English-resident strong chess players

Historical knowledge and information regarding our great game.
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Matt Mackenzie
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Matt Mackenzie » Mon Apr 18, 2011 2:39 pm

Also the originally Mexican player Adrian Conde, active during the inter-war years. Master strength despite being blind.
"Set up your attacks so that when the fire is out, it isn't out!" (H N Pillsbury)

Tim Harding
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Tim Harding » Mon Apr 18, 2011 4:50 pm

I tend to think this project will stray from relevance if we start to include people who were essentially British but "accidentally" happened to be born abroad because of their parents being away for a few years. Sir George Thomas and Louisa Fagan (nee Ballard, of a well-known London chess family) would, among others, come into that category for exclusion.
Re my list yesterday, I omitted quite an important person from class a: Josef Kling in the mid-19th century. In the early 1960s in Abingdon chess club there was a strong tactician called Saczak (or similar) who I think won the Oxfordshire championship; I am not sure where he was from originally. He used to work at the MG car factory in the town.
In class d (the temporary residents) there should also be Popert (who played a lot with Staunton in 1841). There was a (German?) problem composer called Kuiper giving chess lessons in England around 1846 (mentioned a lot that year in “Bell’s Life in London”); does anyone know more about him?
In class d, since a Mexican has been mentioned, I could add Vicente Maria Norberto Portilla (1849-74) who was a student at Cambridge University and played some postal chess while there, but he died young in New York.
Also in class d, there were a couple of Greek players who were merchants in Manchester in the 1850s, as Alan Smith has pointed out to me: D. F. Ralli (a strong amateur) and A. Eumorphopoulo, but they seem to have gone back abroad after a while. Ralli certainly did. They are mentioned in my book 'Correspondence Chess in Britain and Ireland 1824-1987'. Looking through the index of that, I am reminded that Lt. Maxime Chanvet of the Free French withdrew from the 1942-3 British CC Championship after two wins; does anyone know if he was sent on active service or parachuted into France by SOE? Sigi Landschaft played in the 1964-5 championship; was he an immigrant?
Slade Milan is definitely the most prominent immigrant in the annals of British correspondence chess, but Fazekas also took up postal play successfully after Stammwitz (the villain of the piece in the 1940s and 1950s, as I show) excluded him from the Olympiad team although he was British Champion. After the war Canada, Australia, and even New Zealand ‘acquired’ several masters from the ranks of displaced persons, who subsequently earned ICCF titles.
I don't know about immigrant problemists.
Tim Harding
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Tim Harding
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Tim Harding » Sat Jun 11, 2011 11:53 pm

Further to my last posting on this subject, I omitted the Frenchman Georges Emile Barbier (1844-95) who for many years was active in Scottish chess, and an obituary appeared in BCM.
Can anybody from Berkshire or Oxfordshire tell me more about Saczak whom I mentioned in my 18 April posting?
Tim Harding
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Author of 'Steinitz in London,' British Chess Literature to 1914', 'Joseph Henry Blackburne: A Chess Biography', and 'Eminent Victorian Chess Players'
http://www.chessmail.com

LozCooper

Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by LozCooper » Sun Jun 12, 2011 9:54 am

If anyone knows of any English resident, strong or otherwise, players looking to play at the 2nd Big Slick International from 25th June - 3rd July in Purley/Croydon I'd love to hear from them. :D

Paul Bielby
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Paul Bielby » Sun Jun 12, 2011 10:06 am

I've only just now come across this thread.

One to add to your list, must be Louis Zollner (1854-1945?). He was a Dane who came to England (Manchester) in his teens to learn his business. Afterwards he moved to Newcastle, where he lived till his death during the Second World War. He became Danish and Icelandic consul in that City. In 1930 he became the founding President of the Northumberland Chess Association (A post I currently have the honour to occupy!). In his long chess life he played against many of the leading players from Blackburne to Alekhine (whom he beat in 1938, aged 84, in a simultaneous display). In 1938 too, an article in CHESS magazine devoted several pages to his life and his games. One story mentioned is that he won a race from Southampton to Newcastle on a bicycle aganst a friend making the same journey on a steam yacht (a feat that not many modern chess players would care to try!)

He presented the NCA with the Zollner Trophy - a solid silver statuette of a Viking. We still play for it in the county championship - a trophy so valuable now that it is only taken out of its bank vault on rare occasions at our AGMs. Few of the incomers can have influenced chess in Britain over such a long period.

Richard James
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Richard James » Sun Jun 12, 2011 10:21 am

Paul Bielby wrote:I've only just now come across this thread.

One to add to your list, must be Louis Zollner (1854-1945?). He was a Dane who came to England (Manchester) in his teens to learn his business. Afterwards he moved to Newcastle, where he lived till his death during the Second World War. He became Danish and Icelandic consul in that City. In 1930 he became the founding President of the Northumberland Chess Association (A post I currently have the honour to occupy!). In his long chess life he played against many of the leading players from Blackburne to Alekhine (whom he beat in 1938, aged 84, in a simultaneous display). In 1938 too, an article in CHESS magazine devoted several pages to his life and his games. One story mentioned is that he won a race from Southampton to Newcastle on a bicycle aganst a friend making the same journey on a steam yacht (a feat that not many modern chess players would care to try!)

He presented the NCA with the Zollner Trophy - a solid silver statuette of a Viking. We still play for it in the county championship - a trophy so valuable now that it is only taken out of its bank vault on rare occasions at our AGMs. Few of the incomers can have influenced chess in Britain over such a long period.
Andrews Newspaper Index Cards 1790-1976 (Deaths) wrote:On Jan. 20 1945, at Lyndhurst, Whitley Bay, Louis Zollner K.D., I.F.St.O., aged 90, former Danish and Icelandic consul at Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Colin Patterson
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Colin Patterson » Sun Jun 12, 2011 4:03 pm

Zollner was born 17.04.1854 in Herlev, Denmark. Gaige confirms his death details as those given by Richard above. It seems an obituary appeared in the 1945 BCM pp.62-63.

