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Samuel Boden
S Boden 
Credit: Westminster Papers, September 1876 

Number of games in database: 138
Years covered: 1847 to 1877
Overall record: +72 -26 =12 (70.9%)*
   * Overall winning percentage = (wins+draws/2) / total games in the database. 28 exhibition games, blitz/rapid, odds games, etc. are excluded from this statistic.

MOST PLAYED OPENINGS
With the White pieces:
 Ruy Lopez (7) 
    C61 C60 C64 C78 C68
 Bishop's Opening (6) 
    C24 C23
 Philidor's Defense (5) 
    C41
 Two Knights (5) 
    C55 C57 C58
 Uncommon Opening (5) 
    B00 A00
 Vienna Opening (4) 
    C27 C29
With the Black pieces:
 Philidor's Defense (12) 
    C41
 King's Gambit Declined (9) 
    C30
 King's Pawn Game (7) 
    C44 C40
 Ruy Lopez (7) 
    C64 C84 C74 C77
 Evans Gambit (7) 
    C51 C52
 Bishop's Opening (5) 
    C23
Repertoire Explorer

NOTABLE GAMES: [what is this?]
   R Schulder vs S Boden, 1853 0-1
   G MacDonnell vs S Boden, 1869 0-1
   S Boden vs J Owen, 1858 1-0
   S Boden vs Bird, 1869 1-0
   S Boden vs A Belaieff, 1867 1-0
   J Owen vs S Boden, 1857 0-1
   S Boden vs J Owen, 1858 1-0
   S Boden vs J Owen, 1858 1-0
   S Boden vs Morphy, 1858 1-0
   S Boden vs Morphy, 1858 1/2-1/2

NOTABLE TOURNAMENTS: [what is this?]
   Provincial Tournament, London (1851)

GAME COLLECTIONS: [what is this?]
   Provincial (1851) by MissScarlett
   Boden - Owen (1858) by MissScarlett


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SAMUEL BODEN
(born May-04-1826, died Jan-13-1882, 55 years old) United Kingdom

[what is this?]

Samuel Standidge Boden was born in 1826. His tournament results include 1st at the London Provincial tournament 1851, 2nd at Manchester 1857 and 2nd at Bristol 1861. He beat Rev. John Owen in a match in 1858 (+7, =2, -2) and was the chess editor for 'The Field' from 1858 to 1873. Paul Morphy considered him to be his strongest English opponent.

Boden's record against Morphy in casual games was (+1, =4, -6). His name is also linked to the Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit: 1.e4 e5 2.♗c4 ♘f6 3.♘f3 ♘xe4 4.♘c3 ♘xc3 5.dxc3 f6.

A kind of checkmate pattern called "Boden's Mate" involves two well placed bishops. It is exemplified in R Schulder vs S Boden, 1853.

note: Boden played on the teams of Boden / Loewenthal / Kennedy & Steinitz / Boden.

Wikipedia article: Samuel Boden

Last updated: 2022-09-08 21:40:47

Try our new games table.

