Apr-23-20
 | | Telemus: I submitted Eisenbach's first game here to have a player page for him. He was a strong amateur in Vienna. In the 1870s he had some successes in the tournaments of Café Weghuber. Later he became secretary and treasurer of the 'Wiener Schachgesellschaft' (Vienna Chess Society), a position he held until his death in 1894. In this club he played with several of the local masters and it is surprising how few of his games have survived. Chessbase's online database has two more games, one loss against Oscar Gelbfuhs from the early period, and a win against Georg Marco from the later days. (I would have sunmitted the latter game, if I would knew a source.) Eisenbach is known for some advices like
1. The threat is stronger than its execution ("Die Drohung ist stärker als die Ausführung.", WSZ 1911, p 111). 2. In the opening there is no worse place for a white knight than b3, and for a black knight than b6 ("es gibt für einen
weißen Springer in der Eröffnung keinen ungünstigeren Platz als b3 und für den schwarzen keinen schlechteren als b6.", WSZ 1915, p 57-58) 3. In a won position look for the clearest and shortest way to win. ("In gewonnenen Stellungen suche den klaren kürzesten Weg zum Gewinn." WSZ, 1915, p 177). No. 1 and 2 have been discussed by E. Winter, and it seems that all these sayings were handed down by Marco, who followed him as secretary of the Vienna Chess Society. So far Eisenbach's merits. |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: Now about his life.
Gaige gives: born 14 May 1836 in Prague, and died 30 May 1894 in Vienna. Well, the date of death is fine (see below), but the date of birth is questionable. Gaige's only source is 'DWS' 1894, p 219, but there no date of birth is given! It is only mentioned that he died at the age of 59, which does not fit. And please look at the date of birth: that is Steinitz's date of birth and Steinitz's birth place, too! Can someone explain this? |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: Eisenbach committed suicided. In the early morning of Wednesday, 30 May 1894 he put on his Sunday suit, went over the Prater to the Danube, and close to the public bathing facility he jumped into the danube and drowned. His body was found a few hours later and a detailed description was published. From that we learn among others that his clothes were marked by "C. E. 4". This could indicate that he preffered Carl instead of Karl (a common fashion thing those days). When he had been identified, the newspapers wrote that he died at the age of 59, including one official death notice. The reason for his suicide is unknown. |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: DWS wrote that Eisenbach was a sculptor (Bildhauer), which I also saw in a Vienna address book of 1878 and in the "Ischler Bade-Liste" and the "Salzburger Zeitung", both of 1857, but one time as "Carl" and the other time as "Karl". No newspaper report from 1894 confirms this. Instead it was stated that Eisenbach was "Hausbesorger", and Austrian word for caretaker or facility manager, as we would saw nowadays. That's it for the moment. |
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Apr-23-20
 | | MissScarlett: Died about three weeks after Alexander Wittek, an alleged suicide. Not clear if Wittek died in Vienna, too. Game Collection: Premature resignations..... |
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Apr-23-20
 | | Tabanus: The online ÖSZ
http://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/a... with a game vs Fritsch p. 56.But I guess you have seen it already. |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: Thanks, <Tabanus>. I don't think that I checked half of the hits at Google and Google books. The game with Holzwarth was okay for me, but I'd have preferred to submit the game with Marco, of course. Within this logic, the game with Fritsch, which I didn't know, ranks behind. I wonder if your access to Austrian Ancestry will solve the date of birth mystery. Or at least give a source for any date of birth. Why Gaige gave this date will probably an even harder problem. |
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Apr-23-20
| | Tabanus: <Telemus> I will try a little more, but Austria is not listed in Anc...com. I don't think they have much from there. |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: Zinkl wrote in WSZ 1923, p 198 about Eisenbach: http://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/a... He confirms that E. was originally a sculptor, and that his love for chess ended this profession. Then he lived in great poverty, but he hided that from the Chess Society. |
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Apr-23-20
 | | Jean Defuse: ...
<Telemus: ... but the date of birth is questionable. > Johann Berger's Schach-Jahrbuch 1899-1900, p. 127: Elsenbach, Karl, * 14./5. 1836 in Prag, + 30./5. 1894 in Wien; Bildhauer; 90-94 Sekretär u. Kassierer der Wiener Schachgesellschaft; Klubturnier 93 II u. viele andere Preise in Lokalt. ... |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: Thanks, <Jean Dufuse>. But on page 337 Berger claims that Eisenbach died at the age of 59 years. That is the first hit I got at Google books, but since it is no primary source ... |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: Can we link him to Prague?
I checked yesterday the conscriptions in Prague, as well as the census data. Nothing. In 1857 he traveled with Johann Eisenbach, also a sculptor, also from Vienna. Maybe the father. Unfortunately, the first address book of Prague which I know is from 1859, and thus they won't be therein. |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: Eisenbach vs Gelbfuhs 1/2 (52 moves, 1870/71) in DSZ 1872, p 177. |
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Apr-23-20
| | Telemus: <Johann Eisenbach>, academic painter, died 16 August 1868 at the age of 34 in a hospital in Vienna (pulmonary tuberculosis). "Wiener Zeitung", 20 August 1868
So, based on the artistic profession, this could have been his brother (and not the father as I suggested above). |
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Apr-24-20
| | Tabanus: https://tng.adler-wien.eu/getperson... is all I can find. Apparently buried 6 weeks after death. |
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| Apr-27-20 | | Chessist: "Gaige's only source is 'DWS' 1894, p 219," - no, see dozens of sources on pages xv-xx, e.g. Berger's Schach-Jahrbuch 1899/1900. |
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Kibitzing
