Four Knights Game

Four knights, no hurry

Solid
Classical
Symmetry

Both sides bring out two knights and only then turn to the bishops. Every piece stands on a natural square, and the pawns are protected. From there the game can go quietly, like a Spanish, or sharply, with a d4 strike. The opening suits those who want a sound position without long memorisation and with room for either side to choose.

Interactive Opening Board

8…Qe7

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Black

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White

8…Qe7

Speed:

Moves

(16 plies • 8 moves)

8…Qe7Tabiya

The queen guards the f6 knight and prepares …Nd8-e6 to escape the pin.

1–8moves
#WhiteBlack
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1.e4 The king's pawn takes the centre.

1…e5 Black replies symmetrically.

2.Nf3 The knight attacks the e5 pawn.

2…Nc6 The knight defends the pawn and develops.

3.Nc3 The second knight develops and backs up the e4 pawn.

3…Nf6 Black answers in kind. All four knights now stand on natural squares, look at the centre and guard their pawns. This is how the Four Knights begins: the pawns stay put, and everything depends on where White puts the bishop.

4.Bb5 The bishop pins the c6 knight, which guards e5. This is the Spanish Four Knights.

4…Bb4 Black answers in mirror image: the bishop pins the c3 knight.

5.O-O White's king goes to safety.

5…O-O Black castles too.

6.d3 The pawn props up e4 and frees the c1 bishop, which is heading for g5.

6…d6 The pawn props up e5 and opens the c8 bishop. The symmetry holds.

7.Bg5 The bishop pins the f6 knight to the queen and aims at the centre.

7…Bxc3 Black trades the bishop for the c3 knight, so White must damage his own pawn structure.

8.bxc3 White recaptures with the b-pawn. Now he has the bishop pair, but the pawns on c2 and c3 are doubled.

8…Qe7 The queen guards the f6 knight and prepares …Nd8-e6 to escape the pin.

Defining move

3…Nf6 — the fourth knight

The move that gives the opening its name and its character

Black looks for activity neither with a pawn nor with a bishop, but simply copies his opponent. All the knights eye the centre, and White has no direct threat. The next question is where the bishop goes: b5, as in the Spanish, or c4, as in the Italian. Or White can strike with the d4 pawn.

Tabiya

The Spanish Four Knights

Black has traded the b4 bishop for the c3 knight, so White has the bishop pair but doubled c-pawns. The g5 bishop pins the f6 knight, and the c6 knight is still pinned by the b5 bishop. Black wants to keep the position closed so that White's bishops have no open diagonals, and to reroute the c6 knight to e6. White wants to open the game with d4 and give the bishops room. Both sides have grounds for a counterstrike on the kingside.

The centre

A closed centre against the bishop pair

The e4 and e5 pawns face each other, backed by d3 and d6. After the recapture on c3, White's pawns on c2 and c3 are doubled, but the b-file is open for a rook. Black's structure is intact.

Key squaresd4e5f5

Outposts

e6Black's knight
From e6 the knight attacks g5 and d4 and escapes the pin. That is why it takes the roundabout route through d8.
g5White's bishop
The g5 bishop pins the f6 knight and keeps Black under tension. Black wants to drive it away; White wants to keep it.

Thematic breaks

d4White
The d3-d4 strike
Open the game so the bishops get diagonals.
What follows: If Black is not ready, the bishops quickly dominate. If he is, the open game weakens White too.
Ne6Black
The …Nd8-e6 manoeuvre
Escape the pin and attack the g5 bishop.
What follows: White must decide what to do with the bishop: retreat or trade it for the f6 knight.
f5Black
The …f7-f5 counterstrike
Create a threat on the kingside and open the game where White is weaker.
What follows: White must watch the centre, and the d4 plan is delayed.

White’s plan

Prepare d4 with Re1 and Qd2 or Qf3 to open diagonals for the bishops.
Keep the bishop pair and do not let Black close the game.
Maintain the pins on the f6 and c6 knights.

Black’s plan

Keep the position closed so that White's bishops have nothing to do.
Reroute the c6 knight to e6 via d8 and escape the pin.
Look for the …f5 counterstrike on the kingside.

History

The opening was played as early as the nineteenth century: at the first American chess congress in 1857, Paul Morphy beat Louis Paulsen in a Four Knights game. The reply 4…Nd4 bears the name of Akiba Rubinstein. In recent decades strong grandmasters have come back to the opening.