A fragment from Chester 1934

[Gerard Killoran]

[Event "BCF-chW 27th"] [Site "Chester"] [Date "1934.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Reid, Elsie"] [Black "Budge, Esme Hewetson"] [Result "1-0"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "Q7/6pp/4qp2/2p2k2/2P5/4P1P1/5PKP/8 w - - 0 1"] 1. Qd5+ Qxd5+ 2. cxd5 c4 3. Kf1 Ke5 4. e4 f5 5. f3 g5 6. g4 fxe4 7. fxe4 Kxe4 8. d6 c3 9. Ke2 {Leicester Evening Mail - Wednesday 22 August 1934 p13} 1-0

[Matt Mackenzie]

Any particular reason for posting this?

(ie more information about the players/game/event/etc)

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Maybe the name of Esme Budge is similar to that of Mary Rudge (mentioned in another thread)?

[Mick Norris]

Any particular reason for posting this?

(ie more information about the players/game/event/etc)

Presumably the British

[John Saunders]

Mick has divined right. Gerard's intention was twofold: to inform me (so that I would add the fragment to the 1934 British Championship page on BritBase - which I have done) and to provide a snippet of historical interest for the rest of the forum. Or even threefold: I'm not sure I had a forename for Miss EM Reid of Leicester previously (she also played in 1935). Now I have. Thanks, Gerard.

[Richard James]

Mick has divined right. Gerard's intention was twofold: to inform me (so that I would add the fragment to the 1934 British Championship page on BritBase - which I have done) and to provide a snippet of historical interest for the rest of the forum. Or even threefold: I'm not sure I had a forename for Miss EM Reid of Leicester previously (she also played in 1935). Now I have. Thanks, Gerard.

And in 1936 Elsie M Reid married Alfred Lenton, who shared first place in the 1934 Major Open Reserves before going on to bigger and better things later in the decade.

[John Saunders]

And in 1936 Elsie M Reid married Alfred Lenton, who shared first place in the 1934 Major Open Reserves before going on to bigger and better things later in the decade.

More useful info. Thanks, Richard.

[Richard James]

And in 1936 Elsie M Reid married Alfred Lenton, who shared first place in the 1934 Major Open Reserves before going on to bigger and better things later in the decade.

More useful info. Thanks, Richard.

As it happens I've done quite a lot of research into the Lenton family. I met Alfred a couple of times in second hand bookshops while researching The Complete Chess Addict, and, although I wasn't aware of the connection at the time, I'd played his son twice while I was studying in Leicester.

My 3rd great grandmother was Ann Lenton, and I can trace both Ann and Alfred's families back to the neighbouring villages of Kibworth Beauchamp and Smeeton Westerby. Although I can't go back far enough to find a direct connection, they were almost certainly originally from the same family, so I think it's reasonable for me to claim Alfred as a kinsman.

Elsie Margaret Reid (later Lenton) was born 20 May 1909 and died Q3 1991, both in Leicester. In the 1939 Register she was working as a Hosiery Terrot Machinist. The Terrot was a circular knitting machine first produced by Charles Terrot in 1862. You learn something new every day. In her mid 20s and from a modest background, she must have been quite different from most of the other participants, but as she scored 6/11 she was clearly a decent player. Perhaps Alfred had taught her - or maybe she taught him.

[Richard James]

Sad to say, in the first round of the World Cheese Championship, Miss Reid (Leicester) fell victim to a sacrificial attack by MN Tal.

[Gerard Killoran]

Alfred Lenton was the editor of the Leicester Evening Mail chess column.

Leicester Evening Mail - Wednesday 28 March 1934.png

In passing, can I point out that Leicester had a player with the name, 'A. E. Passant'. I hope he gave his child the initials 'E. N.'.

[Kevin Thurlow]

"Sad to say, in the first round of the World Cheese Championship, Miss Reid (Leicester) fell victim to a sacrificial attack by MN Tal."

Those of us living near Cheddar enjoyed that...

"In passing, can I point out that Leicester had a player with the name, 'A. E. Passant'. I hope he gave his child the initials 'E. N.'."

And that!

[Gerard Killoran]

A game of two halves.

Leicester Evening Mail - Wednesday 17 June 1936.png

[Event "BCF-ch 29th"] [Site "Bournemouth"] [Date "1936.06.12"] [Round "5"] [White "Lenton, Alfred"] [Black "Noel-Johnson, Reginald Charles"] [Result "1-0"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. c4 c6 3. b3 Nf6 4. Bb2 Bf5 5. g3 h6 6. Bg2 Nbd7 7. O-O e6 8. d3 Be7 9. Nc3 O-O 10. Re1 e5 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. e4 dxe4 13. dxe4 Bg6 14. Nh4 Nc5 15. Nxg6 fxg6 16. Nd5 Bd6 17. Rc1 b6 18. f4 Qb8 19. fxe5 Bxe5 20. Ne7+ Kh7 21. Nc6 Bxb2 22. Nxb8 Bxc1 23. Nc6 Ba3 24. b4 Rac8 25. bxc5 Rxc6 26. e5 Bxc5+ 27. Kh1 Re6 28. exf6 Rxe1+ 29. Qxe1 gxf6 30. Qe6 a5 31. Bd5 h5 32. Kg2 Kh6 33. Kf3 Kg7 34. Qd7+ Kh6 35. Bf7 Kg7 36. Be8+ Kh6 37. Qe6 Kg7 38. h3 Kh7 39. g4 hxg4+ 40. hxg4 Kh6 41. Qe4 Rg8 42. Bf7 Rg7 43. Qf4+ {Moves 1-30: Leicester Evening Mail - Wednesday 17 June 1936. Moves 18-43: Source: BCM, July 1936, p316} 1-0

[Richard James]

A game of two halves.



