Chess Opening Theory/1. e4/1...e6/2. d4/2...d5/3. Nc3/3...Bb4/4. e5/4...c5/5. a3/5...Bxc3/6. bxc3
| Winawer variation | |
|---|---|
|
a b c d e f g h 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 a b c d e f g h | |
Position in Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN) | |
| Moves: 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3 6. bxc3 | |
| ECO code: C17-C19 | |
| Parent: Winawer variation | |
6. bxc3
[edit | edit source]This is the main line of the Winawer variation of the French defence. The Winawer is a sharp and tactical variation of the French. White usually attempts to take the undefended g-pawn with Qg4.
Black's best move is 6...Ne7, developing the knight such that it defends g8 and can possibly reroute to f5, where it pressures White's centre.
6...Qc7, the Classical variation, backs the c-pawn and develops the queen to a good square.
6...Qa5 enters the Portisch-Hook variation where Black tries to provoke some more queenside weaknesses early on.
6...Nc6 is the rarest of the variations. Black allows 7. Qg4 and has to defend their queenside with 7...g6, leading to some very weak dark squares around their kingside.[1]
Theory table
[edit | edit source]1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3 6. bxc3
| 6 | 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Main line | ... Ne7 |
Qg4 Qc7 |
⩲ |
| Classical variation | ... Qc7 |
Qg4 f5 |
|
| Portisch-Hook variation | ... Qa5 |
Bd2 Qa4 |
|
| ... Nc6 |
Qg4 g6 |
⩲ |
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ John Watson. "Rarer variations in the Winawer". www.chesspublishing.com. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
- Kasparov, Garry, & Keene, Raymond 1989 Batsford chess openings 2. ISBN 0-8050-3409-9.
See also
[edit | edit source] | Wikipedia has related information at French Defence. |
King's gambit
Accepted
Declined
Vienna
- Barnes ?
- Borg ?
- Corn stalk ??
- Duras ??
- 1...b5 ??
Zukertort