In Memoriam

PAID a return visit to the section of the Bischofsgrün Panormaweg that includes the cemetery of a former military hospital.

This time, instead of more-or-less just popping my head through the entrance, I walked round the cemetery.

Bell-tower memorial to soldiers killed in the Franco-Prussian War, WW1 and WW2

The roundel at the bottom of the bell tower appears to list the number of soldiers from the town killed in each of those three wars

A specifically WW2 memorial

"The stone tent of the dead soldiers" (a literal translation that probably does not capture the true spirit of the wording)

Inside the "stone tent" - perhaps "tabernacle" is a less literal but better translation

Bischofsgrün Round Eight

Theo Schmidt (1982) - Spanton (1942)

QGD 4...c5/Caro-Kann Panov-Botvinnik

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 c5!? 5.e3

The mainline in ChessBase's 2024 Mega database runs 5.cxd5 cxd4 6.Qxd4 Be7 7.e4 Nc6 8.Qd2, followed by sacrificing the black king's knight, either on e4 or d5 (the captures are equally popular).

5...cxd4 6.exd4

This position normally arises from the Panov-Botvinnik Attack in the Caro-Kann

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6...Be7 7.Nf3 0-0 8.Be2 dxc4 9.Bxc4 Nc6 10.0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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It looks like a typical IQP setup, and indeed there are 1,803 examples of the position in Mega24. As a rule of thumb, IQP positions with all four pairs of minor pieces still on the board are reckoned to slightly favour White. However Stockfish16.1 and Dragon1 agree that here, if anyone has an edge, it is Black. But it should be noted the position normally arises with White to move, in which case the engines agree the position is still equal, but reckon this time White has the better side of equality.

10...Qb6 11.Qb3!?

A known sacrifice, but only from an obscure game between two unrateds.

11...Nxd4

The engines reckon 11...Qxb3!? is almost as strong, and is certainly more circumspect.

12.Nxd4 Qxd4 13.Rad1 Qg4

White has equalised after 13...Qb6!? 14.Qxb6 axb6 15.Bb5, according to the engines.

14.f4!?

The engines strongly dislike this, preferring 14.Be3 or 14.Bxf6.

14...h6 15.h3 Qf5 16.Bh4 b6 17.Bd3 Qc5+ 18.Bf2 Qb4 19.Qc2 Qxf4!?

The engines agree this is best.

20.Bxb6 Qb4 21.Bf2 Bb7

Now Black has connected rooks, how would you assess the position?

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Black remains a pawn up and is winning, according to the engines, but I think most club players, at least, would regard White as having good practical chances.

22.a3 Qa5 23.b4!? Qc7

Not 23...Qxa3? 24.Ra1 Qxb4 25.Rab1 and Rxb7.

24.Rc1 Rfc8 25.Qe2 Qd7?!

Black is still winning (Stockfish16.1) or at least has the upper hand (Dragon1) after other moves, eg 25...Qc6 26.Be3 a5!? 27.Ne4 Qd5 28.Nxf6+ Bxf6 29.Rxc8+ Rxc8 30.Rd1 Qe5.

26.Rfd1 Qe8 27.Nb5 Rxc1+ 28.Rxc1 Rc8 29.Rxc8 Qxc8 30.Bxa7

Now White has won his pawn back, how would you assess the position?

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White's queenside pawns look menacing, but the engines reckon Black is still better. Presumably the somewhat exposed state of the white king is a significant factor.

30...Ba6 31.Be3 Qd7 32.Bd2 Bxb5!? 33.Bxb5 Qd4+ 34.Qe3 Qa1+ 35.Kh2 Bd6+ 36.g3 Nh5!?

Better, according to the engines, is my originally intended 36...Nd5.

37.Be1 Qa2+ 38.Qe2 Qd5 39.Bd3 Qg5 40.Qf3 f5?

The game is equal after 40...Qc1, 40...Qe5 and 40...Nf6, according to the engines.

