- CHESMAYNE

Marino-1                                                                        “Have I Told U Lately”

 

Bishop

01 See Major Pieces. Ecclesiastical office, pastor, presbyter, overseer, supervising minister. Barbara Harris was the first female appointed BS of a Massachusetts Episcopal Church in 1989.   The BS has its origins in the Indian Elephant.   In 798 Harun al-Raschid, the Caliph of Baghdad, sent ambassadors and a gift of a white elephant to Charlemagne (Carolus Magnus, Charles the Great).   As members of the clergy they enjoy certain civil rights such as the right to conduct weddings, immunity from jury service and even the benefit of certain charges on land (tithes). 

                     

They bear the title ‘Your Eminence’ and in recognition of this fact many kiss the jeweled ring that is placed on their right hand as an indication of their office.   An official inscription, part of a royal decree exempting the priests of Sneferu in Egypt from paying taxes was issued in the reign of KI Pepi-I of the 6^th Dynasty.  The Catholic Church has 4,500+ BSs + VCs.  Prelate.  Vaik: of a benefice, office or position: to become or fall vacant.  

     Bishops.  From the ‘Charlemagne’ pieces.  Ivory.   Italy - end of the 11^th Century.  Paris Cabinet des médailles. 

02 Illtyd: 6^th century Abbot of Llanwit Major and the most learned Briton of his day.  His disciples demanded the old druidic right to exemption from taxes. 

03 Elder (Old Testament): hereditary head of a household - an office which depended on respect rather than statutory authority.   In Moses’ day, elders were chosen by himself and he established government by aristocracy.  Later they formed the Sanhedrin.   The Church of England has 50+ BSs. 

                

04 New Testament: Elder, Bishop, Presbyter (interchangeable terms).   In the 2^nd century orders emerged.   Elders are mentioned in the book of Revelation.   Bible: hippopotamus (Job). 

05 Ganesha is the elephant-headed god of Hinduism and means ‘Lord of hosts’ (gana) and is revered as the remover of obstacles, the Lord of beginnings, and the Lord of learning who broke off his tusk to write down the epic Mahabharata.   Ganesha has two wives ‘achievement’ and ‘intelligence’. 

06 The word ‘copt’ comes from the Greek word ‘Aigyptos’ and means Egypt.  The Coptic church has its own patriarch (BS/Pope). 

Below: this time A-BS on cell/square F02 is defending A-QU on cell B06.   This is ++CM.    Don’t be nervous of bringing your QU near to the enemy KI.   Just make sure your move is safe before you implement it on the chessboard. 

07 On Level-1 each player starts the game with BS1 and BS2 (a dark and light BS).  Because a BS moves diagonally they stay on either the light (XL) or dark (XD) cells throughout the game.   They are powerful attacking MPs when they are not blocked in, so you will find it useful to bring them out early.   They are sometimes referred to as the ‘Bishop-pair’ (the others being the KT-pair and the RO-pair).   The two BSs working in tandem can dominate the whole chessboard and to your advantage to keep them on the board until you are well into a game of chess.   Avoid trapping your BSs behind mps that have become fixed in their positions.   A BS that works well with the mps (PAs, GUs etc) is called a ‘good-BS’.   A BS that is trapped by PAs (lacking mobility) is called a ‘bad-BS’.   Placed at the center of a clear board the BS commands 13 cells (D-Array).  

Bishop symbols/syntax

 

01	Good and bad bishops
02	good bishops: active bishop used for attack
03	Euwe - Thomas, 1934
04	Stahlberg-Trifunovich, 1951
05	Bad bishops
06	[Event "bad bishops"][Site "-"][Date "1956.??.??"][Round "?"]
07	[White "barden"][Black "rossolimo"][Result "1-0"]
08	bad bishop?
09	Botvinnik-Kann, 1939
10	The two bishops
11	bishops: two bishops in ending
12	Ditmas,H - Regis,D (March, 1979)
13	bishops: two bishops in open middlegame
14	Nunn - Tal (Wijk Ann Zee, 1982)
15	bishops: two bishops in a semi-open or closed middlegame
16	Bronstein D - Golombek H (Moscow) [E43] 1956
17	Rubinstein - Nimzovitch (Berlin, 1928)
18	the two bishops in a semi-open endgame
19	[Event "Two Bishops?"][Site ""][Date "1873.??.??"][Round "?"]
20	[White "Rosenthal"][Black "Steinitz "][Result "0-1"]
21	Englisch-Steinitz

Bishop Sacrifice

Place the MPs/mps on the board as follows: 

 

Above: traditional figurine graphics

The XY notation is used on the left (below).   The Chesmayne acentric notation is indicated on the right (below). 