Leicester Evening Mail - Wednesday 17 June 1936.png



[Event "BCF-ch 29th"] [Site "Bournemouth"] [Date "1936.06.12"] [Round "5"] [White "Lenton, Alfred"] [Black "Noel-Johnson, Reginald Charles"] [Result "1-0"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. c4 c6 3. b3 Nf6 4. Bb2 Bf5 5. g3 h6 6. Bg2 Nbd7 7. O-O e6 8. d3 Be7 9. Nc3 O-O 10. Re1 e5 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. e4 dxe4 13. dxe4 Bg6 14. Nh4 Nc5 15. Nxg6 fxg6 16. Nd5 Bd6 17. Rc1 b6 18. f4 Qb8 19. fxe5 Bxe5 20. Ne7+ Kh7 21. Nc6 Bxb2 22. Nxb8 Bxc1 23. Nc6 Ba3 24. b4 Rac8 25. bxc5 Rxc6 26. e5 Bxc5+ 27. Kh1 Re6 28. exf6 Rxe1+ 29. Qxe1 gxf6 30. Qe6 a5 31. Bd5 h5 32. Kg2 Kh6 33. Kf3 Kg7 34. Qd7+ Kh6 35. Bf7 Kg7 36. Be8+ Kh6 37. Qe6 Kg7 38. h3 Kh7 39. g4 hxg4+ 40. hxg4 Kh6 41. Qe4 Rg8 42. Bf7 Rg7 43. Qf4+ {Moves 1-30: Leicester Evening Mail - Wednesday 17 June 1936. Moves 18-43: Source: BCM, July 1936, p316} 1-0

Many thanks, Gerard. You've made my life complete! Up to now I'd only seen the end of this game. (Just going through Alf Lenton's columns but hadn't reached this game yet.

While Lenton was a kinsman of my father, one of Noel-Johnson's brothers married a fourth cousin of my mother.

[John Saunders]

Two pieces of a jigsaw neatly slotted together. Duly added to BritBase. Many thanks, Gerard.

[Gerard Killoran]

Alfred Lenton comes up trumps again with two games from Brighton 1938

[Event "GBR-ch 31st"] [Site "Brighton, Royal Pavilion"] [Date "1938.08.09"] [Round "2"] [White "Mallison, Harold Vincent"] [Black "Lenton, Alfred"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. Bd3 Nc6 5. c3 Nf6 6. Bf4 Bg4 7. Nf3 e6 8. Qb3 Qc8 9. Nbd2 Be7 10. O-O O-O 11. h3 Bh5 12. Rae1 a6 13. Ne5 b5 14. g4 Bg6 15. Nxg6 hxg6 16. Nf3 Nd7 17. Kg2 Nb6 18. h4 Qd8 19. Rh1 Bd6 20. Be5 Bxe5 21. Nxe5 Nxe5 22. Rxe5 Nc4 23. Bxc4 bxc4 24. Qc2 Qb6 25. f4 Rab8 26. Re2 Qd6 27. Rf2 f5 28. g5 Kf7 29. Kg3 Rh8 30. Rfh2 Rh5 31. Qa4 Rb5 {Leicester Evening Mail - Wednesday 10 August 1938 p13} 1/2-1/2

[Event "GBR-ch 31st"] [Site "Brighton, Royal Pavilion"] [Date "1938.08.19"] [Round "11"] [White "Thomas, George Alan"] [Black "Alexander, C Hugh O'D"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. Bg5 Ne4 4. Bh4 Nd7 5. e3 g6 6. Bd3 Bg7 7. c4 c6 8. O-O O-O 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Qb3 Ndf6 11. Nc3 Nxc3 12. bxc3 b6 13. a4 Be6 14. Qa3 Qd6 15. Qxd6 exd6 16. Ng5 Bd7 17. c4 dxc4 18. Bxc4 h6 19. Nf3 g5 20. Bg3 Ne4 21. Rfc1 Nxg3 22. hxg3 Rfc8 23. Nd2 Bf6 24. Kf1 Kf8 25. Ke2 Rc7 26. Bb5 Rxc1 27. Rxc1 Rc8 28. Rxc8+ Bxc8 29. Ne4 Be7 30. Nc3 Bb7 31. e4 d5 32. exd5 Bb4 33. Na2 Ba5 34. Bc6 Ba6+ {Leicester Evening Mail - Wednesday 24 August 1938 p13} 1/2-1/2