Jon D'Souza-Eva

Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Jon D'Souza-Eva » Sun Jun 12, 2011 11:26 pm

Tim Harding wrote:Can anybody from Berkshire or Oxfordshire tell me more about Saczak whom I mentioned in my 18 April posting?
I found a mention of him in the 1958/1959 SCCU Bulletin (downloadable from http://www.sccu.ndo.co.uk/old.htm). On page 23 he is listed as drawing on board 8 in a match between Sussex and Oxfordshire. His name is given as "S. Saczak". His Sussex opponent was "G. F. Ramsey".

I asked the Oxfordshire County Captain from the 1960s about Mr Saczak and he confirmed that he was indeed County Champion sometime in the early 1960s.

Lots of other interesting snippets in that document.

Paul McKeown
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Paul McKeown » Sun Jun 12, 2011 11:30 pm

Ian Rogers, wasn't he an English resident for a while?

Also Ken Smith, of Smith-Morra Gambit fame, was stationed in the UK with the US Air Force in the 1950s and won a number of tournaments.

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Christopher Kreuzer
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Christopher Kreuzer » Mon Jun 13, 2011 8:54 pm

Paul Bielby wrote:I've only just now come across this thread.

One to add to your list, must be Louis Zollner (1854-1945?). He was a Dane who came to England (Manchester) in his teens to learn his business. Afterwards he moved to Newcastle, where he lived till his death during the Second World War. He became Danish and Icelandic consul in that City. In 1930 he became the founding President of the Northumberland Chess Association (A post I currently have the honour to occupy!). In his long chess life he played against many of the leading players from Blackburne to Alekhine (whom he beat in 1938, aged 84, in a simultaneous display). In 1938 too, an article in CHESS magazine devoted several pages to his life and his games. One story mentioned is that he won a race from Southampton to Newcastle on a bicycle aganst a friend making the same journey on a steam yacht (a feat that not many modern chess players would care to try!)

He presented the NCA with the Zollner Trophy - a solid silver statuette of a Viking. We still play for it in the county championship - a trophy so valuable now that it is only taken out of its bank vault on rare occasions at our AGMs. Few of the incomers can have influenced chess in Britain over such a long period.
That's a great addition to the list! I'm currently trying to work out what his postnomials mean (from the obituary snippet posted elsewhere in this thread): "K.D., I.F.St.O". I think the latter is something "St Olav", but am drawing a blank on both at the moment (the closest I can get is "Order of the Icelandic Falcon" and the "Order of St Olav").

I did find a page on him on the Icelandic-language version of Wikipedia (which can be plugged into a translation engine for some idea of what is being said there, if you don't know that language):

http://is.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Z%C3%B6llner

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Christopher Kreuzer
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Christopher Kreuzer » Tue Jun 14, 2011 5:27 pm

Found out a bit more about Zollner.

He had a chess lecture from 1891 published (16 pages):

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_E1AAAAAYAAJ

Wonder if anyone has seen a copy of that?

His postnomials are identified in 'Burke's genealogical and heraldic history of the landed gentry':

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=SGdmAAAAMAAJ

Commander of the Order of the Dannebrog (Denmark)
Knight of the Order of St Olav (Norway)
Grand Knight's Star of the Order of the Falcon (Iceland)

Apparently his first name was Laurence (though clearly not used).

Gordon Cadden
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Gordon Cadden » Wed Jun 15, 2011 2:42 pm

Good detective work. Not listed in any Bibliography. A copy is held at the Koninklijke Bibliotheek Den Haag, and the John G. White Collection, Cleveland, Ohio.
Does anyone in the UK have a copy of Louis Zollners lecture on the Principles of Chess ?

John Moore
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by John Moore » Wed Jun 15, 2011 7:44 pm

I know it's Scottish - and if I have missed it earlier, I apologise - but Max Pavey won the Scottish Championship in, I think, 1939. He was an American- who died early (in 1957?)

Alex McFarlane
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Alex McFarlane » Wed Jun 15, 2011 7:53 pm

For some further info on Max Pavey

http://www.chessscotland.com/history/1939champ.htm

Martin Saczak
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Re: English-resident strong chess players

Post by Martin Saczak » Thu Jul 28, 2011 6:09 pm

Jon D'Souza-Eva wrote:
Tim Harding wrote:Can anybody from Berkshire or Oxfordshire tell me more about Saczak whom I mentioned in my 18 April posting?
I found a mention of him in the 1958/1959 SCCU Bulletin (downloadable from http://www.sccu.ndo.co.uk/old.htm). On page 23 he is listed as drawing on board 8 in a match between Sussex and Oxfordshire. His name is given as "S. Saczak". His Sussex opponent was "G. F. Ramsey".

I asked the Oxfordshire County Captain from the 1960s about Mr Saczak and he confirmed that he was indeed County Champion sometime in the early 1960s.

-----

In response to your question on S Saczak, I can offer the following information on my father, Stefan. He was born in Canada on 5th Feb 1922 but being of Ukrainian descent was raised in the Ukraine, coming to England after the 2nd World War. Living in the Oxford area, he worked at the pressed steel factory in Cowley until his retirement. He joined Oxford City Chess Club in the early 1950s, and was Oxford City chess champion on at least one occasion (to this day he still retains his 1952/53 membership card). He left Oxford City Chess Club to play for Abingdon.

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