01A  BS2-D03*H07-PA1+CH - BS2-B02*D14-PA1+CH 

01B  KI-G08*H07-BS2 - KI-D16*D14-BS2

02A  KT2-F03/G05+CH - KT2-B04/C09+CH 

02B  KI-H07/H06 - KI-D14/D13

03A  QU1-D01/G04 - QU1-D04/C08 

03B  RO1-F08/H08 - RO1-D17/D15

04A  KT2-G05/E06-PA5+DC - KT2-C09*B08-PA5+DC 

04B  KI-H06/H07 - KI-D13/D14

05A  QU1-G04*G07-PA2++CM - QU1-C08*C11-PA2++CM 

05B  ++WN for :A ++LS for :B

Set-up the board and play through the moves as shown above.   Notice in the above example on move 04A that A-BS1 gives +DC (discovered) to B-KI. 

                       The BS may move any number of cells diagonally. 

                                                         

Move and capture

The BS can move any number of cells in a diagonal direction and within cells of the same colour. A player starts a game with two  Bishops, BS1 and BS2.		BSs cannot move horizontally or vertically as shown with red marks. Players should have two Bishops: BS1 and BS2, one for the light cells (XL) and one for the dark cells (XD).

 

The BS is blocked by a friendly piece, a RO.  Here the BS cannot move to a cell occupied by the RO nor the cells that lie beyond: A08 and B07.		The BS can capture the KT by removing him from the board and placing itself on the cell G02 but the BS cannot move to cell H01 (red mark).

 ‘It was a blonde.  A blonde to make a BS kick a hole in a stained glass window’.  (Farewell, My Lovely, 1940). 

                      

                                                                                                          Actress: Charlize Theron 

08 In India a white elephant is a royal symbol (KI of the forest animals).   Ganesha is one of the most popular gods in India - the god of scribes who is invoked at the beginning of books - god of journeys, enterprises, wedding negotiations, practical wisdom, god of the sciences and skills, writing, and remover of obstacles.   In antiquity people regarded the elephant as the wisest of all the animals because they live the longest - their huge size indicating their noble birth. 

09 Bishop - symbol: BS1 and BS2. 

10 MP which moves along the diagonals.   On Level-1 two of these MPs are used and are placed on $C01 and $F01. 

11 The BSs have their origin in the Persian ‘al-fil’ (elephant) which was allowed to jump over one cell.   See Vaunt Courier, VC (the jumping BS). 

12 Chaturanga: ‘Hasti’ moves diagonally, jumping over the adjacent cell to the next cell. 

13 Episcopus - Greek: Episcopos, an overseer, religious or political. 

14 Hatto: BS of Mainz.   Noted for his oppression of the poor.   During a famine he assembled the poor in a barn and burnt them to death, saying: “They are like mice, only good to devour the corn”.    He retired to a tower on the Rhine to escape the plague, but the mice followed him in their thousands and devoured him. 

15 ‘Do you know the BS of Norwich?’   The BS of Norwich was said to be such a persistent talker that he sometimes forgot to pass the port. 

 

Alligator

16 BSs are humorously/derisively called ‘magpies’ because they wear black and white vestments.   “Crocodiles in the sewers”.    In the East a bird of joy and good fortune.   The BS is known by different names in differing countries: 

 

Balloon Glow: Artist: Nicky Boehme.  Pieces: 1500.  Size: 24” x 33”. 

17 This MP moves on the diagonal cells of the board. Symbol = BS.   Historically the BS was the ‘elephant’ of Indian chess, but during the 15^th century assumed the present diagonal movement.   There is one BS for the XL cells (light) and one BS for the XD cells (dark).   It often happens during a game that one side will have a dark coloured BS and the other side a light coloured BS.  In this case the BSs of opposite colour are unable to come into contact with each other.   It is also known as a ‘vector MP’ or ‘line MP’.   On an empty 8 x 8 board the BS controls from 7 to 13 cells depending on the cell position.   The BSs on $C01 and $C08 are sometimes referred to as QUs-BSs and the other two on $F01 and $F08 as KIs-BSs (ISP).   A BS captures diagonally, either forward or backwards and the range extends on unobstructed cells to the extent of the diagonal line of cells on which the BS travels.   If you have many PAs toward the conclusion of the game then try to capture your opponent’s BSs, because they can impede the progress of your PAs more easily than KTs or ROs.   If you have many PAs at the end of a game and your opponent has a BS then try to move your PAs to cells of a different colour to the diagonal that this BS operates on.   Having BS1 and BS2 at the end of the game is preferable to having KT1 and KT2.   The BS is long-striding.   The KT is short-winded.   The weakness of a BS is in the defencelessness of the cells of opposite colour, its main strength in its long-striding ability.  BS1 and BS2 fortify each other and can rake two neighbouring diagonals (raking BSs).   :rk-BSs.   When attacking the KIs position they are known as ‘Horwitz BSs’.  