41.Be2

The engines reckon White wins after 41.a4.

41...g6?

41...Nf6 leaves the game completely equal, according to the engines.

42.Qd3 Nxg3?

Misplaced desperation. White is only slightly better (Stockfish16.1) or at best has the upper hand (Dragon1) after 42...Be5.

White to play and win

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43.Qxd6!

Not 43.Bxg3 as 43...f4 draws.

43...Nxe2 44.Qxe6+ Kh7 45.Qxe2 1-0

Thunder & Lightning

A THUNDERSTORM warning was issued for Bavaria yesterday, and showers duly arrived at various points during the day.

It did not seem sensible to stray far, so I confined my walking to part of the Bischofsgrün Panoramaweg, always being within reasonable distance of shelter in case I got caught in the open.

All turned out well, and I took a few photos, albeit rather reminiscent of previous ones.

Fine display of foxgloves near Hotel Kaiseralm

The so-called White Main!

Brief uphill section

Getting Better And Better

THE engines, that is, not necessarily me.

I have downloaded an updated version of the free engine Stockfish, called Stockfish16.1, and a newly available free version of Komodo, known as Dragon1.

Both are easily found on the internet, and are easy to download, and, all things considered, fairly easy to setup to analyse games in ChessBase (I happily use version 9.0 - so much cleaner and less cluttered than more-modern versions of the program).

Bischofsgrün Round Seven

Spanton (1942) - Matthias Schmidt (1914)

Sicilian Bb5(+)

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+ Nd7 4.a4!?

There are three more-popular moves in ChessBase's 2024 Mega database: c3, d4 and especially 0-0. All four moves have been played by Magnus Carlsen.

4...a6 5.Bc4 Ngf6 6.Nc3 g6 7.0-0 Bg7 8.d3 0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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White has a greater presence on the fourth rank, and the black queen's knight is awkwardly placed. However, Stockfish16 reckons the position is equal, and Komodo14.1 gives White at best a tiny pull.

9.a5!?

This appears to be a novelty, and is the top choice of Komodo14.1. Stockfish16 also likes it, along with 9.Bf4. The text transposes the game into a position occurring 32 times in Mega24.

Instead Kaiqi Yang (2481) - Sergey Drigalov (2490), Chess.com Blitz 2021, went 9.h3 Ne5?! 10.Nxe5 dxe5 11.a5, after which White had the upper hand, according to the engines (but 0-1, 51 moves).

9...Nb8!? 10.Bd2

The engines reckon 10.e5!? gives a slight edge.

10...Nc6 11.Ne2!?
Tamás Fodor Jr (2506) - Gábor Papp (2557), Hungarian Championship (Budapest) 2022, saw 11.Nd5 Nd7!? 12.Qc1 e6, with a completely equal game, according to the engines (½–½, 56 moves).

11...Nd7!?

The engines reckon Black is at least slightly better after 11...Bg4.

12.Ra2 Nde5 13.Nxe5 Nxe5 14.Bc3!? Nxc4 15.dxc4 Be6 16.Bxg7 Kxg7 17.Qd2

How would you assess this middlegame?

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White's pawn-structure is a little compromised, and the white queen's rook is misplaced. But White has more space, a half-open d file and the slightly safer king. The engines reckon White has at least a slight edge.

17...f5!?

How should White proceed?

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18.Nf4?!

This has a tactical flaw.

The engines like 18.exf5!?, even though it opens lines for Black's bishop and queen's rook, one continuation being 18...Rxf5 19.Re1 Kg8!? 20.b3 Bd7 21.Ng3 Rf7 22.Raa1, with the engines claiming White has the upper hand.

18...Qd7

The engines point out 18...Bxc4! 19.Qc3+ e5 20.Nh5+ gxh5 21.Qxc4, after which Komodo14.1 gives Black a slight edge, but Stockfish16 reckons White has full compensation for a pawn.

