Britbase Updates

John Saunders · Post by **John Saunders** » Tue Feb 21, 2023 3:11 pm

Many thanks to Gerard for the latest batch of games from the 1912 BCF Congress at Richmond. I've now updated BritBase to include them...

https://www.saund.org.uk/britbase/pgn/1 ... iewer.html

... and also used the opportunity to add a few snippets of information. This reminds me that I had been planning further visits to Richmond Library (only a 20-minute bus ride away for me) to continue researching the tournament a few years ago when the pandemic intervened. I shall have to resume that task.

Gerard Killoran · Post by **Gerard Killoran** » Wed Feb 22, 2023 1:44 am

Southport 1905 and Shrewsbury 1906

John Saunders · Post by **John Saunders** » Wed Feb 22, 2023 6:58 pm

Many thanks, Gerard. I've added those games to the collection...

1905 British Championship
1906 British Championship

Gerard Killoran · Post by **Gerard Killoran** » Fri Feb 24, 2023 1:41 pm

Crystal Palace 1907 and Tunbridge Wells 1908:

[Event "BCF-ch 5th First Class A"]
[Site "Tunbridge Wells"]
[Date "1908.08.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Smith, Frank Scuse"]
[Black "Allcock, James Frederick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A41"]
[Opening "Queen's pawn game"]

1. d4 d6 2. e4 Nd7 3. Bd3 e5 4. d5 g6 5. c4 Bg7 6. Nc3 Ne7 7. Be3 O-O 8. Nge2 f5
9. exf5 gxf5 10. f4 e4 11. Bc2 Nf6 12. h3 c5 13. dxc6 bxc6 14. O-O Be6 15. b3
Qc7 16. Rc1 Rad8 17. Qe1 Kh8 18. Qf2 Rd7 19. Nd4 Bf7 20. Nce2 Qc8 21. Ng3 Rb7
22. Kh2 a6 23. Qd2 Rd8 24. Qa5 c5 25. Ndxf5 Nc6 26. Qc3 Ng4+ 27. hxg4 Bxc3 28.
Bxe4 Bd4 29. Bxc6 Qxc6 30. Nxd4 cxd4 31. Bxd4+ Kg8 32. Nf5 h5 33. g5 Kh7 34. g4
Kg6 35. Kg3 Be6 36. Nh4+ Kf7 37. f5 Bc8 38. g6+ Kg8 39. gxh5 Qe4 40. Rf4 Qd3+
41. Kg4 Re8 42. Rc3 Qe2+ 43. Rcf3 Re4 44. Bf6 Rxf4+ 45. Kxf4 Qxa2 46. h6 Qd2+
47. Re3 d5 48. Kf3 Qd1+ 49. Kg3 Qg1+ 50. Ng2 Qxe3+ 51. Nxe3 dxc4 52. h7+ Rxh7
53. gxh7+ Kxh7 54. bxc4 a5 55. Kf4 a4 56. Be7 Kg8 57. Ba3 Kf7 58. Ke5 Ba6 59. c5
Bb5 60. f6 Ke8 61. Nf5 Bc6 62. Ne7 Bb5 63. c6 Bc4 64. c7 Ba6 65. c8=Q+ Bxc8 66.
Nxc8 {Birmingham Daily Post - Tuesday 08 September 1908 p.10} 1-0

John Saunders · Post by **John Saunders** » Sat Feb 25, 2023 11:04 am

Many thanks, Gerard. I've added these games to the BritBase collection:

1907 British Championship
1908 British Championship

Christopher Kreuzer · Post by **Christopher Kreuzer** » Sat Feb 25, 2023 6:02 pm

Not sure if this is the sort of update you are after, John, but there are two mentions I can find of the New Zealand IM Benjamin Martin (apparently inactive at least in terms of FIDE rating since 2008) on Britbase, firstly in the 1993 British at Dundee where he came 14th (still an FM at that point), and secondly when he secured his third IM norm by winning the Sheffield International in 1996 (that result is included on this page.

I mention this because after working as an academic in both New Zealand and Australia and the UK at various points, he is currently back in the UK (has been for a number of years, since 2014) and is a mathematics professor in Aberdeen (as I pointed out here). I suppose (despite his inactivity) he may have scoresheets of games from his active years (and when he was playing chess in the UK in the 1990s)? He is only mentioned a couple of times on this forum (both times by you), but not sure if you knew of his later history?

