Mastering the Art of Moving Horses in Chess: A Comprehensive Guide
Have you ever wondered about the unique movement of the Horse piece in chess?
We will explore how the Horse moves on the chessboard, its legal moves, strategic uses, and common mistakes to avoid.
Understanding the “L” shape movement, the ability to jump over other pieces, and mastering its strategic positioning can make a significant difference in your chess game.
Let’s dive into the world of the Horse piece and enhance your chess skills!
Contents
- Key Takeaways:
- What is the Horse Piece in Chess?
- How Does the Horse Move in Chess?
- What Are the Possible Legal Moves for the Horse?
- How to Use the Horse Strategically in Chess?
- What Are the Common Mistakes When Moving the Horse in Chess?
- Conclusion: Mastering the Horse’s Movement in Chess
- Frequently Asked Questions
Key Takeaways:
What is the Horse Piece in Chess?
The piece that moves like a Number 1 Calvery horse is called the Knight in Chess. The Knight is one of the six different types of Pieces in a Chess game, along with the King, Rook, Bishop, Queen, and Pawn. It is the only curved or bent shaped piece and is the only piece that can jump over other pieces. The Horse’s move pattern is unique and known as a L-Shape in Chess, consisting of one step in any direction along the file (column) or rank (row) he moves before making a 90-degree turn for two more steps.
The Knight’s move is referred to as a 3-2 move. Either 3 squares along any column or row and then 2 more into the L-shape, or vice-versa. The path of movement always takes the Knight from squares of one color (either dark or light) to the other, making the Knight piece a Colour-bound piece, which means that one square is off-limits to it for a game’s entirety. Lastly, despite how the Knight moves like a horse, Chess is not a sport or game where horsing around is allowed, and the USCF, FIDE, and other world chess regulatory bodies use the term Knight or Kn or N as opposed to Horse.
On the board, the Knight has the following statistical values in most cases: Point Value: 3 (some sources argue it should be 3.5) Board Count: 1 in starting position, 2 after pawns clear (all Knights remain active throughout the game, with the starting position Knight usually moving to f3 for White and f6 for Black). Percentage Chance of Being in a Draw: 4.28% (approximate), and Frequency Used In Games: 1.98 (approximate) since on average each player uses it 1.98 times in each game. Historically the original form of the Knight in chess was an elephant, infantryman, horse-mounted fighter, or part of the chariot crew.
How Does the Horse Move in Chess?
The horse moves in an L-shape, first two squares along a rank or file, and then moves one square perpendicular to that. Alternatively, with the directions reversed. The knight is the only piece on the board that is allowed to jump over other pieces during its move, which makes it highly versatile and powerful early in a game when more pieces are on the board.
The ‘L’ Shape Movement
This is the most famous part of the answer of how horses move in chess. Only horses are able to jump over other pieces. Movements of horses look like the shape L when their potential movements are plotted on the board, as seen on the right. Only across and up eight squares can horse chess movements be made. There are different answers to this, however the horse moves three squares in the shape of an L: two squares along one axis and one along the other axis. The long perpendicular step is made first when moving in the L shape of three squares. The Knight’s Tour is a unique kind of puzzle involving the horse moving over the entire chessboard without touching any square more than once.
The Only Piece that Can Jump Over Other Pieces
The horse in chess is the most interesting piece in the game that can jump over other pieces. While not able to cross these other pieces, this ability allows the horse to be moved to different sections of the board in a single turn, giving the knight the broadest control of the board. No other pieces can jump over their allied case pieces in chess.
The horse can be considered the only piece that moves in J turns. There are only 8 squares where the horse can move. This gives it a different form of movement compared to other pieces like the bishop or queen. The horse moves in either a two square by one square rectangle, or a one square by two square rectangle. This is the most unique movement form in chess and is the reason why the horse is recognized as the only piece in the game that jumps.
What Are the Possible Legal Moves for the Horse?
The possible legal moves for the horse from its initial position at the corner of the grid are highlighted in blue in the image below. The horse moves in an L shape and has 8 possible legal moves from its initial position (semicircle). It may only move three boxes up or three boxes right to get back into that original position.
The horse may jump over other pieces (friend or foe) and knocks out any piece with which it lands.
Moving Two Squares in One Direction and One Square Perpendicular to It
The horse in chess is called a knight. The most unique aspect of the knight in chess is its L-shaped move, as it can travel two squares in one direction and one square perpendicular to it, or one square in one direction and two squares perpendicular to it.
In this position after white plays g1 – f3, the white knight has no possible opponent pieces to capture and no other possible forward movement moves – pawns, rooks, and the queen are in the way. The white knight will move 2 squares forward and 1 square sideways to occupy g3.