 

How the BS moves

 

 

BS fork 

 

18 In the descriptive notation they have the symbols QB and KB.  The two BSs together are valued at more than double the value of one BS.   A BS is often compared in valuation terms with the KT. 

19 The Muslim ‘Fil’ with its two protuberances symbolized the elephant from which this MP obtained its name.   This was seen as a BSs mitre in Europe and a recognition of the status of the church of the period. 

20 In Mongolia and Tibet the BS is called a ‘camel’.

21 In medieval carnivals derived from the Roman Saturnalia the ‘BS of Fools’ was a burlesque figure who, after a brief, dissipated reign, was actually or symbolically burned to death or otherwise sacrificed. 

22 In Ireland Fiana Fail is known as the BSs party.   President Devalera spent ten days in the Irish College in Rome before returning home to found Fianna Fail. 

        

23 In the USA the BS is the symbol of the Republician Party and members of this political party wear elephant-motif ties.   In medieval England the power of the Church was recognized in naming this MP a BS.   But our BS (English language) is known as an elephant in Russia, a messenger in Germany, and a court jester in France!  

24 Power of two BSs: a BS is handicapped by being barred from half the cells of the board, since BS1 moves only on cells of one colour.   This handicap disappears if BS2 is still on the board.   With open diagonals a team of two BSs is particularly strong.    Because of this, an early exchange of a BS for a KT is to be avoided unless something is clearly gained.  

25 In the 13^th century the BS was called ‘Alfyn’, a corruption of its Eastern name, ‘al Phil’, the Elephant.   The Alfyn is only allowed to move two cells diagonally and cannot capture a MP/mp that is nearer or further away.   However, the Alfyn has the ability of jumping over any other MP/mp on its way to capture (see, VC ‘Vaunt Courier’). 

26 Viscount William Lamb Melbourne: “Damn it all, another BS dead - I verily believe they die to vex me”. 

27 David (Dewi Sant) Welsh: 6^th century BS of South Wales. 

28 The elephant is used to personify both India and Africa. 

29 Order of the Elephant: Danish order of knighthood consisting of 30 knights. 

30 White elephant: an allusion to the story of a KI of Siam who used to make a gift of a white elephant to courtiers he wished to ruin. 

31 In the RC church a novice must be 16, a deacon 22, and a BS 30.   In the Church of England the ages are 23, 24 and 30.  

Elephant, Amber Palace

BISHOP ENDING

When the KIs and BS or KIs, BSs plus some mps are involved in the endgame.

 

BISHOPS OF OPPOSITE COLOUR

When one side has a BS on the XL coloured cells and the other side has a BS on the XD coloured cells.   French: opposite colour bishops  - fous de couleurs opposes.  

 

BISHOP OF THE WRONG COLOUR

Used exclusively to describe a situation where a BS cannot assist in the promotion of mp-01 or mp-08 (Level-1, 8 x 8 board), because the BS cannot attack the promoting cell. 

 

BISHOP’S OPENING

The XY notation is shown on the left.  The acentric notation is indicated on the right. 

01A PA5-E02/E04 - PA5-C04/A02

01B PA4-E07/E05 - PA4-C13/A03

02A BS2-F01/C04 - BS2-D06/B12

02B KT1-G08/F06 - KT1-D16/B07

03A PA4-D02/D03 - PA4-C03/B02

03B PA6-C07/C06 - PA6-C15/B10

Set-up the board and play through the moves shown above. 

 

BISHOP PAIR

BS1 and BS2, usually compared to KT1 and KT2 or a BS and a KT.   In some situations the BS-pair has a slight advantage over the other two due to greater mobility.

The words below may be found in this dictionary. 

 

Ballooning: Artist: Gale Pitt.  Pieces: 500.  Size: 18” x 24”

Religion and Chess by Bill Wall

Chess (shatranj) was a legal issue after Mohammad died in 642 A.D.   In 655 his son-in-law, Caliph Ali Ben Abu-Talib disapproved the game for his sect of Muslims because of the graven images. 

In 680 the 50^th rule of canons was interpreted as forbidding chess.   But the caliphs themselves played and had chess players in their circle of influence.   Legal scholars debated the merits of chess.   It was legal to play chess if not played with items of chance (dice) and there were no betting or gambling on chess. 

