing, writing that "it is just too incredible that anyone seemingly so weak as [Staunton] could have achieved such success and exerted so much influence for so long", and that his real forte was journalism "because only in that field could he exercise to the full the genius for self-aggrandizement and bombast for which he is today chiefly remembered." Saidy and Lessing, somewhat more sympathetic, wrote that, "He can hardly be blamed if the struggles and privations of his youth warped his character so that he became a jealous, suspicious, and vitriolic man." Fred Reinfeld, the prolific American chess author, asserted that he had not bothered to include a single Staunton game in his compendium A Treasury of British Chess Masterpieces because "it takes too much time to find a game by him which one can enjoy."

However, modern chess historians have severely criticized the "prolific" chess writers, including Reinfeld, Horowitz and Fine, for lack of historical accuracy, particularly as concerning the Staunton-Morphy controversy. Other modern witers have given Staunton more credit. Former World Champion Garry Kasparov wrote, "The scale of his chess activity is impressive!" Kasparov explained that Staunton "by the early 1840s was superior to all his rivals"; he "founded and edited the magazine Chess Player's Chronicle (1841-54), wrote a chess column in the Illustrated London News (1845-1874), studied opening theory ... , published four remarkable books ... . He endorsed the famous 'Staunton pieces', which for a century and a half now have been used throughout the world, organized the first international chess tournament in history and was the first to try to set up an international chess organization..." Kasparov concluded that "Staunton was not properly recognised by either his contemporaries, or chess historians."

Kasparov ended his discussion of Steinitz by quoting the assessment of former World Champion Bobby Fischer, today generally regarded (like Kasparov) as one of the greatest players ever. Eight years before becoming World Champion, Fischer wrote in a 1964 article that Staunton was one of the ten greatest players in history. Fischer explained, "Staunton was the most profound opening analyst of all time. He was more theorist than player, but nonetheless he was the strongest player of his day. Playing over his games, I discover that they are completely modern; where Morphy and Steinitz rejected the fianchetto, Staunton embraced it. In addition, he understood all of the positional concepts which modern players hold dear, and thus—with Steinitz—must be considered the first modern player."

Influence on chess

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Staunton advocated the Sicilian Defense, 1 ... c5 in reply to 1 e4.

Contemporaries, including Steinitz and Morphy, considered Staunton's writings on chess openings to be among the best of their time. Preeminent chess historian H.J.R. Murray wrote in 1913 that Staunton's 1847 treatise The Chess-Player's Handbook "took rank at once as the leading English text-book on chess". Hooper and Whyld likewise acknowledged that it "became the standard reference work in English-speaking countries." Only near the beginning of the 20th century did Staunton's primacy in the English-speaking world begin to be challenged by the introduction of more up-to-date works on the chess openings. Staunton's obituary in The City of London Chess Magazine said, "... it is no exaggeration to say that his literary labours are the basis upon which English Chess Society, as at present constituted, stands".

Staunton was one of the earliest champions of the Sicilian Defense, which is today the most popular opening and the most successful response to 1.e4. He wrote of it in the 1872 edition of The Chess-Player's Handbook, "In the opinion of Jaenisch and the German 'Handbuch,' with which I coincide, this is the best possible reply to 1.P-K4, 'as it renders the formation of a centre impracticable for White and prevents every attack.' " It has been said that the deaths of Staunton (1874) and Anderssen (1879) "almost dealt a knock-out blow to the Sicilian because it took a long time to find such important figures to carry the Sicilian's standard".

Staunton was also far ahead of his time in playing the English Opening, which he introduced in his match against St. Amant and also played at London 1851. Grandmaster Nick de Firmian writes that the English "is really a twentieth century invention" even though it derives its name from its association with Staunton. The opening did not catch on with Staunton's contemporaries, and only became fully respectable after future World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik began playing it in the 1930s and 1940s. Today, the vast majority of chess games begin with 1.e4, 1.d4, 1.Nf3, or the English.

Staunton introduced the Staunton Gambit, 1.d4 f5 2.e4, an important response to the Dutch Defense, in his match against Horwitz. Staunton advocated the now-obscure opening 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3, today generally referred to as the Ponziani Opening, in The Chess-Player's Handbook and until about 1935 it was often called "Staunton's Opening".

Staunton's play had little influence on other players of the day. Hartston explains that, "The reason for this is simply that his chess understanding was so far ahead of his time. A deep strategist living in an era when shallow tactics were still the rule, Staunton's conceptions could not be assimilated by his contemporaries." Staunton's style of play and the openings that accompanied it were eclipsed by the more directly aggressive styles of Anderssen and Morphy, which dominated chess from 1851 until Steinitz unveiled his new positional approach in 1873.

Staunton proposed and was the principal organizer of the 1851 London International tournament, which proved that such events were possible, and which produced a clear consensus on who was the world's strongest chess player. All subsequent international tournaments took place in Great Britain until Paris 1867.

His other writings

Staunton's edition of Shakespeare's plays is still respected.

Staunton Memorial Tournament

Every year since 2003 a Staunton Memorial Tournament has been held at Simpson's-in-the-Strand, London, a restaurant which Staunton regularly visited in the 19th century to play and discuss chess (it was then a coffee house known as "The Divan" or "Simpson's Divan"). The 2008 tournament is the strongest to be held in London since 1986.

