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This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985
1.e4 d6
1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ECO | B07–B09 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Named after | Vasja Pirc | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Parent | King's Pawn Game | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Synonyms |
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The Pirc Defence (/ˈpɪərts/ PEERTS) is a chess opening beginning with the moves:
In hypermodern fashion, Black allows White to establish a centre with pawns on d4 and e4, but plans to undermine it later. This position can be reached by several move orders; the move sequence given above is the most common.
Some writers define the Pirc Defence more broadly as 1.e4 d6,[1] although 1.e4 d6 often transposes into other openings such as the Philidor Defence. Alternatives to 3...g6 for Black include 3...c6, the Czech Defence or Pribyl Defence, as well as 3...e5 and 3...Nbd7, both of which are often played with the intention of transposing into a solid line of the Philidor.
The Pirc Defence is closely related to the Modern Defence (1...g6), also known as the Robatsch Defence, the primary difference being that Black delays developing the knight to f6 in the Modern. The main line is also similar to the King's Indian Defence, with the difference being that that White has not played c4 before playing Nc3.
The Pirc Defence is named after the Yugoslav grandmaster Vasja Pirc, who frequently played it from the late 1940s and throughout his later career. In Russia and other former Soviet countries, it is often known as the "Ufimtsev Defence" or "Pirc–Ufimtsev Defence", after the Soviet master Anatoly Ufimtsev.
The Pirc Defence, named after Slovenian grandmaster (GM) Vasja Pirc, was occasionally played in the 19th century but was considered an irregular opening. The opening began gaining some popularity only after World War II, and by the 1960s it was regarded as playable, owing in large part to the efforts of Canadian GM Duncan Suttles. Black, in hypermodern fashion, does not immediately stake a claim in the centre with pawns; rather, Black works to undermine White's centre from the flanks. Its first appearance in a World Championship match was in 1972, when it was played by Bobby Fischer against Boris Spassky at Reykjavík (game 17); the game ended in a draw.
The Pirc has been criticized for passivity. According to Garry Kasparov, the Pirc Defence is "hardly worth using in the tournaments of the highest category", as it gives White "too many opportunities for anybody's liking".[2]
Hooper and Whyld gave a distinct formal definition, 1.d4 d6 2.e4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6, permuting White's first two moves, although they qualified the definition by remarking that 1.e4 d6 could also transpose to the Pirc.[3] The presence or absence of Black's third move in the Pirc is reported differently, according to the source;[4] with the pawn move 3...g6, Black prepares to fianchetto the king's bishop to g7. Paul van der Sterren therefore described 3...g6 as "the defining move of the Pirc Defence" because the development of the bishop to g7 "creates the same sort of positional tension as the King's Indian Defence".[5] Unlike in the King's Indian, in the Pirc, White plays Nc3 without having first played c4.
A distinction is usually drawn between the Pirc and lines where Black delays the development of the knight to f6, or omits it altogether; this is known as the Modern Defence (or Robatsch Defence). The tenth edition of Modern Chess Openings (1965) merged the Pirc and Robatsch together as the "Pirc–Robatsch Defense". 1.e4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.Nf3 d6 is the Pirc Defence Deferred.[3]
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The Austrian Attack is defined by 4.f4. This direct, aggressive line is one of the most ambitious systems against the Pirc. It aims to take advantage of Black's hypermodern approach by establishing a broad pawn centre early in the game. White's general strategy is to use the advanced f-pawn to support a breakthrough with e4–e5.[6] Black will often castle early and attempt to find counterplay with c7–c5, or in some cases, e7–e5,[7] or the development of the queenside knight.[8]
Siegbert Tarrasch successfully employed the Austrian Attack against Rudolf Charousek in 1896, securing a win in just 17 moves.[9] Edward Lasker unsuccessfully used the opening against Miguel Najdorf, resigning after 42 moves.[10] In the 17th game of the 1972 World Chess Championship, Bobby Fischer responded to Boris Spassky's 1.e4 with the Pirc Defence, for the only time in his career.[11] Spassky played the Austrian Attack. The game ended in a draw.[12] It is also well respected by Nick de Firmian, the author of Modern Chess Openings. Jan Timman has played the Austrian successfully with both colours.
After the usual 4...Bg7 5.Nf3, the main moves are 5...0-0 or 5...c5, a queenside counterattack. White can also try an immediate kingside attack with 5.e5 Nfd7 or develop with 5.Bd3.
