English Chess Forum

Many people are familiar with Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1880 (or 1885) that started 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ - the notorious Jerome Gambit - and concluded 4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.O-O Nf6 10.c3 Ng4 11.h3 Bxf2+ 12.Kh1 Bf5 13.Qxa8 Qxh3+ 14.gxh3 Bxe4#

I am researching the Jerome, and am interested in discovering what other early (before WWI) games there might have been played with the opening in England.

I have run across Keeble - Cubitt, Norwich, 1886 (1-0, 17), but that is about it.

Many thanks for whatever enlightenment might prevail.

Rick Kennedy wrote:Many people are familiar with Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1880 (or 1885) that started 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ - the notorious Jerome Gambit - and concluded 4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.O-O Nf6 10.c3 Ng4 11.h3 Bxf2+ 12.Kh1 Bf5 13.Qxa8 Qxh3+ 14.gxh3 Bxe4#

I am researching the Jerome, and am interested in discovering what other early (before WWI) games there might have been played with the opening in England.

I have run across Keeble - Cubitt, Norwich, 1886 (1-0, 17), but that is about it.

Many thanks for whatever enlightenment might prevail.

I tried a search but only found games from this century! Chessgames has one from 2003 and my database has one from 2015.

Rick Kennedy wrote:Many people are familiar with Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1880 (or 1885) that started 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ - the notorious Jerome Gambit - and concluded 4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.O-O Nf6 10.c3 Ng4 11.h3 Bxf2+ 12.Kh1 Bf5 13.Qxa8 Qxh3+ 14.gxh3 Bxe4#

That was "Mr M" v Blackburne, first published in the Illustrated London News on 10 May 1884 (probably played at the Divan when Blackburne was convalescing). There is also floating around a very similar game Milner-Blackburne supposedly played in Manchester (ending 10 h3 Bxh3 11 Qxa8 Qg4 12 g3 Qxg3+ 13 Kh1 Qg2#) but I have no primary source for that.

I also found three postal games played by E. B. Lowe ca. 1879-1881 and you possibly already know Charlick-Mann played by post in Australia in 1881 (1-0, 72).

Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1880 (or 1885)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.O-O Nf6 10.c3 Ng4 11.h3 Bxf2+ 12.Kh1 Bf5 13.Qxa8 Qxh3+ 14.gxh3 Bxe4#

Milner-Blackburne supposedly played in Manchester

.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.O-O Nf6 10 h3 Bxh3 11 Qxa8 Qg4 12 g3 Qxg3+ 13 Kh1 Qg2#

Mick Norris wrote:Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1880 (or 1885]

As I said in my post last evening, it was certainly not 1885 as the game had been published in 1884.

It could have been 1880 but the ILN was fairly explicit that it was a recent game in 1884. Blackburne had fallen ill in December 1883, nearly died in February, recuperated enough to play some games at the Divan, then went to Hastings for convalescence. After a visit to the Scottish Chess Association meeting in the summer, he was still not very well and played no serious chess that year. After friends subscribed funds, he went to Australia for the winter with his son. See my biography.

Mick Norris wrote:Milner-Blackburne supposedly played in Manchester

.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.O-O Nf6 10 h3 Bxh3 11 Qxa8 Qg4 12 g3 Qxg3+ 13 Kh1 Qg2#

Source of this game still sought. Perhaps just a variant on the other game that Blackburne demonstrated at one of his lectures.

Maybe Millner was the name of the opponent in the genuine game but I have no provenance for such an individual.

The 1885 dating error is clearly mine, based upon the August 15,1885 issue of the Brooklyn Chess Chronicle, which gave the game, saying that it had been "played some months ago".

I therefore - erroniously, as it turns out - came to the conclusion that 1885 was a better date than Blackburne's own "about 1880" (from Mr. Blackburne's Games at Chess, 1899).

The Illustrated London News citation clearly moves the date to 1884; quite possibly in April or May, as reflected by Dr. Harding's research in his comprehensive Joseph Henry Blackburne A Chess Biography.

The player of the white pieces - "Mr. M" - is a puzzle. Does anyone know the basis for calling the player "Milner" or "Millner"?

Couldn't find any in Oxford Encyclopedia of Chess Games, only 1 irrelevant game in Fritz 14 database.
Probably not relevant to search but 4 videos uploaded recently by Mato Jelic on Jerome Gambit, e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lRHuIJPXLE