Can you solve this classic chess problem?

This is puzzle is amongst the most famous in chess history! It was originally composed by George Barbier and perfected by Fernando Saavedra after he tranformed it from a draw position into winning for white by finding a genius move in 1895.

White to move and win. Can you find how?

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42 Comments

  1. I’ve seen this puzzle before. You got to play the precise moves, even with only four pieces on the board.

  2. Black's first move should be 1….Rd2, let the pawn queen, and then get a perpetual by checks on the a and b columns or exchange for the queen if white's king moves to the c column… no?!?

  3. I don't see the reason why a rook was brought back instead of a queen. The queen has the same power and more. Where was the advantage in this case? It was not explained.

  4. Underpromotion – my main complaint at work.

  5. I am at 1:19 only, and I don't see how the pawn can't make it. Unless you blunder the King away from the action, the rook is on a terrible square/row.

  6. This is a great old chestnut. I've seen it before, but not for a long time.

  7. This is a great old chestnut. I've seen it before, but not for a long time.

  8. Queen can do anything the rook can do so promote to queen. Same result.

  9. Avanzar el peon y luego devolver el rey blanco

  10. Isn't this a draw? Blacks first move should be R d2, then K b1. Black will give checks until the 50 move rule, or until the white king goes to the c file (in which it would take the pawn/queen after the king moves).

  11. You are just brilliant… Excellent puzzle. Thank you very much and God bless you Sir

  12. This is the most famous chess study of all. Another famous study is Retí's pawn study (Kh8/Ka6). When I started chess as a child, someone showed me this position. I think everyone should know this position…

  13. Don’t understand why promoting to a rook instead of a queen is the winner. Couldn’t the queen do anything the rook can do?

  14. Oh yeah, I remember this puzzle from the book All About Chess by I.A. Horowitz. I love that underpromotion to a rook. From the start of the puzzle, Stockfish has it as a mate in 26. The rook chasing the king is essential to point out for the beautiful rook promotion, but at anytime black can move it's king instead, white would promote to a queen, then it's a game of queen vs rook. I'm actually not good at queen vs rook endgames. Incase my opponent with a rook doesn't resign, I have to study how to mate with a queen against a rook, or it would be a draw. If black keeps with the king chase, do promote to a rook but if it doesn't keep with the chase, promote to a queen and know how to mate with a queen against a rook.

  15. I did solve it, but didn't notice the Rd4 stalemate trap. Once you showed it, I saw the Underpromotion. Having done so many of these puzzles with underpromotion solutions, it seems impossible that the composer didn't see it, let alone the entire chess world.

  16. Thank you…. bloody amazing and such a strange way to pass one of my remaining evenings. But sorta fun🤗

  17. Surely Rook d2 after pawn c7 threatens a perpetual

  18. At 4:36 can't you also just move your King up 1 square and guarantee promoting the pawn to queen without a stalemate?

  19. I don't even have an ELO rating, and this still was the easiest chess "puzzle" I've seen on YouTube.

  20. Amazing. But I wouldn’t just resign as Black even if I knew the Puzzle. There’s always a chance White doesn’t and it’d be awfully difficult for White to figure it out on the fly.

  21. I must be a genius. This wasn't that hard.

  22. step 1: consider losing more than 90 % of your troops as your victory.
    step 2: congrats bro, you win

  23. Why is promoting to a rook better than promoting to a queen in this situation? A queen can do everything a rook can, and more.

  24. I learned this when I was in the 7th grade in the chess club, which was over 40 years ago. I showed it to a grand master in a chess team and he gave up still trying to change the pawn into a queen. Rook-e moove, I'd say.

  25. Queen vs rook endgame isn't simple either

  26. Excelente, Saavedra was very clever👍👍👍

  27. Don't understand the underpromotion to rook instead of queen.

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