19.Qc3+ Kg8 20.Nd5 Rae8

Not 20...fxe4? 21.Nb6 etc, but the engines prefer 20...Bxd5 21.exd5 and then 21...Rae8.

21.e5 Qc6 22.Rd1 Kf7?!

Activating the king in the middlegame is rarely a good idea, and this seems no exception. The engines suggest taking on e5 or d5, in each case claiming a slight edge for White.

23.exd6 Qxd6 24.Raa1 Rd8 25.Rd3 Bxd5 26.cxd5 Qf6 27.Qxf6+?

This lets Black off the hook. Instead 27.Qb3 protects b2, pressures b7 and threatens a discovered check - enough for a winning advantage, according to the engines.

27...Kxf6 28.Re1!?

Best may be 28.c4, one point being 28...e5?! is met by 29.Rb3, eg 29...Rf7 30.Rb6+ Kg5!? 31.Re1 e4 32.f3 exf3 33.gxf3 Kf4 34.Kf2, after which White has a protected passed pawn and the more-active rooks. Instead the engines reckon Black is fine after 28...e6 or 28...Rd6.

28...Rd6

The engines like 28...c4, eg 29.Rd4 e5 (this now works) 30.Rxc4 Rxd5, claiming Black has an edge. Perhaps a better try is 29.Re6+ Kf7 30.Rde3, but again the engines prefer Black after 30...Rd7.

29.Rb3!? Rxd5 30.Rxb7 Rd2 31.c3

Komodo14.1 gives White at least a slight edge after 31.Ra7!? Rxc2 32.Rxa6+ Kf7 33.Ra7, but Stockfish16 calls the position equal.

31...Rfd8 32.h4 R8d7 33.Rb6+ R7d6 34.Rb7 Rd7 35.Rb6+ ½–½

Main Source

FROM the top of the Ochsenkopf it is possible to join the Main hiking trail, which passes the spring that is the source of the White Main, which in turn is the source of the Main.

The source proved a good spot for lunch

Eighteen years ago I walked from London to Frankfurt, my route taking me along the Rhine until it was joined by the Main at Mainz.

From Mainz I followed the Main up to Frankfurt, so now I can say I have been to the final destination and the source of one of Europe's most famous rivers (although I have not seen much in-between).

This early section of the Main walk is another Bischofsgrün-area trail with strange granite-rock formations

The White Main is red for much of its early journey

At times it seems as if blood is flowing

The contrast between sun and shade makes for even more-vivid colouring

But civilisation is never far away

Bischofsgrün Round Six

Rolf Bachmann (1917) - Spanton (1942)

London System

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 e6 3.Bf4 Bd6 4.e3!? Nf6

The mainline in ChessBase's 2024 Mega database runs 4...Bxf4 5.exf4 Qd6 6.Qd2 Nf6 7.Nc3, with a slight edge for White, according to Stockfish16, although Komodo14.1 reckons the position is equal.

5.c3 0-0 6.Bd3 c5 7.Bxd6!? Qxd6 8.dxc5!?

The engines are happy enough with this, but giving up the centre makes a strange impression. However, White will gain a tempo on the black queen.

8...Qxc5 9.0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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Black has more space in the centre, but White has the better bishop. Komodo14.1 gives Black a slight edge, but Stockfish16 calls the game equal.

9...Nc6 10.Nbd2

The engines like this and 10.b4!?

10...e5 11.Bc2 Bg4 12.h3 Bh5 13.Nb3!?

Moving the queen to break the pin on the king's knight may be better.

13...Qe7 14.g4!?

The engines reckon this and 14.Qe1!? are of roughly equal value.

How should Black proceed?

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14...Nxg4!?

This gives a slight edge, according to the engines, but they prefer the prosaic 14...Bg6.

15.hxg4 Bxg4 16.Qxd5 Rad8 17.Qe4 f5 18.Qc4+ Kh8

How would you assess this imbalanced middlegame?

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Materially, Black only has a pawn for a knight, but the exposed white king gives good attacking chances. The engines reckon Black is slightly better.

