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Louis Paulsen
Paulsen 
 

Number of games in database: 522
Years covered: 1856 to 1889
Overall record: +230 -107 =92 (64.3%)*
   * Overall winning percentage = (wins+draws/2) / total games in the database. 93 exhibition games, blitz/rapid, odds games, etc. are excluded from this statistic.

MOST PLAYED OPENINGS
With the White pieces:
 French Defense (46) 
    C02 C01 C00 C10 C15
 Scotch Game (30) 
    C45
 Four Knights (22) 
    C48 C49 C47
 King's Gambit Accepted (21) 
    C33 C37 C38 C39 C36
 Vienna Opening (20) 
    C25 C28 C29 C26 C27
 Sicilian (18) 
    B40 B23 B45 B44 B32
With the Black pieces:
 Sicilian (60) 
    B40 B30 B25 B23 B45
 Ruy Lopez (39) 
    C65 C77 C70 C78 C60
 King's Gambit Accepted (17) 
    C33 C39 C37 C34
 Evans Gambit (17) 
    C51 C52
 Giuoco Piano (14) 
    C50 C53 C54
 French Defense (11) 
    C11 C01 C13 C00
Repertoire Explorer

NOTABLE GAMES: [what is this?]
   Paulsen vs J Owen, 1862 1-0
   Paulsen vs Morphy, 1857 1-0
   Paulsen vs Blachly, 1858
   Paulsen vs S Rosenthal, 1873 1-0
   Paulsen vs Mackenzie, 1861 1-0
   Paulsen vs Blackburne, 1861 1-0
   Paulsen vs H Schneider, 1864 1-0
   Kolisch vs Paulsen, 1861 0-1
   Paulsen vs Blackburne, 1873 1-0
   Paulsen vs Morphy, 1857 1/2-1/2

NOTABLE TOURNAMENTS: [what is this?]
   Paulsen - Kolisch (1861)
   3rd MSB Congress, Leipzig (1877)
   Anderssen - Paulsen (1877)
   Paulsen - Schwarz (1879)
   1st American Chess Congress, New York (1857)
   2nd NSB Congress, Hamburg (1869)
   1st DSB Congress, Leipzig (1879)
   5th BCA Congress, London (1862)
   Baden-Baden (1870)
   Vienna (1873)
   6th DSB Congress, Breslau (1889)
   5th DSB Congress, Frankfurt (1887)
   Vienna (1882)
   2nd DSB Congress, Berlin (1881)
   3rd DSB Congress, Nuremberg (1883)

GAME COLLECTIONS: [what is this?]
   0ZeR0's collected games volume 150 by 0ZeR0
   Vienna 1882 by suenteus po 147
   Kolisch - Paulsen (1861) by MissScarlett
   Vienna 1873 by suenteus po 147
   Vienna 1873 by JoseTigranTalFischer
   Leipzig 1877, The Anderssen-Feier by JoseTigranTalFischer
   Leipzig 1877, The Anderssen-Feier by Calli
   vaskolon's favorite games by vaskolon
   New York 1857 by JoseTigranTalFischer
   New York 1857 by suenteus po 147


Search Sacrifice Explorer for Louis Paulsen
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LOUIS PAULSEN
(born Jan-15-1833, died Aug-18-1891, 58 years old) Germany

[what is this?]

Louis Paulsen
Born: Gut Nassengrund, Germany
Died: Blomberg, Germany

Louis Paulsen was in the 1860's and 1870's among the top five or six players in the World. He was a great master of defense and gifted in his insights into opening play; many of his ideas were adopted long after his death. In tournaments, he was 2nd at New York in 1857 (after Paul Morphy), 1st at Bristol in 1861, 2nd at London in 1862 (after Adolf Anderssen), 5th at Baden-Baden in 1870, 1st at Krefeld in 1871, 1st at Leipzig in 1877, 2nd at Leipzig in 1879, and 4th= at Breslau in 1889.

In matches, he played Adolf Anderssen three times, drawing in 1862 (+3, =2, -3) and winning in 1876 (+5, =1, -4) and 1877 (+5, =1, -3). A match with Ignatz von Kolisch in 1861 was agreed drawn with Paulsen leading (+7 =18 -6). In 1864, he defeated Gustav Neumann (+5, =3, -2). He also did important analytical work with his brother Wilfried Paulsen. He died of diabetes in 1891.

