Alexander McDonnell vs Louis Charles Mahe De La Bourdonnais (1834)

Alexander McDonnell vs Louis Charles Mahe De La Bourdonnais
London m4 ;HCL 18 1834 · Sicilian Defense: Old Sicilian. Open (B32) · 1/2-1/2

To move:

Last move:

explore this opening	find similar games	85 more McDonnell/La Bourdonnais games
	PGN: download \| view	Help: general \| java-troubleshooting

TIP: To flip the board (so black is on the bottom) either press F or click on the d7 square.

For help with this chess viewer, please see the Pgn4web Quickstart Guide.

Sep-30-04		Knight13: Why can't white Queen by taking 57. fxe5 ? Or is it draw by mistake?

Oct-01-04		PizzatheHut: <Knight13> If 57. fxe5, then 57...Kxe5 58. Kg4 Kf6 and because of the opposite colored bishops, White will never be able to break Black's blockade on the dark squares, so therefore it is a draw.

Dec-07-07		nimh: Rybka 2.4 mp, AMD X2 2.01GHz, 10 min per move, threshold 0.33. McDonnell 6 mistakes: 12.Qd2 -0.48 (12.Na4 -0.14) 16.Qb3 -0.27 (16.c3 0.31) 30.Nxf7 1.73 (30.Nc4 3.21) 34.Qxd6+ 0.95 (34.Qe1 1.49) 52.Kg4 0.00 (52.Ba4 0.91) 54.Kg4 0.00 (54.g4 0.83) De La Bourdonnais 5 mistakes: 12...g5 0.22 (12...a4 -0.48) 23...Rg7 0.42 (23...Ra8 -0.10) 24...Qg6 0.97 (24...Bb6 0.39) 25...Bc5 2.03 (25...Bb8 0.90) 39...Rb2 0.93 (39...Kc7 0.43)

Dec-07-07		beatgiant: <nimh> <54.Kg4 0.00 (54.g4 0.83)> Very interesting. Does Rybka really see any winning chances for White here after 54. g4? Still looks close to a dead draw to me. Can you post a few moves of it's winning try so I can learn what I'm missing? Also, if its eval is 0.00 after White's 52nd move but rises to 0.83 on 54. g4, it means Rybka thinks Black has dropped 0.83 worth of eval between those moves. What did Rybka recommend for Black's 52nd and 53rd moves?

Dec-07-07		nimh: You're right, the position after 54.g4 is a draw. <What did Rybka recommend for Black's 52nd and 53rd moves?> 52...Bd4 (eval rises quickly after this black move) 53...Bf2

Feb-24-08		wolfmaster: 5.Nxc6 is a small error because it strenfthens Black's center. But people playing 174 years ago did not know that!

Dec-27-10		Llawdogg: Wow! One of the earliest bishops of opposite colors end games. La Bourdonnais looked very comfortable pulling out the draw while down two pawns. He was better in the openings and better in the end games. All of McDonnell's chances were in the middle game tactics. I also read that McDonnell was very nervous and totally stressed out all the time. He died young one year after this match. The match took a lot out of both of them.

Feb-04-12		Knight13: 32...Bxc4!! is the best move. La Bourdonnais understood the drawish nature of the Bishops of Opposite Color endgames even in 1834 and went for it (and finally hits the nail on the head on move 39)! 30. c4 was the right time to play it; Black would be positionally lost then.

Feb-04-12		Knight13: Correction: Black would be completely positionally lost then.

NOTE: You need to pick a username and password to post a reply. Getting your account takes less than a minute, totally anonymous, and 100% free--plus, it entitles you to features otherwise unavailable. Pick your username now and join the chessgames community!

If you already have an account, you should login now.

Please observe our posting guidelines:

No obscene, racist, sexist, or profane language.
No spamming, advertising, or duplicating posts.
No personal attacks against other users.
Nothing in violation of United States law.

See something which violates our rules? Blow the whistle and inform an administrator.

NOTE: Keep all discussion on the topic of this page. This forum is for this specific game and nothing else. If you want to discuss chess in general, or this site, you might try the Kibitzer's Café.

Messages posted by Chessgames members do not necessarily represent the views of Chessgames.com, its employees, or sponsors.

Spot an error? Please submit a correction slip and help us eliminate database mistakes!
This game is type: CLASSICAL (Disagree? Please submit a correction slip.)

Featured in the Following Game Collections [what is this?]

Sicilian (B32)
by anoopkc

Fourth Match, Game #11
from WCC Index [La Bourdonnais-McDonnell 1834] by suenteus po 147

1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
from Game collection: 1 by gr2cae

10.7% - 8.9%
from Blunder check: Alexander McDonnell by nimh

zumakal blunders archivadas5
by zumakal