19.Nh2 Bh3

An intriguing line given by the engines runs 19,,,e4!? 20.Nxg4 Qg5 21.Qe2 Ne5 22.f4 exf3 23.Qh2 Qxg4+ (23...fxg4?? 24.Qxh7#) 24.Kh1 Rf6 25.Rg1 Qc4 26.Rxg7! Kxg7 27.Qxe5, with an unclear position that they reckon is roughly equal.

20.Kh1 Bxf1 21.Rxf1 e4 22.Qe2 Rf6 23.f4 exf3 24.Rxf3 g6

If 24...f4?! then 25.Ng4.

25.Qf2 Ne5 26.Rf4 Nd3 27.Bxd3 Rxd3 28.e4?

After 28.Nf1 or 28.Rf3 White at worst has a slight disadvantage, according to the engines.

28...Rd1+

Even stronger is 28...g5!, the point being 29.Rxf5? fails to 29...Qxe4+ 30.Rf3 Rd1+ 31.Kg2 g4.

29.Kg2

Or 29.Nf1 g5 30.Rf3 Qxe4, when 31.Nbd2 Qg4 32.Qd4!? Qxd4 33.cxd4 leaves Black with a large advantage, according to the engines.

29...Re6 30.Qxa7?

The engines give 30.Qc5!? Qg5+ 31.Rg4! Qd8 32.Rf4 b6 33.Qb4!?, but agree Black is winning, eg 33...Qg5 34.Rg4! Qe7!? 35.Qxe7 Rxe7 36.Rf4 Rxe4 37.Rf2 Kg7, although there is a lot of play left.

30...Qg5+ 31.Kf3 fxe4+

Other moves also win.

32.Ke2

Not 32.Ke3? Qg1+.

32...Qxf4 33.Qa8+ Kg7 34.Qxb7+ Kh6 35.Kxd1 Qxh2

Black is 'only' the exchange up, but White's exposed king is the most significant factor

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36.Nd4 Rf6 37.Qb5 Rf2 38.Qe8?

The only move to keep the game going, for a while, is 38.Ne2, but 38...Rf1+ 39.Kd2 Qf2 40.Qc4 Qd1+ 41.Ke3 Rf3+ 42.Kxe4 Qh4+ 43.Kd5 Rf5+ etc wins.

38...Rf1#

Panoramaweg

THE Bischofsgrün Panoramaweg passes close to Hotel Kaiseralm, the venue for the chess.

As with the walk I took on Sunday, it is well-waymarked, and is a lot less challenging than the Weißmain Ochsenkopf Steig.

Waymarks are prominently displayed

Pretty stretches of water to admire

Plenty of places to stop to eat, or just rest

The route runs by a former sanatorium that was turned into a military hospital from 1914-20.

What remains of the entrance

Roughly translated, the stone reads: From 1914-20 the sanatorium was a military hospital. Of the soldiers who died there, 21 were buried in the grounds. The small cemetery was redesigned in 1954 and expanded as a soldiers' memorial by Paul Dürrbeck. Since then it has been a discreet place of pilgrimage to dead soldiers.

A search on the internet reveals that Dürrbeck was the chief physician of the sanatorium, and that in 1954 he had a bell-tower memorial erected for the dead of "the three great wars since 1870," ie the Franco-Prussian War, WW1 and WW2.

The panoramic views are nothing to get excited about, although this one does show, in the background, a transmitter on top of Ochsenkopf mountain

And on this walk there are other flowers apart from foxgloves

A hunter's hide

Bischofsgrün Round Five

Spanton (1942) - Paul Stümer (2069)

Sicilian Accelerated Dragon

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 g6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.Nxc6!? bxc6 7.Bc4 Qc7!?

There are four more-popular moves in ChessBase's 2024 Mega database, but the text is the top choice, albeit by a tiny margin, of Stockfish16, and the equal-top choice, along with 7...Qa5, of Komodo14.1.