 page 1 of 6; games 1-25 of 138  PGN Download
Game  ResultMoves YearEvent/LocaleOpening
1. J Boden vs S Boden  ½-½281847Casual gameC40 King's Knight Opening
2. Harrwitz vs S Boden 0-1191847Blindfold simul, 2bC51 Evans Gambit
3. NN vs S Boden  0-1181848Casual gameC23 Bishop's Opening
4. S Boden vs Saint-Amant  1-0231850Odds Game (Pf7+1)000 Chess variants
5. S Boden vs Saint-Amant  1-0341851Casual game000 Chess variants
6. S Boden vs NN  1-0381851Casual gameC38 King's Gambit Accepted
7. S Boden vs NN 0-1201851Casual gameC42 Petrov Defense
8. E Lowe vs S Boden  0-1321851Casual gameC41 Philidor Defense
9. S Boden vs NN  1-0181851Odds Game (Ra1)000 Chess variants
10. S Boden vs J Boden  1-0261851Odds Game (Nb1)000 Chess variants
11. E Lowe vs S Boden 0-1391851Casual gameC40 King's Knight Opening
12. NN vs S Boden  0-1241851Casual gameC41 Philidor Defense
13. J Boden vs S Boden  0-1451851Mutual odds game (Ng1 - Blindfold)000 Chess variants
14. J Boden vs S Boden  ½-½431851Odds game (Pf7+1)000 Chess variants
15. J Boden vs S Boden  ½-½421851Odds game (Pf7+1)000 Chess variants
16. S Boden vs Harrwitz  1-0361851Simul, 3bB45 Sicilian, Taimanov
17. S Boden vs C Ranken 0-1311851Provincial Tournament, LondonC38 King's Gambit Accepted
18. R Brien vs S Boden 1-0111851Provincial Tournament, LondonC01 French, Exchange
19. S Boden vs R Brien  ½-½411851Provincial Tournament, LondonC50 Giuoco Piano
20. R Brien vs S Boden  0-1411851Provincial Tournament, LondonC41 Philidor Defense
21. C Ranken vs S Boden 0-1211851Provincial Tournament, LondonC53 Giuoco Piano
22. S Boden vs C Ranken 1-0261851Provincial Tournament, LondonC54 Giuoco Piano
23. S Boden vs R Brien 1-0471851Provincial Tournament, LondonC21 Center Game
24. S Angas vs S Boden  0-1231851Provincial Tournament, LondonA30 English, Symmetrical
25. S Boden vs S Angas 1-0351851Provincial Tournament, LondonB32 Sicilian
 page 1 of 6; games 1-25 of 138  PGN Download
  REFINE SEARCH:   White wins (1-0) | Black wins (0-1) | Draws (1/2-1/2) | Boden wins | Boden loses  

Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 1 OF 2 ·  Later Kibitzing>
Oct-29-04  waddayaplay: Boden was considered by Morphy to be his best opponent in England. "The strongest outside his matches", was what Steinitz thought.

Morphy played in a simul against five strong players in London in 1859. One of them was Boden, but I can't find that game here. It was a draw.

The other four games were:

Riviere (who lost):
De Riviere vs Morphy, 1859

Bird (lost):
Morphy vs Bird, 1859

Loewenthal (draw):
Lowenthal vs Morphy, 1859

Barnes (won):
Morphy vs T W Barnes, 1859

Oct-29-04
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: According to chessmetrics, on 12/31/58 Morphy's opponents were the third (Lowenthal), eighth (Boden), ninth (Bird), tenth (Barnes) and 13th-ranked (de Riviere) players in the world. And, Morphy took black in two of the games. This was one mind-boggling simul.
Oct-30-04  waddayaplay: I have submitted the missing game Boden played against Morphy. It should appear within the next week...
May-04-05  vonKrolock: Boden in "The Field", 3-12-1859: <"We cannot say that we are anxious to see exhaustive printed analyses of the openings. The way to learn the openings is to seize the spirit or strong characteristic points of them, and to perceive the principles on which each salient feature of attack or defence is based; to rely upon knowing the book replies to every move is certain to produce a poor player.">
May-05-05  Calli: Hmm, he beat MacDonnell when he was 4 yrs old :->

A wrong date obviously.

Oct-02-05  Kingsider: Did Boden ever play Barnes? Surely they must have.
Oct-04-05  Kingsider: And don't call me Shirley.(I know)
Mar-29-07  gambitfan: He probably gave his name to the famous <Boden's mate> ?
Apr-04-07  Manic: <gambitfan> Yep. R Schulder vs S Boden, 1853 was the game that gave Boden's mate its name.
Apr-04-07  gambitfan: I have just created a collection dedicated to Boden's mates : Game Collection: BODEN MATES

Boden was Player of the day on the 04/04/2007

Sep-01-08  myschkin: . . .

Multi talent:

In 1851 he published the book "A Popular Introduction to the Study and Practice of Chess (Charles S. Skeet, London 1851)".

http://books.google.com/books?id=mz...

Painting:

http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/...

Apr-04-09  WhiteRook48: Happy birthday to Boden!
Apr-04-10  wordfunph: <waddayaplay: Boden was considered by Morphy to be his best opponent in England.>

flattering remark from Paul Morphy...happy birthday Master Samuel Boden.

Apr-04-10  BIDMONFA: Samuel Standidge Boden

BODEN, Samuel S.
http://www.bidmonfa.com/boden_samue...
_

Dec-24-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  Phony Benoni: Obituaries from the <British Chess Magazine>:

http://books.google.com/books?id=iI...

