Légal's Mate
Black pins the f3 knight and assumes the white queen is stuck. She isn't: White moves the knight anyway, lets the queen go, and mates two moves later with three minor pieces. The most famous trap in chess — and a lesson about development far more than about greed.
Themes
- mat
- clouage
- ouverture
Demonstration — use the arrows
Use the ← and → arrow keys, or click a move in the list.
Move list
- 1.
- 2.
- 3.
- 4.
- 5.
- 6.
- 7.
Start