Moving One Square in One Direction and Two Squares Perpendicular to It
This is the least common movement within the game of chess. The only two pieces able to move in this fashion are the knight and the horse (since we’re helping you learn horse movements). When a horse moves one square in one direction then two perpendicular squares to it, it is either able to display this zig-zag movement of unchanged color at the start of the move or at the end of the move.
The pattern of a horse moving one square in one direction and two perpendicular in the same uninterrupted movement creates an L-shaped movement which is an effective way to change the side of the board on which the horse is situated. It is also able to avoid blocking the path of the queen or the rooks. The ability to ‘hop’ over pieces is strong, but not as strong in this type of movement as it is when moving two squares straight and another one perpendicular as it has the same type of movement as a bishop making it easier to get captured.
The percentage of squares the horse can move to from the center of the board when moving in this manner is smaller. When moving this way, a horse cannot move to a square that is the same color as the square it is moved to. This means it can only move to half the squares of a chessboard.
How to Use the Horse Strategically in Chess?
You can use the Horse strategically in chess by having them maneuver into good positions close to the center of the board, and from there they can be instrumental in launching attacks, defending your own pieces, and helping to control enemy knight outposts.
On the other hand, after the opening, knights are usually weaker in the 6th row (3rd row for Black) and 2nd row (7th row for Black) because of their limited range from there and can be cut-off by enemy pawns which limits their mobility.
Plan ahead by thinking 2 or 3 moves in advance when using knights as they can be difficult to extricate once under threat. Keep these strategical factors in mind and the knight will deliver good results in your chess games.
Controlling the Center of the Board
The center of the board can be initially referred to as the two rows where the a-p files meet the next inner two pawn rows and hypotenuses connecting the centers of chess board squares of these regions.
The center defines the chessboard as square a4-b5-c3-d2-e3-f5-g5-h2 which forms the most crowded area on the board. It is estimated that approximately 85% of the successful movement of chess pieces occur here. Controlling the center of the board is key in successfully moving the pieces and is a critical early component of strategy in any chess game.
So how do you set out to control this central area of the board? The position of your pawns is critical as characteristic patterns emerge from how the pawns are initially moved by both players.
The usual first or second moves in chess are opening moves, culminating in one side’s central d- and e-pawns placed and then defended or attacked, and what to do with the pieces of your knight really depends on the central pawn opening of the player. The kids chesstronauts educational group provides the following visualization of the opening board positions that control the center:
- Push pawns on either side of the board two squares, and move bishop towards either pawn.
- Move pawn on e file two squares and reply to any threats nibbling at the base of the pawn with the pawns from c file and g file 2 squares ahead. Bishop should join the kingside fianchettoing itself to g2.
- Push pawns on either side two squares.
There is No right or wrong opening as all of them offer their unique opportunities for movement. Different movements open up some other unique movements or opportunities. The key is to optimize your situation while severely blunting your opponent’s.
The wonderful tournament clash from 1978 between Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov exemplifies the importance of controlling the center. Karpov managed to follow the pawns movement with his knights to conquer the center and win the match in a comprehensive manner. At the end of the game Kasparov had 7 pieces left on the lower right corner and 2 on the edge of C row/beginning of D, indicating they got into trouble somewhere along c-d files.
Attacking Opponent’s Pieces
In the beginning of a chess game before moving Queen, Rooks, Knights, or Bishops (collectively referred to as Heavy Pieces), the wise rule is to move the pawn in front of one’s King’s or Queen’s bishop two squares forward to strengthen one’s center.
This concept is referred to as development. Movement of Horse to f6/f3 in French Defense or to c6/c3 in Nimzo-Indian Defense is either utilized for a discovered attack against the center or to support the other piece development.
The Horse as a chess piece can create an attacking sequence and immediately move out of the way with a continued offensive assault. The attacking sequence will be complimentary in moving the King’s Bishop to from f8 to b4 after bouncing from c3 and h3 entices an intermediate piece to attack or drives pieces controlled by the opponent.
Alternately, the move can serve to (c6, c3, f6, f3, d5, d4) create a central wedge that straight-arms the half of normally mobile combat pieces to the side. During the middle of the game when often Horse is positioned on the a5, a4, h4, or h5 running diagonals, it is outstandingly effective in utilizing flanking strategies, being involved in Greek gift sacrifice, cornering the enemy King, and/or executing advanced reconstruction of pawns.
Defending Your Own Pieces
A game-winning way to move the horse in chess is defending your own pieces. This just means using the horse’s potential to help other pieces out of tough situations while supporting ambient pieces. Since the horse can jump over and between other pieces, it is able to quickly aid defenders in high-stakes scenarios. The left image illustrates how a Bd5+ fork attack can be mitigated if Ng5 is utilized to defend the weak Bd5 to ensure that black does not lose its powerful pawn.
