How To Play Chess

Two players, sixty-four squares, thirty-two pieces. Chess asks almost nothing to begin and rewards a lifetime of attention. A child can learn the moves in an afternoon; a grandmaster can spend decades short of mastering them.

The game we play today took shape slowly. Chess is believed to have originated in India during the Gupta Empire, around the 6th century AD, in a form called Chaturanga. The modern moves of the queen and bishop were largely standardised in Europe during the late 15th century.

A good set makes the learning easier. The chess pieces we craft are turned from FSC-certified timber and, where a set is intended for younger players, tested to UKCA and CE safety standards. If you are choosing a first board, our guide to the best chess sets for beginners is a sensible place to start.

What You Need To Play Chess

You need two things: a board and a full set of pieces. A standard chess board consists of 64 squares arranged in an 8×8 grid, alternating between light and dark colours. Each player begins with 16 pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns.

The pieces themselves follow a design you will recognise from every tournament hall in the world. The Staunton chess piece design, still the standard tournament shape today, was first marketed in 1849 and named after the English chess master Howard Staunton. We produced those first Staunton sets that same year, from a design by Nathaniel Cook registered on 1 March 1849.

For learning, weighted pieces that sit firmly and a board with clearly contrasting squares matter more than anything ornate. You can see the full range across our chess sets, from practical learning boards to collector's pieces such as the 1855 Edition 4" Chess Pieces in a mahogany casket.

Chess also sits happily alongside the older games it grew up with. If you are building a home shelf of things to play without a screen, our traditional games and our board games keep good company with a chess set.

For a child taking their first steps, a smaller, sturdier set is often the wiser choice. Our notes on the best first chess set for children cover what to look for.

How To Set Up A Chess Board

Set the board so that each player has a light-coloured square in their nearest right-hand corner. "Light on right" is the simplest way to remember it. If the dark square is on your right, turn the board a quarter turn.

The pawns come first. Place all eight along the second row in front of you, forming a wall across the board. They protect the more valuable pieces waiting behind.

Now the back row, from the corners inward. Rooks go in the two corners. Beside each rook stands a knight, and beside each knight a bishop. That leaves the two central squares for the king and queen.

The queen takes the square matching her own colour: the white queen on a light square, the black queen on a dark square. "Queen on her colour" settles the last piece of doubt. The king then fills the square next to her.

When both sides are set up, the board should look symmetrical, with each king facing the opposing king and each queen facing the opposing queen. White always moves first.

It helps to set the board up a few times before your first game, simply to fix the pattern in your memory. Children take to this quickly, and the physical routine of placing each piece is part of the pleasure. There is more on that kind of hands-on, unhurried play in our piece on 230 years of screen-free play.

Once set, resist the temptation to rush. A calm first look at the whole board is worth more than a hasty opening move.

How Each Chess Piece Moves

Each piece moves in its own way, and learning the six patterns is the real gateway to the game.

The pawn moves straight forward one square, or two squares on its first move only. It captures differently, taking a piece diagonally forward. This small quirk catches out many beginners in their first games.

The rook moves in straight lines, along any number of empty squares horizontally or vertically. The bishop moves diagonally, again as far as the path is clear, and each bishop stays on its starting colour for the whole game.

The queen combines the two: she moves any number of squares in a straight line or a diagonal, which makes her the most powerful piece on the board. The king moves the same directions but only one square at a time.

The knight is the odd one out. It moves in an L-shape, two squares one way and one square across, and it is the only piece allowed to jump over others. Its short, angular hop takes the longest to feel natural.

There are two special moves worth knowing early. Castling lets the king and a rook move together in one turn, tucking the king into safety. "En passant" is a particular pawn capture that occasionally arises. Both can wait until the basic moves are comfortable.

Handling well-weighted pieces helps the moves stick, which is why the pieces across our chess sets are turned to sit steadily in the hand. Practising the knight's leap over a quiet half-hour is exactly the kind of task suited to our notes on 30-minute independent play activities.

How To Win A Game Of Chess

The object of chess is checkmate. You win by trapping your opponent's king so that it is under attack and has no legal way to escape.

When a king is attacked, it is said to be "in check". The player in check must respond at once: move the king to safety, block the attack, or capture the attacking piece. As long as one of those replies exists, the game continues.

Checkmate arrives when the king is in check and none of those replies is possible. No further move is needed and no piece is actually captured; the game simply ends. This is the moment every game builds towards.

Not every game ends in a win. If a player has no legal move but is not in check, the result is a stalemate, and the game is drawn. Games can also be drawn by agreement, by repetition of position, or when too little material remains to force a checkmate.

The pursuit of checkmate has a long formal history. The World Chess Championship has been held since 1886, when Wilhelm Steinitz was recognised as the first official World Chess Champion after defeating Johannes Zukertort. The governing body, FIDE, was later founded in Paris in 1924.

For a first game, aim simply to keep your own king safe while looking for chances against your opponent's. Winning will follow from good habits rather than from any single clever trick. A game or two a day, played on a board you enjoy from our chess sets, teaches more than any lecture.

Basic Chess Strategy For Beginners

A few plain ideas will carry a beginner a long way. The first is to control the centre. Pieces placed in or aimed at the four central squares reach more of the board and give you more options.

Second, develop your pieces early. Bring your knights and bishops off the back row in the opening moves rather than shuffling the same pawn repeatedly. A piece still on its starting square is a piece not yet helping you.