"Paulsen discovered a larger number of opening ideas than any of his contemporaries. For the attack he contributed to the Scotch Game, the Goering Gambit, the Paulsen Attack, the Paulsen variations of the Vienna Game, and the Four Knights Opening. For the defence he discovered the Boleslavsky variation, the Paulsen Defence of the Kieseritzky Gambit, and the Paulsen Variation of the Sicilian Defence. He introduced the Pirc Defence and improved Black's chances in the Muzio Gambit and in several lines of the Sicilian Defence. His contributions were not confined to an odd move or improvement here and there: he also invented whole systems of play. ... Paulsen wrote no books, and none has been written on his theoretical contributions." (The Oxford Companion To Chess, by Hooper and Whyld)

notes: Louis was occasionally involved in consultation chess, see Anderssen / Louis Paulsen / Dubois, Louis Paulsen / Dr. Carl Goring / Johannes Metger or Johannes Metger / Jacques Mieses / Louis Paulsen

Wikipedia article: Louis Paulsen

Last updated: 2025-09-10 20:22:51

Try our new games table.

 page 1 of 21; games 1-25 of 522  PGN Download
Game  ResultMoves YearEvent/LocaleOpening
1. Schoenhals vs Paulsen 0-1251856Blindfold simul, 2bC21 Center Game
2. Paulsen vs Wullweber  1-0201856Blindfold simul, 2bC41 Philidor Defense
3. P Ware vs Paulsen  0-1251857Casual gameD00 Queen's Pawn Game
4. C Graef vs Paulsen  ½-½261857Casual gameC50 Giuoco Piano
5. Paulsen vs D Fiske  1-0301857Casual gameC53 Giuoco Piano
6. Paulsen vs F Perrin  ½-½641857Casual gameB44 Sicilian
7. F Graef vs Paulsen  0-1371857Blindfold simul, 2bC58 Two Knights
8. Paulsen vs B Raphael  1-0251857Blindfold simul, 3bB44 Sicilian
9. Paulsen vs T Frere 1-0211857Blindfold simul, 3bB32 Sicilian
10. Paulsen vs W Fuller 0-1541857Blindfold simul, 3bC47 Four Knights
11. S Calthrop vs Paulsen 0-13018571st American Chess Congress, New YorkB21 Sicilian, 2.f4 and 2.d4
12. S Calthrop vs Paulsen 0-12218571st American Chess Congress, New YorkC40 King's Knight Opening
13. Paulsen vs S Calthrop 1-04218571st American Chess Congress, New YorkC54 Giuoco Piano
14. Morphy vs Paulsen ½-½501857Casual gameC40 King's Knight Opening
15. Paulsen vs Morphy 0-1231857Blindfold simul, 4bC46 Three Knights
16. H Montgomery vs Paulsen 0-14718571st American Chess Congress, New YorkB21 Sicilian, 2.f4 and 2.d4
17. Paulsen vs H Montgomery 1-03118571st American Chess Congress, New YorkB01 Scandinavian
18. Morphy vs Paulsen 1-0541857Double blindfold simul 2bC40 King's Knight Opening
19. R Dodge vs Paulsen ½-½371857Blindfold simul, 5bC40 King's Knight Opening
20. T Frere vs Paulsen 0-1411857Blindfold simul, 5bA10 English
21. Paulsen vs A C Hawes 1-0311857Blindfold simul, 5bB40 Sicilian
22. Paulsen vs S Heilbuth 1-0431857Blindfold simul, 5bC44 King's Pawn Game
23. Paulsen vs C Oscanyan 1-0381857Blindfold simul, 5bC44 King's Pawn Game
24. B Raphael vs Paulsen 0-12518571st American Chess Congress, New YorkB40 Sicilian
25. Paulsen vs B Raphael ½-½4718571st American Chess Congress, New YorkC47 Four Knights
 page 1 of 21; games 1-25 of 522  PGN Download
  REFINE SEARCH:   White wins (1-0) | Black wins (0-1) | Draws (1/2-1/2) | Paulsen wins | Paulsen loses  

Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 3 OF 5 ·  Later Kibitzing>
May-26-07
Premium Chessgames Member
  chancho: Please stand up.

http://www.chessville.com/Espanol/N...

Aug-21-07  Benzol: Louis and his brother Wilfrid came from a chess playing family.

To illustrate their importance to chess theory I offer the following quotes.

"The only master to have had the slightest inkling of the correct way to handle fiachetto defences was Louis Paulsen. In this respect he was strangely ahead of his otherwise more gifted contemporaries - Anderssen, Zukertort, Steinitz, Blackburne and Tarrasch, to proceed from one end of the chronological scale to the other." - Ray Keene and George Botterill in 'The Modern Defence'.

See Max Weiss vs Paulsen, 1883 as an example.

"Paulsen discovered a larger number of opening ideas than any of his contemporaries. For the attack he contributed to the Scotch Game, the Goering Gambit, the Paulsen Attack, the Paulsen variations of the Vienna Game, and the Four Knights Opening. For the defence he discovered the Boleslavsky variation, the Paulsen Defence of the Kieseritzky Gambit, and the Paulsen Variation of the Sicilian Defence. He introduced the Pirc Defence and improved Black's chances in the Muzio Gambit and in several lines of the Sicilian Defence. His contributions were not confined to an odd move or improvement here and there: he also invented whole systems of play." "Paulsen wrote no books, and none has been written on his theoretical contributions." - David Hooper and Kenneth Whyld in 'The Oxford Companion To Chess'.