What Are the Common Mistakes When Moving the Horse in Chess?
The most common mistakes for moving the horse in chess are not considering the tactical implications and using the horse on the rim or edge. Players need to consider that moving knights instead of pawns or rooks opens up flexibility for other pieces. The more knights left on the board, the fewer tactical possibilities an opponent has for pieces that are linearly bound on the board. Using the horse on the rim is disadvantageous since it has fewer squares it can go to compared to using one in the center or versus other pieces.
Blocking Your Own Pieces
While there are some cases where it can be beneficial to move the knight to block your own piece this is the only scenario where creating unnecessary blockages would be the only explanation for moving the knight. After playing a weak move the knight would be looking to improve state and as such taking an active role to create a blockade would not happen. Typically creating a block with a friendly pawn or piece is counterproductive to improving state.
Moving the Horse Early in the Game
Don’t move the horse too early that you block the queen’s pawn. Try moving the horse early in the game to exert influence but do not overdo it. The danger in involving the horse in a critical central pawn battle early is that your opponent will have an excellent opportunity to undermine the horse’s influence. The opponent’s pawns in the center are aiming to control the four central squares while also creating avenues for important pieces to be developed according to chess logic. Horse movement, especially in the center, can crowd the board and expose it to an attack. Using the horse’s power to control and direct traffic on the board, rather than to block attack paths, is more useful.
Not Utilizing the Horse’s Unique Movement
In chess, the most common way players do not make use of the horse’s unique movement is by body-blocking it with dozens of one’s own pieces which hinder the horse’s movement.
Another mistake from a tactical standpoint is needlessly moving the horse to ‘better’ locations. These are locations on the board where not as many pieces are trying to attack or could attack the enemy horse.
The first example of this occurs in the diagram below where White mistakenly moved their horse from White G7 to White F6. This got the piece out of the way of White’s own pawn at G3, but this move plays no role in capturing any opposing pieces or even forcing Black to move in any particular way. By capturing Black’s pawn at F5, the horse was under fire and occupied a high-ranking file on the board. It was important for White to either keep moving this horse to better attack locations from G7 or not waste moves at all.
A second example occurs 2 moves later at White’s 16th where Black’s horse captures white’s bishop on White G3. Black’s horse was on Black F6 and could have galloped over to Black G3 and captured the bishop there. Moving the horse to Black B6 did nothing to contribute toward attacking White’s pieces. It would have been much more useful for the horse to have moved into a central position and used its range to attack the opposing side for as long as possible.
Conclusion: Mastering the Horse’s Movement in Chess
Mastering the horse’s movement in chess is essential for playing the game effectively. In this guide to moving the horse in chess, the following are the primary keys to remember when working to master the horse’s movement:
- A horse moves in an L-shape in chess: 2 squares in one direction, then one more square in a direction perpendicular.
- A horse can move over other pieces.
- The horse is the only piece that can “jump over” other pieces, moving completely over them.
- The horse piece’s power extends from 6 to 8 squares.
- The horse is the second most mobile piece in chess behind the queen.
- According to the “Horse Rule of Thumb the horse piece power is 3.3 pawns.
- A horse can save time in battle by attacking from the sidelines.
- The horse’s positioning and jumping ability make it the best piece for delivering unique attacks against your opponent.
- A horse can move the same way on both light and dark squares.
- Use the horse as a tactics training tool.
Knowing how the horse moves in chess and taking advantage of the patterns of movement that the horse can exploit is essential to learning how to move the horse piece effectively. Horse movement in chess is unique and can give strategic advantages to players who can take advantage of that. Just remember that in order to excel at chess, you cannot master one piece’s movements but need to understand the movement and intricacies of all the pieces. Remember these tips on horse movements summarized in the “Horse Rule of Thumb” and it is a start.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to Move Horse in Chess?
What is the horse’s movement in chess?
The horse, also known as the knight, moves in an L-shaped pattern on the chessboard.
Can the horse jump over other pieces?
Yes, the horse is the only piece in chess that can jump over other pieces on the board.
How many squares can the horse move in one turn?
The horse can move a total of 8 squares in one turn, but it must move in an L-shaped pattern.
What is the importance of the horse in chess?
The horse is a valuable piece in chess because it can jump over pieces and has a unique movement that can surprise opponents.
How does the horse capture other pieces?
The horse captures pieces by landing on their square at the end of its L-shaped movement.
Can the horse capture its own pieces?
No, the horse cannot capture its own pieces or jump over them on the chessboard.