8.0-0 Nf6 9.Re1 d6 10.f3 0-0

Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position?

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White has more space in the centre, but Black has a central pawn-majority. Komodo14.1 calls the game equal, but Stockfish16 gives Black a slight edge.

11.Be3 Nd7!?

Possibly a novelty. Known moves are 11...Bb7 and 11...a5.

12.f4!? Nf6!? 13.h3 Nxe4!?

A well-known equalising combination, although here it gives chances of an advantage.

14.Nxe4 d5

How should White proceed?

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15.Bd4!?

This may be best. Komodo14.1 reckons so, but Stockfish16 fluctuates between the text, 15.Nc5 and 15.c3.

The problem with 15.Bxd5?! is that after 15...cxd5 16.Qxd5 Be6 Black gets an initiative to go along with the bishop-pair - more than enough compensation for being, at least temporarily, a pawn down, according to the engines.

15...Bxd4+ 16.Qxd4 Qxf4 17.Bxd5 cxd5 18.Qxd5 Bf5!?

After 18...Be6 19.Qg5 White may have a small pull.

19.Qd2 Qe5 20.Nc3 Qc5+ 21.Qf2 Rfc8 22.Qxc5 Rxc5 23.Rxe7 Bxc2

Not 23...Rb8 24.Rxa7 Rxb2?? 25.Na4.

24.Rf1 Bf5 25.g4 Be6 26.Ne4 Rc2 27.Ng5

Black to play and get a slight edge

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27...Bxa2

More promising is 27...Bd5, eg 28.Rd1 Bxa2 29.Rdd7 Rf8 30.Rxa7 Rxb2. The game should probably end in a draw, but only Black has winning chances.

28.Nxf7 Bxf7 29.Rfxf7 Rd8 30.Rg7+ ½–½

Back To Nature

THE Ochsenkopf (English: Oxhead) mountain has a cable car that takes people from Bischofsgrün to the peak.

I went up it on Saturday with a 16-euro return ticket, had a coffee at the summit restaurant and came back down after admiring the (limited) view.

Looking south from Ochsenkopf

On Sunday I returned, armed with bread, cheese and water, this time buying only an up ticket, for 10 euros.

At the top of the mountain is a board with routes of various walks that pass by the summit, and I chose to follow the Weißmain Ochsenkopf Steig (White Main Oxhead Climb).

There is no need to take a map as paths in this part of the world, rather as in Switzerland, are almost always well-waymarked.

My choice meant following the top symbol, which seems to be a combination of rock, river and greenery

Other walkers help by providing stone waymarks where little rocks are piled to indicate a recognised walking route.

Stone waymarks tend to be rather obvious, but depend on the enthusiasm of previous walkers

On this walk they quickly petered out, although not before I passed this over-the-top example

However their absence was not important as the printed waymarks are well-distributed.

Naturally the various paths diverge, as shown by the decreasing number of varied waymarks as I progressed

The route of my chosen walk was almost entirely through forest, with no panoramic views, but there were plenty of interesting granite-rock formations.

It is easy walking at first

But the rocks become more spectacular

Wooden walkways have been added at some of the muddier points, although this section did not seem particularly tricky

Birdsong was more prevalent than I expected, but then not all the trees are bird-unfriendly coniferous.

However I saw no butterflies, and only one type of flower in any abundance.

A common, but beautiful, purple foxglove

More foxgloves

A lone white foxglove

The route is mostly well-maintained, with set-aside picnic spots, but at times the ground is muddy, rocky or overrun with tree roots.

Elaborate picnic site

Unexpected obstacle

Some of the trickier parts of the route are when walking alongside the White Main, which starts a 32-mile (51.7km) journey from the Ochsenkopf to join the Red Main, forming the united Main.

The White Main is little more than a fast-flowing stream while in the Ochsenkopf area

Parts of the White Main are distinctly red, but whether this is due to clayey soil, as is the case with the Red Main, or to iron deposits, as one walker insisted to me, I do not know