Third, keep your king safe. Castling early tucks the king behind a wall of pawns and connects your rooks. Many beginner games are lost simply because the king was left exposed in the centre.

Fourth, think before you capture. Ask what your opponent can do in reply to any move you are considering. A free piece is rarely as free as it looks, and the habit of checking for threats prevents most early blunders.

It also helps to value the pieces roughly. The queen is worth the most, then the rooks, then bishops and knights, with pawns the least in isolation. Trading a knight for a queen is almost always a good bargain; the reverse rarely is.

Above all, play often. Progress in chess comes from many quiet games rather than from memorising openings. Set aside a regular half-hour, keep the set within easy reach, and let the patterns settle over weeks.

Chess belongs to a wider tradition of games that reward patience and attention, sitting well alongside our board games, our wooden toys, and even a chess table brought out for screen-free garden play on a fine day.

Frequently Asked Questions About How To Play Chess

How do you play chess for beginners?

Chess is a two-player strategy game played on a standard board of 64 squares arranged in an 8×8 grid, alternating between light and dark colours. Each player begins with 16 pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns. Players take turns moving one piece per turn, following each piece's specific movement rules. The aim is to trap the opponent's king so it cannot escape — a position called checkmate. Jaques of London has crafted chess sets since 1849, making them an ideal choice for beginners learning the game.

What are the rules of chess?

Chess is governed by the FIDE Laws of Chess, overseen by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs, founded in Paris in 1924. Each player controls 16 pieces and moves alternately, with White moving first. A piece is captured by moving onto its square and removing it from the board. Special rules include castling, en passant, and pawn promotion. A player whose king is under attack is in check and must resolve it immediately. If the king cannot escape capture, that is checkmate and the game ends. Stalemate, where a player has no legal move but is not in check, results in a draw.

How do the chess pieces move?

Each of the six chess pieces moves differently. The king moves one square in any direction. The queen — the most powerful piece — moves any number of squares diagonally, horizontally, or vertically. Rooks move any number of squares horizontally or vertically. Bishops move any number of squares diagonally, each remaining on its original colour. Knights move in an 'L' shape: two squares in one direction and one square perpendicular, and are the only pieces that jump over others. Pawns move forward one square, or two from their starting position, and capture diagonally one square ahead.

How do you win at chess?

You win at chess by delivering checkmate — placing your opponent's king under attack with no legal escape. This means the king cannot move to a safe square, no piece can block the attack, and the attacking piece cannot be captured. The World Chess Championship has been contested since 1886, when Wilhelm Steinitz became the first recognised World Champion, demonstrating the game's deep competitive tradition. Games can also end in a draw through stalemate, agreement, insufficient material, or repetition. Victory rewards strategic planning, tactical awareness, and understanding of each piece's strengths throughout all phases of the game.

How many players do you need to play chess?

Chess is played between exactly two players. One player controls the white pieces and the other controls the black pieces, with White always moving first. Each player manages 16 pieces independently, taking turns to move one piece per turn. There are no team variants in standard chess as governed by FIDE, the international chess governing body founded in Paris in 1924. Variants such as four-player chess exist informally, but standard chess — as played in tournaments and on Jaques of London's classic Staunton sets — is strictly a two-player game.

What does checkmate mean in chess?

Checkmate occurs when a player's king is under direct attack — in check — and there is no legal move to escape. The king cannot move to a safe square, no friendly piece can block the attack, and the attacking piece cannot be captured. Checkmate immediately ends the game; the player whose king is checkmated loses. The term derives from the Persian phrase 'shah mat', meaning the king is helpless. Delivering checkmate is the sole objective of chess, and all strategy throughout the game is ultimately directed towards achieving or preventing this decisive outcome.

How do you set up a chess board?

Place the board so each player has a light-coloured square in the bottom-right corner. Along the back rank, position rooks in the corners, knights next to them, then bishops. The queen goes on her own colour — the white queen on a light square, the black queen on a dark square — with the king on the remaining central square. Place all eight pawns on the second rank in front of these pieces. Each player begins with 16 pieces in total: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns, as specified by the FIDE Laws of Chess.

What is castling in chess?

Castling is a special move involving the king and a rook, and is the only occasion when two pieces move simultaneously. The king moves two squares towards a rook, and that rook moves to the square the king crossed. Castling is only permitted if neither piece has previously moved, no squares between them are occupied, the king is not currently in check, and the king does not pass through or land on an attacked square. It can be performed on either the kingside or queenside and serves both to safeguard the king and bring the rook into active play.

Can a pawn move backwards in chess?

No, a pawn cannot move backwards in chess. Pawns move strictly forward — one square at a time, or optionally two squares from their starting position on their very first move. Pawns capture diagonally one square forward, and via the special 'en passant' rule under specific circumstances. A pawn can never retreat. However, if a pawn reaches the opponent's back rank — the eighth rank for White or the first for Black — it must be promoted, replacing it with a queen, rook, bishop, or knight of the same colour, giving the pawn its only transformation in the game.

How long does a game of chess take?

The duration of a chess game varies considerably depending on the time control agreed upon. Informal games between beginners may last 20 to 60 minutes, whilst classical tournament games, such as those played under FIDE World Championship conditions, can last up to seven hours with each player given several hours on the clock. Rapid chess typically lasts 15 to 60 minutes per game, and blitz chess under ten minutes. Some games end quickly if a player achieves early checkmate, whilst evenly matched, complex games naturally extend longer. Time controls are always agreed or set before play begins.