English Chess Forum

Will there be a Battle of Waterloo memorial tournament this year? (I suppose Agincourt is too much to expect.)

They could get ABBA to present the prizes!

I guess that using Battle of Waterloo chess sets would effectively randomise results, though the top players would do better to ignore the pieces and use blindfold technique.

Actually, I think there should be more international fixtures outside the Olympiad. We don't seem to get many nowadays. I remember England v Holland being a regular ages ago. 1815 would be an ideal occasion for an England (Britain, UK?) v France match. The problem, I suppose, is that GMs want payment. If selected, I would pay my board fee.

Three of my relations fought in the Battle of Waterloo.

Will that qualify me for a free entry?

Richard James wrote:Three of my relations fought in the Battle of Waterloo.

Will that qualify me for a free entry?

Depends which side they were on

http://www.hinckleytimes.net/news/local ... oo-7444470

They were on our side. Paul and Sarah Seaton contacted me through genealogy websites a few years ago to tell me about this.

Richard James said:

Three of my relations fought in the Battle of Waterloo.

Will that qualify me for a free entry?

Yes, but only if you send in their medals with the entry form.

Paul Habershon >Actually, I think there should be more international fixtures outside the Olympiad. We don't seem to get many nowadays.<

Paul, that is a very odd comment. You have played in several team tournaments for England in Senior chess. There are also junior and women's ones and European team championships. There are also more localised inter-club events that receive little publicity.

Stewart Reuben wrote:Paul Habershon >Actually, I think there should be more international fixtures outside the Olympiad. We don't seem to get many nowadays.<

Paul, that is a very odd comment. You have played in several team tournaments for England in Senior chess. There are also junior and women's ones and European team championships. There are also more localised inter-club events that receive little publicity.

Stewart, I was thinking mainly about full international matches, such as you would get in football, rugby and cricket, involving the very best players from the two countries involved. I admit that the Chess Olympiad and European Championships are probably enough for some. Indeed, I suppose in football the World Cup and European Championship are the important competitions and the other internationals are merely 'friendlies' where managers may well experiment in preparation for the cup competitions. I still think it would be good to have, say, a regular annual chess match against France. The teams would be fairly evenly matched, so I would guess without research.

In 1973 I took part in a Battle of Britain competition. The players' homes were used for some of the games. Although that meant that playing conditions could be variable, the event appealed to the grass roots and brought back to the game people who didn't usually play chess, which I think is good.

Paul Habershon wrote:Actually, I think there should be more international fixtures outside the Olympiad. We don't seem to get many nowadays. I remember England v Holland being a regular ages ago. 1815 would be an ideal occasion for an England (Britain, UK?) v France match.

To properly reflect the actual Waterloo situation you'd have to include Prussia as well.

I've been trying to figure out a suitable line-up to commemorate Gallipoli (the centenary of which this year is a big deal in this part of the world). Turkey vs NZ and Australia might be best. I don't forget Britain's major role in that campaign, but adding them in as well might make it a bit of a mismatch.

There's a pub in Twickenham called the Prince Blucher. I guess you could hold the tournament there if you wanted to include Prussia.

There's a frequent train service from Waterloo...

But would we be allowed to play the French Defence?

A possible venue might be Wellington College, whose history is deeply steeped in Waterloo. It is already used for other chess activities.

John Townsend wrote:In 1973 I took part in a Battle of Britain competition. The players' homes were used for some of the games. Although that meant that playing conditions could be variable, the event appealed to the grass roots and brought back to the game people who didn't usually play chess, which I think is good.

This wasn't a one off tournament because I played in it in 1979. As I recall, games had to be played within Greater London unless mutually agreed otherwise. I also think it was a knockout event (or was that just for the later stages?).

Yes, the Battle of Britain competition was repeated. I think David Pritchard, an R.A.F. man, was its president.