The most frequently played move after 5...0-0 is 6.Bd3 (the Weiss Variation), with 6...Nc6 the most common response, though 6....Na6, with the idea of ....Nc7, ....Rb8 and ....b5 became popular in the 1980s after 6....Nc6 was found to offer Black few winning chances. 6.e5 is a sharp try, with unclear consequences, which was much played in the 1960s, though it has never attained popularity at the highest levels. 6.Be2 is another move which was often seen in the 1950s and early 1960s, although the defeat sustained by Fischer in the game given in the example games spurred White players, including Fischer, to turn to 6.Bd3. In the 1980s, 6.Be2 c5 7.dxc5 Qa5 8.0-0 Qxc5+ 9.Kh1 was revived with more favourable results. 6.Be3 is another possibility, first extensively explored in the 1970s and played by Bojan Kurajica, Yuri Balashov and Alexander Beliavsky, which leads to sharp play.
Black's chief alternative to 5...0-0 lies in an immediate strike against the white centre with 5...c5, to which the usual response is either 6.dxc5 or 6.Bb5+. The former allows 6...Qa5. The latter promises a tactical melee, with a common line being 6.Bb5+ Bd7 7.e5 Ng4 8.e6 (8.h3 or 8.Bxd7+ are other possibilities) 8...fxe6, which was thought bad, until Yasser Seirawan played the move against Gyula Sax in 1988[13] (8...Bxb5 is the alternative, if Black does not want the forced draw in the main line), continuing 9.Ng5 Bxb5! Now if White tries 10.Nxe6, Black has 10...Bxd4!, ignoring the threat to his queen, in view of 11.Nxd8 Bf2+ 12.Kd2 Be3+ with a draw by perpetual check. White can instead try 11.Nxb5, with complicated play.
White can also essay the sharp 6.e5 against 5...c5, after which 6...Nfd7 7.exd6 0-0 is considered to offer good play for Black.
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The Classical System, also known as the Two Knights System, begins with 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Be2 0-0 6.0-0. White contents themselves with the 'classical' pawn centre with pawns at e4 and d4, forgoing the committal move f2–f4 as Black castles and builds a compact structure. Efim Geller, Anatoly Karpov and Evgeni Vasiukov have all successfully used this system for White; Zurab Azmaiparashvili has scored well as Black. This transposes into the Sicilian Dragon after 6...c5 7.Be3 cxd4 8.Nxd4.
The setup f2–f3, Be3 and Qd2 is commonly used against the King's Indian Defence and Dragon Sicilian, and can also be used against the Pirc; indeed, this system is as old as the Pirc itself.
The system 4.f3 was introduced by Argentine players c. 1930 and again in 1950. It was never considered dangerous for Black because of 4.f3 Bg7 5.Be3 c6 6.Qd2 b5. It received a severe blow in about 1985, when Gennady Zaichik showed that Black could castle anyway and play a dangerous gambit with 5...0-0 6.Qd2 e5.
The Argentines feared the sally ...Ng4, though some British players (especially Mark Hebden, Paul Motwani, Gary Lane and later also Michael Adams) came to realise that this was mainly dangerous for Black, therefore playing Be3 and Qd2 in all sorts of move orders, while omitting f2–f3. They called this the 150 Attack, because players of this strength (150 ECF, equivalent to about 1825 Elo) can easily play this position and get strong play without any theory.[14]
The original Argentine idea probably is only viable after 4.Be3 Bg7 5.Qd2 0-0 6.0-0-0 c6 (or Nc6) 7.f3 b5 8.h4. Black usually does not castle, though, and prefers 5...c6 or even 4...c6. The question of whether and when to insert Nf3 remains unclear.
After 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3, an alternative to 3...g6 is 3...c6, which has been called the Pribyl System and the Czech Defence. If Black later plays ...g6, it often transposes to the Pirc proper; alternatively, Black can play ...Qa5 and ...e5 to challenge White's centre, or expand on the queenside with ...b5.
3...e5 is an alternative to 3...g6 that became common in the 21st century and now rivals 3...g6 in popularity. The move has been tried by many GMs over the years, including Zurab Azmaiparashvili and Christian Bauer. Black has the idea of encouraging White to transpose via 4.Nf3 to a relatively less challenging line (for Black) of the Philidor Defence, which is traditionally reached via 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6; 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 would transpose. In the traditional 1...e5 move order, White frequently avoids or delays Nc3, whereas in the 1...d6 move order, the early 2.Nc3 limits White's options. Black usually responds to 4.Nf3 with 4...Nbd7.
On the other hand, the 1...d6 order allows White to instead play 4.dxe5 dxe5 5.Qxd8+ Kxd8, typically continuing 6.Bc4 Be6 7.Bxe6 fxe6, which, despite Black's loss of castling rights, results in a drawish endgame, a similar idea to the famous Berlin Endgame. The 1...d6 move order, leading to the variation with an early Nc3, may be referred to as the Modern Philidor, while the 1...e5 move order may be called the Old Philidor.[15]
3...Nbd7 has the idea of transposing to the same line (with 4...Nbd7) of the Philidor explained above after 4.Nf3 and then 4...e5. This move order denies White the opportunity to play the endgame reachable after 3...e5 4.dxe5; however, White can deviate in other ways, most often by playing 4.f4 instead of 4.Nf3.