Jan-26-08  Knight13: This guy is clearly better than his brother, Wilfried Paulsen.
May-16-08  Knight13: Chessmetrics Player Profile: Louis Paulsen
Born: 1833-Jan
Died: 1891-Aug

Best World Rank: #1 (39 different months between the April 1862 rating list and the July 1878 rating list )

Highest Rating: 2710 on the October 1862 rating list, #1 in world, age 29y9m

Best Individual Performance: 2660 in Frankfurt, 1887, scoring 7.5/13 (58%) vs 2622-rated opposition

May-16-08  brankat: You are not feeling well today?
Oct-24-08  Karpova: From Jeremy P. Spinrad's "Chess Journalism: Old and New", May 2007: http://www.chesscafe.com/text/spinr...

<Another example is this reprinted letter from the 'London Globe' describing a simultaneous blindfold exhibition by Paulsen in Düsseldorf:

'New York Times', Oct 11, 1863: "Herr Paulsen, says the same letter, is a young man of 29, tall and lank, as Westphalians generally are, and with a cranium which would be the delight of phrenological science.">

Mar-02-09  Dredge Rivers: Is he any relation to Pat Paulsen?
Jul-23-09  myschkin: . . .

"The Father of Hypermodern Chess" P.1

'... Wilhelm Steinitz at least gave posthumous credit to Paulsen’s pioneer work - ...'

http://www.chessclub.org/news.php?n...

by Imre Koenig

Nov-11-09  fred lennox: Calling Paulsen the father of hypermodern depends how much you want to consider the child father of the man. There's Staunton, Anderssen, Steinitz and a not so obvious Lasker, all forshadowed hypermodern. Father is a bit misused. Establisher is more the point, though less fluent.
Jul-06-10  David2009: <Dec-17-04 and Dec-05-04 vonKrolock: <SBC: Louis Paulsen's only chess problem.> only, so surely this one: 8-2B5-8-1n2Rp2-8-3bpkpB-4N3-4K3 #2 (5+6)- In American Chess Nuts, number 334. [snip]>


click for larger view

Mate in 2. Nice problem! Thanks <SBC> and <vonK>.

Nice to see Louis Paulsen getting recognition. He was one of Blackburne's motivators to take up chess: they met in 1861 during Paulsen's Manchester tour Paulsen vs Blackburne, 1861 (first recorded Winawer?); Paulsen vs Blackburne, 1861 (blindfold simultaneous).

Jul-06-10  vonKrolock: <David2009> Merci beaucoup, aussi pour le diagramme, très gentil - back then in 2004 there was not yet such facility here
Jul-31-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  GrahamClayton: Photo of a young Paulsen:

http://www.encyclopediadubuque.org/...

Sep-09-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  GrahamClayton: A description of Paulsen from the "Hobart Town Daily Mercury", dated 17 November 1858:

"...Paulsen is described in one of the Chicago papers as tall and muscular. His face smooth, hair light and cut short, grey eyes, compact facial muscles, and a head of prodigious size. His head is said to be the largest of any man in the country. He seems to perform his astonishing feats with ease, never experiencing the least headache, and feeling quite clear throughout. He declares that he can play better blindfold chess than in the usual manner, and had he always his choice would never play otherwise. While playing, he looks remarkably calm, and yet, if a bystander feel his pulse, he would count as many as 110 and more."

Oct-03-10  DarthStapler: The Salieri to Morphy's Mozart
Jan-15-11  talisman: happy birthday louis!
Jan-13-12  Benzol: I wish someone would write a decent book on Paulsen and his games.
Jan-13-12  thomastonk: <Benzol> There is a book on Louis Paulsen, his family and his games, but it is written in German. Author: Horst Paulussen, title: "Louis Paulsen 1833 - 1891 und das Schachspiel in Lippe 1900 - 1981", year: 1982, 312 pages. It is still available and has even a low price.
Jan-13-12  Benzol: <thomastonk> That's great news. Is there an English translation available?
Jan-13-12  thomastonk: <Benzol> No translation - it's the only book by this author.
Jan-13-12  Benzol: <thomastonk> OK thanks. I might just have to start learning German. I think I'm too old now though.

:)

Jan-13-12  Calli: Iowa State Chess Association has a file with 53 more games than CG. Download at http://wwx2.tripod.com/chess.html Don't have time right now to sort it out myself.
Jan-15-12  brankat: R.I.P. master Paulsen.
Jan-15-12
Premium Chessgames Member
  Penguincw: Happy Birthday!
Dec-26-12  thomastonk: <chessgames.com> From the biography: "He defeated Ignatz Von Kolisch (+7, =18, -6) in 1861 ..." Several others have kibitzed it before, and maybe you like to change it: the match ended drawn (though the qouted result is correct).

Before the match it was agreed that nine wins would be necessary to decide it. After 17 games Paulsen was leading by 6:1. But then Kolisch won three games in a row and after 31 games the result was only 7:6 in Paulsen's favour. Here both men agreed the draw.

Jan-15-13  Kikoman: Rest In Peace Sir Louis Paulsen.
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