It was still disapproved in 725 by Sulaiman ibn Yashar but still popular among caliphs, especially when they moved their capitol to Baghdad in 750 and took their top chess players with them. 

The caliph al-Mahdi wrote a letter to Mecca religious leaders to give up gambling with dice and chess in 780, but he died in 785 and caliph al-Rashid came to power who was an avid chess player. 

By 810 the top chess players in the world were known and recognized and all had sponsors by powerful caliphs.   In fact, the word Grandmaster was introduced by caliph al-Ma’mun in 819 AD. 

Chess was getting serious in India as well but tolerated.   By 900 there was a problem of players actually wagering fingers in their chess matches - you lose, you cut off a finger. 

The Egyptian al-Hakim banned chess in Egypt in 1005 and ordered that all chess sets and pieces be burned in Egypt. 

Chess had picked up in Europe and pretty soon many of the clergy were spending more time playing chess than saving souls.   In 1061 Cardinal Damiani of Ostin forbad the clergy from playing chess.   He died in 1072 and chess was resumed in his domain. 

By 1093 the Eastern Orthodox church condemned chess.  The Church stamped out chess in Russia as a relic of heathenism. 

In Europe some members of the clergy thought that receiving a “check” in chess was similar to committing a sin which one was able to redeem.   A checkmate was similar to committing a sin that was perishable, and thus deadly. 

By 1100 chess was accepted as a regular feature of noble life in England.   It was even a knightly accomplishment to play chess in 1106 under Petro Alfonsi.   Chess was played by the upper classes and excluded women from playing the game. 

By 1115, the emperor of the Byzantine Empire was a chess addict.   Despite that, it was still being banned in the churches up to 1125.  John Zonares, a former captain of the Byzantine imperial guard, became a monk and issued a directive banning chess as a kind of debauchery. 

St. Bernard (1090-1153) forbade his knights Templars from playing chess. 

Chess became more popular during the crusades, but Alexander Neckam, a British author, condemned chess as being frivilous. 

By 1195, the Jews were seriously involved in playing chess, but Rabbi Maimonides included chess among the forbidden games for Jews. 

In 1197 the Abbot of Persigny was warning folks not to play chess. 

In 1208 the bishop of Paris, Odo Sully, banned chess in Paris to his clergy. 

It was also forbidden in Worcester, England in 1240 by the religious leadership. 

In 1254 St. Louis of France restricted chess to laymen.   Provinical councils were forbidding chess in France (Beziers). 

King Henry III (1207-1272) instructed the clergy to leave chess alone “on pain of durance vile”.   

In 1291 the Archbishop of Cantebury, John Peckman, was forbidding chess.  He threatened to put anyone on a diet of bread and water if they played chess. 

Priests were forbidden to play chess up to 1299.  The Clementine Kormch wrote a series of directions of priests.   It included no chess play. 

Chess was forbidden in Germany in 1310 after the Council of Trier. 

In 1322 the Jewish rabbi Kalonymnos Ben Kalonymous condemned chess.   By 1328 the Jewish laws were interpreted by some Jewish leaders that chess could be played, but not for money. 

Chess was still forbidden in Germany up to 1329 after the Synod of Wurzburg. 

Charles V (1337-1380) of France prohibited chess. 

In 1380 William of Wickham (1324-1404), founder of New College, Oxford, and Winchester College, forbade chess.   He was the Bishop of Winchester and the Chancellor of England twice.

Charles VI (1368-1422) of France continued to forbid chess.   He later became unsane.

In 1405 John Huss (1369-0000?), Bohemian religious reformer, sought repentance for loss of self-control at the chess table during a game in Prague. 

In 1416 the Jews of Forli, Italy relaxed a bit and forbade all games of chance except chess.  

In 1420 Werner von Orseln, the Grand Master of the Knights of the Teutonic Order, abandoned the prohibition of chess on the grounds that chess was a proper amusement for a knight. 

By 1476 chess was being played in France again under Charles the Bold. 

In 1495 the Inquisition saw victims of persecutions stand in as figures in a game of living chess.   The game was played by two blind players.   Each time the captured piece was taken, the person representing that piece was put to death. 

By 1500 chess was a recognized pastime for Jews on the Sabbath. 

In 1549 the Protohierarch Sylvester wrote that those who play chess shall go to hell and be accursed on earth.  This was documented in his work Domostroi (Household Goverment), a book of principles of family life.   This was the first printed book in Moscow. 