An unusual but quite reasonable deviation for White after 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 is 3.f3. At the 1989 Barcelona World Cup event, former world champion Garry Kasparov surprised American GM Yasser Seirawan with this move. After 3...g6 4.c4, an unhappy Seirawan found himself defending the King's Indian Defence for the first time in his life,[16] though he managed to draw the game. Black can avoid a King's Indian with 3...e5, which may lead to an Old Indian type of position after 4.d5, with 3...c5, which may lead to a Benoni type of position after 4.d5 or transpose to Prins Variation of the Sicilian Defence after 4.Ne2 cxd4 5.Nxd4, or with 3...d5. This can transpose to the French Defence after (among other possible transpositions) 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 e6 6.Nf3 or to the Blackmar–Diemer Gambit with an extra tempo for White after 4.Nc3 dxe4 5.Bg5 exf3 6.Nxf3.
Another possibility for White to defend the e-pawn is 3.Bd3, or, less frequently, 3.Nd2.
Some of the systems employed by White against the Pirc Defence include the following (in order by Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings code):
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Source: Wikipedia. Article content is retrieved live through the MediaWiki API.
The Pirc Defence ( PEERTS) is a chess opening beginning with the moves: 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 In hypermodern fashion, Black allows White to establish a centre with pawns on d4 and e4, but plans to undermine it later. This position can be reached by several move orders; the move sequence given above is the most common. Some writers define the Pirc Defence more broadly as 1.e4 d6, although 1.e4 d6 often transposes into other openings such as the Philidor Defence. Alternatives to 3...g6 for Black include 3...c6, the Czech Defence or Pribyl Defence, as well as 3...e5 and 3...Nbd7, both of which are often played with the intention of transposing into a solid line of the Philidor. The Pirc Defence is closely related to the Modern Defence (1...g6), also known as the Robatsch Defence, the primary difference being that Black delays developing the knight to f6 in the Modern. The main line is also similar to the King's Indian Defence, with the difference being that that White has not played c4 before playing Nc3. The Pirc Defence is named after the Yugoslav grandmaster Vasja Pirc, who frequently played it from the late 1940s and throughout his later career. In Russia and other former Soviet countries, it is often known as the "Ufimtsev Defence" or "Pirc–Ufimtsev Defence", after the Soviet master Anatoly Ufimtsev.
The Hippopotamus Defence is a chess opening system employed by Black, consisting of a double fianchetto structure (bishops on b7 and g7) and a small pawn centre (pawns on d6 and e6). The knights are typically developed to e7 and d7 and the rook's pawns to a6 and h6. This structure can be obtained by a wide variety of move orders but it occurs most frequently via the Modern Defence (1.e4 g6) or Owen's Defence (1.e4 b6). The Hippopotamus can also be played against queen's pawn openings or flank openings and is thus a genuinely universal system. The same structure is also occasionally used by White.
The South African defence industry (SADI) is the continent's most advanced defence industrial base and one of South Africa's leading high-technology manufacturing sectors. It comprises more than 600 state-owned and private companies engaged in the research, development, manufacture and support of military equipment and defence technologies. The industry produces a wide range of military systems, including small arms and ammunition, armoured vehicles, artillery, missiles, military aircraft, naval vessels, electronic warfare equipment, military communications systems and unmanned systems. It supports the operational requirements of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) while exporting defence products and technologies to more than 115 countries worldwide, including over 40 African markets. The modern defence industry emerged during the Cold War, when international arms embargoes accelerated investment in domestic research, engineering and manufacturing. This led to the development of an extensive indigenous defence industrial base capable of designing, developing and producing sophisticated military systems locally. Today, South Africa is one of the few countries with the industrial and technological capability to design and manufacture advanced defence equipment across the land, air and maritime domains. The industry continues to play an important role in the country's economy through exports, advanced manufacturing, research and development, and high-skilled employment, while maintaining partnerships with governments, defence companies and armed forces around the world.
The Najdorf Variation ( NY-dorf) is a variation of the Sicilian Defence that begins with the moves: 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 Black's 5...a6 aims to deny the b5-square to White's knights and light-square bishop while maintaining flexible development. Games in the Najdorf frequently feature opposite-side castling, where White castles long and both sides launch simultaneous attacks on their opponents' kings, with Black often planning a queenside minority attack. This is often carried out by means of ...b5, ...Bb7, and placing a knight on d5, or c4 via b6. The Najdorf is one of the most popular, reputable, and deeply studied of all chess openings. Modern Chess Openings calls it the "Cadillac" or "Rolls-Royce" of chess openings. The opening is named after the Polish-Argentine grandmaster Miguel Najdorf, although he was not the first strong player to play the variation. Many top players have relied on the Najdorf, including Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov, and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.
Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.
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