EDIT: After further digging and searches, I see that "MARTIN, BENJAMIN MS" played in the 1994 Lloyds Bank Masters with fellow up-and-coming and future IM from New Zealand Russell Dive: BritBase crosstable for 1994 Lloyd Bank Masters. A report by Ben Martin is here (pp.21-24), with a report by Russell Dive on the 1994 British on pp.18-19. There are further reports by both Ben Martin and Russell Dive from the British chess scene of the 1990s (Dive was on a 15-month tour of Europe in a successful attempt to gain the IM title), including reports on the 4NCL as it was back then, the 3rd Southern Countries Chess Union International, the 'St. Peter's de Beauvoir international tourney', and a Schveningen team tournament in Newcastle (Tyneside), along with the report by Ben Martin on his participation in the 1993 British (first link below).

See the following issues of New Zealand Chess:

https://www.newzealandchess.co.nz/nzche ... 993-10.pdf (pp.26-27)
https://www.newzealandchess.co.nz/nzche ... 993-08.pdf (pp.24-25)
https://www.newzealandchess.co.nz/nzche ... 995-04.pdf (p.29)
http://www.newzealandchess.co.nz/nzches ... 995-10.pdf (pp.4-7)
https://www.newzealandchess.co.nz/nzche ... 996-06.pdf (pp.23-24)

I have no idea whether any of the games published there are in BritBase or not. Sorry!

Ian Thompson · Post by **Ian Thompson** » Sat Feb 25, 2023 6:35 pm

Just looked at this page from the previous post and I can add dates for the three Paignton Premiers' I played in that aren't there already:

Code: Select all

Year    Winner           Start Date    End Date
1994                     1994.09.04    1994.09.10
1995                     1995.09.03    1995.09.09
1999    I Thompson       1999.09.05    1999.09.11

Gerard Killoran · Post by **Gerard Killoran** » Sun Feb 26, 2023 12:08 am

Various

John Saunders · Post by **John Saunders** » Sun Feb 26, 2023 10:45 am

Many thanks to Gerard for the new batch of games, now uploaded to BritBase, also to Ian Thompson and Chris Kreuzer for information which I have added to the BritBase website.

1909 British Championship
1910 British Championship
1934 British Championship

Gerard Killoran · Post by **Gerard Killoran** » Thu Apr 13, 2023 6:28 pm

Margate 1939

John Saunders · Post by **John Saunders** » Fri Apr 14, 2023 1:30 am

Many thanks to Gerard for this latest batch of games. I have updated the file on BritBase...

1939 Margate Congress

I think the Worthing newspaper columnist made a mistake in identifying the loser of the game against Sonja Graf Stevenson as the London player John David Solomon. Published results for the congress show that her opponent was Charles Solomon of Bath.

MJMcCready · Post by **MJMcCready** » Fri Apr 14, 2023 8:26 am

Look forwards to seeing it.

Gerard Killoran · Post by **Gerard Killoran** » Fri Apr 14, 2023 11:24 am

John Saunders wrote: ↑
Fri Apr 14, 2023 1:30 am
Many thanks to Gerard for this latest batch of games. I have updated the file on BritBase...

1939 Margate Congress

I think the Worthing newspaper columnist made a mistake in identifying the loser of the game against Sonja Graf Stevenson as the London player John David Solomon. Published results for the congress show that her opponent was Charles Solomon of Bath.

Hi John, normally I would bow to your wisdom and I don't want to seem wise after the event, but there seems to be some confusion as to which Solomon was at Margate.

The Newcastle Evening Chronicle - Monday 24 April 1939 p.11 and Sydenham, Forest Hill & Penge Gazette - Friday 28 April 1939 p.12 have 'C. Solomon'.

However, the Birmingham Daily Post - Wednesday 12 April 1939 p.11 has 'Solomon (London)'. I suspect the Chess Editor of the Birmingham Daily Post was B. H. Wood (who played in a parallel event to Solomon) and in his report in Chess May 1939 p.334 he has 'J. D. Solomon'. I don't have the BCM for 1939.

So which one was it? The decision would entail the wisdom of...

John Saunders · Post by **John Saunders** » Fri Apr 14, 2023 1:48 pm

Thanks, Gerard. BCM has C Solomon in a crosstable for this event. Unfortunately I don't have the June 1939 CHESS which would have reported on this event. (However, I have the May 1939 CHESS but it doesn't have a page 334. Is your reference in the June issue?)

I'm less sure than I was that this was Charles (and not John David) Solomon so I have put a note about this in the BritBase file. Subjectively, I am beginning to wonder whether Charles Solomon was a strong enough player to have been put into Premier Reserves C, whereas I think John David Solomon certainly would have been.

Gerard Killoran · Post by **Gerard Killoran** » Fri Apr 14, 2023 2:23 pm

It was the June issue - I was mislead as the page had the date, '14th May 1939' in the top right hand corner.

Margate 1939 -2.jpeg

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