Jan-17-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  Phony Benoni: In his column in the <Albion> for June 9, 1866, George Henry Mackenzie printed two games he had played "a few years ago" against Boden. I assume they were probably played in the early 1860s before Mackenzie went to the United States in 1863.

I want to submit the games, but would like to have more information on the exact place (London?) and date. Does anybody have a clue?

Here is Boden's win:

Boden, Samuel Standidge - Mackenzie, George Henry
[Albion, 1866.06.09]

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.0-0 Bc5 6.e5 d5 7.exf6 dxc4 8.Re1+ Kf8 9.Bg5 gxf6 10.Bh6+ Kg8 11.Nc3 Bf5 12.Ne4 Bxe4 13.Rxe4 f5 14.Nxd4 Qf6 15.Nxf5 Bxf2+ 16.Kh1 Qxf5 17.Rg4+ Qg6 18.Rxg6+ hxg6 19.Qf3 Ne5 20.Qxf2 Rxh6 21.h3 Kg7 22.Qd4 f6 23.Qc5 1-0

(The actual column can be found by going to http://www.chessarch.com/excavation... and clicking on the link for the June 9, 1866 issue.)

Apr-04-12
Premium Chessgames Member
  Penguincw: R.I.P. Samuel Standidge Boden.
Apr-04-13  whiteshark: <His name is also linked to the Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit: <1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nxe4 4. Nc3 Nxc3 5. dxc3 f6 >>


click for larger view

Opening Explorer

I wonder what could this 'linkage' ever be?

Jul-19-13  Gottschalk: De acordo com o site Edo Historical Ratings http://www.edochess.ca/tournaments/... foram jogadas 4 partidas entre Boden e Brien no torneio London Provincial. Eu submeti a vitória de Boden na C21, mas cheegames.com se recusou a aceitá-la. Assim, continuam constando apenas 3 jogos entre Boden e Brien, na database daqui.
Oct-20-13  Karpova: A few snippets from the obituary in the February 1882 'British Chess Magazine':

Page 54:
<The melancholy duty devolves upon me this week of announcing the death of Mr. S. S. Boden, which took place at his chambers in Tavistock-street, Bedford-square, on Friday morning, 13th Jan. Mr. Boden was born on the 4th of April, 1826, and consequently was not quite fifty-six years old. His health had been for some time failing, but the immediate cause of his death was typhoid fever.>

<For the last four years Mr. Boden had abandoned the practice of Chess, but he always continued to cherish a deep interest in the Chess news of the day;>

<I would describe him, socially, in the language which Bassanio used of Antonio:->

Page 55

<The kindest man,
The best condition'd and unwearied spirit
In doing courtesies; and one in whom
The ancient Roman honour more appears
Than any that draws breath.>

<Mr. Boden first won his spurs in 1851, when he carried off the first prize in the provincial tournament. He was never a great match player, but he was, as Captain Evans phrased it, a master of all parts of the game; and in 1857, and for some years afterwards, he was acknowledged to be the best English player.>

<Chivalrous to the highest degree as a combatant, he never made idle excuses for a defeat, or depreciated the skill of an opponent.>

<Mr. Boden wrote a very valuable work, entitled 'Popular Introduction to Chess' and for thirteen years conducted the chess column in the 'Field', and was the author of the article on Chess which was published in 'Chamber's Encyclopedia.' He also wrote the introduction to the 'Westminster Papers'.>

<He was a water-colour painter of no mean skill, and many of his drawings would compare not unfavourably with the smaller productions of Birket Foster.>

May-07-15  TheFocus: <The pupil wants not so much to learn, as to learn how to learn> - Samuel Boden.
Jan-13-16  TheFocus: Rest in peace, Samuel Boden.
Jul-14-17  zanzibar: In Harding's thesis he notes the following to end his bio:

"Then retired to concentrate on his hobby of painting."

Jun-13-18
Premium Chessgames Member
  Stonehenge: See http://streathambrixtonchess.blogsp...
Jul-10-18  sudoplatov: For comparison with <Keypusher>'s post, I checked with the 2018 EDO estimates.

Morphy 2817 #1

Lowenthal 2619 #7
de Rivière 2570 #9
Boden 2529 #13
Bird 2488 #17
Barnes 2429 #22

To put this in perspective in 1924 the equivalent rankings would yield a 5-person simul of:

Lasker 2785
Reti 2608
Levenfish 2582
Johner 2558
Romanasky 2528
Bohatirchuk 2508

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