Notable games

• John Cochrane vs Howard Staunton, match London 1841 Staunton calmly focuses on his queenside attack and then shows that his opponent'kingside attack simply exposed the white king.
• John Cochrane vs Howard Staunton, match London 1842 Cochrane starts an apparently threatening attack while behind in development; Staunton sacrifices a piece for a counterattack that leads to a decisive material advantage.
• Howard Staunton vs Pierre de Saint Amant, match Paris 1843 Staunton develops faster, weakens his opponent's K-side, creates threats on the queenside and then launches a mating attack.
• Pierre de Saint Amant vs Howard Staunton, match Paris 1843 Staunton develops his pieces more effectively in a closed position. When Saint Amant mistakenly opens the position, Staunton produces a sacrifical combination that gives him an easily won endgame.
• Staunton-Horwitz, match, London 1851, game 7 - English Opening Staunton uses a modern-looking formation in the English Opening, with both Bishops fianchettoed; gains superior space and mobility; weakens his opponent's queenside and then kingside; and wins by a brisk attack.
• Adolf Anderssen vs Howard Staunton, 1857, in London Staunton adopts a Hippopotamus formation, opens the center to start a queenside attack, and uses a couple of small sacrificial combinations to halt Anderssen's kingside attack and gain a decisive material advantage.

Tournament results

Sources:

Date	Location	Place	Score	Notes
1851	London International Tournament	4	---	A knockout tournament in which the contestants played mini-matches in each round, increasing from best-of-3 in the 1st round to best-of-8 in the final. Staunton was eliminated in the semi-final (-4=0+1) by Adolf Anderssen, who won the tournament; Staunton was then beaten by Elijah Wood in the play-off for third place.
1858	Birmingham	---	---	A knockout tournament in which the contestants played 3-game mini-matches in each round. Staunton was eliminated in the second round (-2=0+0) by the eventual runner-up, Johann Jacob Loewenthal.

Match results

Sources:

Notes:

1. In some cases it is known who won but not by what score.
2. Books and articles about most players often omit games at odds. But Staunton gave odds, usually successfully, in his matches against most UK-based players and most of his matches were played this way.
3. "P + 1" means "Pawn and move", "P + 2" means "Pawn and two moves".
4. In the second column of scores, + shows games Staunton won, - shows his losses, = shows draws.

Date	Opponent	Result	Odds	Location	Score		Notes
1838	Alexandre	Lost	none	London	???	???
1840	Popert	Won	none	London	13/21	+8=2-3
1841	Stanley	Lost	P + 2	London	2½/6	+2=1-3
1841	Zytogorski	Lost	P + 2	???	½/7	+0=1-6
1843	Cochrane	Won	none	London	14/18	+14=0-4	Some sources say there was a short match in which Staunton gave Cochrane odds of pawn and one move and drew, followed by a normal match that Staunton won by one game; H.J.R. Murray says they played about 120 games, Staunton scoring about 80/120, and that finally Staunton gave Cochrane P + 1 and scored +3=1-3. Chessmetrics treats all their games as one single match and lists it as Staunton's best performance.
1843	Taverner	Won	P + 2	???	5/6	???
1843	Saint-Amant	Lost	none	London	2½/6	+2=1-3
1843	Brooke-Greville	Lost	P + 1	???	0/3	+0=0-3
1843	Brooke-Greville	Won	P + 2	???	5/6	+5=0-1
1843	Buckle	Lost	P + 1	London	1/3	+1=0-2
1843	Saint-Amant	Won	none	Paris	13/21	+11=4-6
1844	Tuckett	Won	P + 2	???	7½/9	+7=1-1
1845	Tuckett	Won	P + 2	???	7½/9	+7=1-1
1845	Mongredien	Won	P + 2	???	3½/5	+2=3-0
1845	Spreckley	Won	P + 2	???	3½/5	+3=1-1
1845	Williams	Won	P + 2	???	3½/4	+3=1-0
1845	Kennedy	Won	P + 2	???	8½/11	+7=2-2
1846	Horwitz	Won	none	London	15½/24	+14=3-7
1846	Hannah	Won	Q Knight	???	5½/8	+5=1-2
1846	Daniel Harrwitz	Won	none	London	7/7	+7=0-1	H.J.R. Murray says this was one single match consisting of seven cycles of three games: one at P + 1, one at P + 2, the third at no odds (draws not counted).
1846	Daniel Harrwitz	Won	P + 1	London	1½/8	+1=1-6
1846	Daniel Harrwitz	Lost	P + 2	London	4/7	+4=0-3
1847	Kenny	Drawn	Q Rook	??	2/4	+2=0-2
1847	Loewe	Lost	P + 2	???	2/7	+1=2-4
1847	Medley	Won	P + 2	???	7½/10	+6=3-1
1851	Carl Jaenisch	Won	none	London	7½/10	+7=1-2
1851	Elijah Williams	Won and lost	none	London	7½/13	+6=3-4	Williams was considered the winner as Staunton gave him a three game start.
1853	von der Lasa	Lost	none	Brussels	5½/12	+4=4-5	von der Lasa's account presents this as just a long series of games while the players were in the same place. Abandoned due to Staunton's illness.
1854	Brien	???	P + 2	???	???	???
1859	Worrall	Won	Q Knight	???	7½/10	+6=3-1

Further reading

• Howard Staunton – the English World Chess Champion, by Raymond Keene and Richard N. Coles, St. Leonard's on Sea (British Chess Magazine) 1975, ISBN 0-9008-4619-4
• World Chess Champions by Edward G. Winter, editor. 1981 ISBN 0-08024-094-1
• The World's Great Chess Games by Reuben Fine; Dover; 1983. ISBN 0-486-24512-8
• The Oxford Companion to Chess, 2nd Ed., by David Hooper and Kenneth Whyld. 1992 ISBN 0-19-866164-9

External links

• Howard Staunton player profile and games at Chessgames.com
• Works by Howard Staunton at Project Gutenberg
• The Howard Staunton Society
• The Chess Player's Handbook: A Popular and Scientific Introduction to the Game of Chess At Google print. A somewhat outdated but still useful guide to chess written by Howard Staunton.
• Find a Grave