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The Messina Chess Club
Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2017 4:32 pm
by Gerard Killoran
This is another sad story than perhaps should be better known...
http://ilkleychess.blogspot.com/2017/11 ... nding.html
Re: The Messina Chess Club
Posted: Fri Aug 24, 2018 5:59 pm
by Brian Denman
In the game in which Messina were White, Gerard Killoran quotes the game as lasting 45 moves adopting as his source the Belfast News-Letter of 25.2.1909. However, 'The Chess Amateur' of February 1909 has a longer version of the game, stating that it took this from an article in The Field.
The extra moves were 46 a4 Rg8+ 47 Kf2 Bxa4 48 Kxf3 Bc6+ 49 Ke3 Rg3+ 50 Kd4 Bd7 51 b4 Bxh3 52 Ke5 Bd7 53 Kd6 Bc6 54 Kc7 Rg5 55 Nd3 h5 56 Bd6 h4 57 Ne5+ Rxe5 58 Bxe5 Kxe7 59 b5 Bf3. 0:1
Re: The Messina Chess Club
Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2018 3:18 pm
by Tim Harding
Brian Denman wrote: ↑Fri Aug 24, 2018 5:59 pm
In the game in which Messina were White, Gerard Killoran quotes the game as lasting 45 moves adopting as his source the Belfast News-Letter of 25.2.1909. However, 'The Chess Amateur' of February 1909 has a longer version of the game, stating that it took this from an article in The Field.
The extra moves were 46 a4 Rg8+ 47 Kf2 Bxa4 48 Kxf3 Bc6+ 49 Ke3 Rg3+ 50 Kd4 Bd7 51 b4 Bxh3 52 Ke5 Bd7 53 Kd6 Bc6 54 Kc7 Rg5 55 Nd3 h5 56 Bd6 h4 57 Ne5+ Rxe5 58 Bxe5 Kxe7 59 b5 Bf3. 0:1
Yes, Black won in 59 moves. The Field, volume 113, 16 Jan 1909 page 84, as stated in note 54 on page 403 of my book
Correspondence Chess in Britain and Ireland 1824-1987,
Re: The Messina Chess Club
Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2018 10:44 pm
by David Robertson
Never mind the chess. The staggering destruction of the
Messina earthquake is worth a read. Those who weren't buried alive in their beds in the early hours by the massive 7.1 magnitude quake, fled to the seafront for safety where, a short while later, they were drowned by a 12' tsunami. Up to 200,000 perished - including some chess players
Re: The Messina Chess Club
Posted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 9:53 am
by Tim Harding
I did read it though I knew most of that stuff anyway. Actually Michael Portillo covered this quite well in one of his Continental Railway Journeys tv shows for the BBC which included Messina.
Re: The Messina Chess Club
Posted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 12:06 pm
by John McKenna
Note that in the link provided by David R it says the tsunami was "up to 12 m (39')..." That's 12 meters (39 feet).
The Prof mixed the metric up with his imperial - a detail even lofty NASA scientists have fallen foul of.
Re: The Messina Chess Club
Posted: Tue Aug 28, 2018 4:07 pm
by David Robertson
It was the bottom 12' that drowned them!