In 1550 Saint Teresa of Avila, a Spanish conventical reformer, mentioned chess in her writings to illustrate ethics and chess.   The Church authorities in Spain proclaimed her patron of chess players. 

In 1551 Czar Ivan IV (1530-1584), Ivan the Terrible, of Russia banned chess. 

The leading clerics compiled the Stoglav Collection (council of the Hundred Chapters) in 1551, which prohibited chess in Moscow.   This same document prohibited shaving as well as beards were said to imitate the visage of God and to distinguish Orthodox males from women. 

In 1575 a plague hit Cremona, Italy.   Afterwards, all games were considered evil and the cause of their troubles.   All games but chess were banned. 

Chess was still banned in Russia in the 17^th century.   In 1649 Czar Alexei (1629-1676) found some players playing chess and had them whipped and imprisoned. 

The Puritans were against chess and discouraged chess play. 

Religious leaders who have played chess include Thomas Becket (Archbishop of Cantebury), Charles Borromeo (Bishop of Milan), Pope Gregory VI, Pope Innocent III, Pope John Paul I, Pope John Paul II, Pope Leo X, Pope Leo XIII, Cardinal Richelieu, and Billy Graham. 

The Ayatollah Khomeini banned chess when he returned to Iran.  It was the only country in the world that banned chess.   He banned the game because he thought it hurt the memory and could cause brain damage and that it contributed to a war-mongering mentality.  Prior to that, Iran, under the Shah, was the only Arab country that organized chess and participated in chess tournaments, including the 22^nd chess Olympiad in Israel in 1976 (in Haifa). 

In 1996 chess and other clubs were banned from some high schools in Salt Lake City, Utah.   Most of the school board is Mormon which condemns homosexuality.   Rather than let gay high school students form an organization, they banned all nonacademic clubs.  School board members said federal law gave them only two options: allow all extracurricular clubs or eliminate them all.   Some 30 clubs, including the chess club, were banned for 1996-97. 

Some present day Muslims still maintain that chess playing is a sin.  

 

The Bishop by Bill Wall

The origin of the name of the bishop is obscure.   It was introduced in the 15^th century, taking the move of the courier and placed where the alfil used to be at the set up of the chess pieces on a chessboard. 

The appearance of the Muslim fil was formless but with two protuberances said to symbolize the elephant from which the piece derives its name.   Perhaps these suggested the bishop’s mitre, hence bishop, the name used in English-speaking countries since the new game gained acceptance. 

The fil or al-fil (elephant) was also known as the sage or old man in Italy, a Count in the oldest German references, and a fool in France. 

The Spanish players knew that al-fil meant the elephant, but this was not known in other European countries.   The elephant was only known to most Europeans through literature, and its use in war was hardly known at all. 

The perversions of the world alfil led to alphicus (leper), alpinus (the Alpine), africus (the African), Alpheus (a man’s name), and alfiere (the standard-bearer).  At a later date in Southern Europe, the name became Delphinus, with its associations with the Dauphin (Dolphin) of France. 

In other countries the bishop was known as the archer, the runner (laufer), the counsel-keeper, the secretary, the soldier, the monk, the spy (senex), the thief, and the administrator. 

The original name aufin, once the ordinary name for the Bishop in France and England, was replaced by the bishop. 

The original move of the bishop (fil) was only three squares diagonally.  By 1500 it could move to any open square diagonally. 

 

From: Chess Kids Home Page

 

 

Below: the BS may move to any diagonal cell

 

 

 

Below: the BS cannot move past the PA

 

 

Below: A-BS can capture B-PA

 

 

Below: the BS can capture any of the beta/black PAs

 

 

 

Below: A-BS2 on F01 can capture B-RO2 on A06. 

The BS is worth 3 points.  The RO is worth 5 points. 

However, the BS will be captured on the next move by B-KT2. 

But :A will be up 2 points by making this capture! 

 

 

Below: A Discovered Attack. 

B-PA5 has just moved from cell D07 to D05 attacking A-PA5 on E04. 

But notice that B-BS2 on cell C08 is attacking A-QU1 on cell F04. 

 

 

Below: A-BS2 should move from cell F01 to D03 in order to offer protection to A-PA5 on cell E04.   Is this a good move?  No!  Why?  Because B-KT2 on cell C06 would capture A-KT1 on cell D04 on the next move!  Can you see a better move? 

 

 

Below: this is the following move when A-BS2 has moved from cell F01 to D03 to help A-PA5 on cell E04.   B-KT2 on cell C06 will now capture A-KT2 on cell D04.  A-BS2 also blocks A-QU1 from getting involved in the fight.  Make sure you don’t make this kind of mistake?