Tamerlane Chess(a.k.a. Timur Chess) |
|
|
There were no reason to stop the quest for complexity with Complete Chess. This variant of Shatranj was even bigger with a 11x10 board. The first mention is from about 1350 in al-Amuli's Treasury of the Sciences. A little bit later, Timur (or Tamerlane) (1336-1405) was seizing the power in Asia. According to his biograph Ibn ‘Arabshah (d.1450), he loved to play Chess and, precisely, he preferred to play Shatranj al-kabir, "great Chess", rather than Shatranj ash-shaghir, the ordinary "small" Chess. This large Chess variant is rather known and popular, probably because the English linguist Duncan Forbes showed a strong enthusiasm for it in his book, History of Chess (1860) with about 30 pages of description! Our knowledge of rules comes from the translation of a Persian manuscript attributed to Hajji Khalifa (d.1658) but whose original author may be ