♟️ An Introduction to the Chessmen
The chessmen are your army, and knowing them is the first step to command. This introduction covers the names, movements, and basic roles of the King, Queen, Rook, Bishop, Knight, and Pawn. Understanding how your pieces coordinate is the foundation of all chess strategy.
Chess is played by two players on a board of 64 squares (light and dark). Players take turns moving one piece. The aim is to checkmate your opponent’s king.
The Chessmen
The pieces and pawns are called chessmen. The following shows how they are normally represented in printed material.
Setting Up the Board
The board is always set up so that each player has the light square on the right-hand side. (Remember: light on the right). The queen always stands on the square of her own colour. A good way of remembering this is: The queen is a fashionable lady. She likes her dress to match her shoes!
In printed diagrams it is usual for the White army to be at the bottom and the Black army at the top. We will follow this convention in subsequent diagrams unless stated otherwise.
The Pawn
At the beginning of the game each side has 8 pawns. Except on its first move, a pawn may only move one square forward at a time. Pawns can never move backwards. On its first move, a pawn may move one or two squares.
- The pawn on the a file has not moved yet so it may move two squares forward.
- The pawn on the e file has already moved so it can now only move one square forward.
- The pawn on the h file has not moved yet but it does not have to move two squares forward on its first move.
If the square immediately in front of the pawn contains another piece then the pawn is unable to move forward. It is blocked. None of the pawns in this diagram can move.
Although a pawn moves straight forward it captures by taking one square diagonally forward. In the diagram below White can capture either the rook or the knight.
Captures by all chessmen are carried out by removing the captured piece from the board and replacing it with the piece that has done the capturing. In the diagram below, the pawn has captured the rook.
Pawn Promotion
When a pawn reaches the other end of the board it can be changed for any other piece of its own colour, except the king. This is called promotion. The diagram below shows the pawn's journey to become a queen.
Although it is more usual for a pawn to be promoted to a queen, it may be promoted to a rook, a bishop, or a knight. If there is not a spare queen, a rook turned upside down (or any other suitable object) is used to represent a queen. Promotion is done by removing the pawn and placing the chosen piece on the promotion square.
FAQ
What are the chess pieces called?
The chess pieces are called chessmen: king, queen, rook, bishop, knight, and pawn.
How does the pawn move and capture?
A pawn moves forward one square (or two squares on its first move). Pawns capture one square diagonally forward.
What is pawn promotion?
When a pawn reaches the farthest rank, it can be promoted to a queen, rook, bishop, or knight (but not a king).
How is the chessboard set up?
Light on the right, and the queen goes on her own color square. The king takes the remaining central square.
➡️ Next Steps
Next up: learn about the more powerful pieces and how they move.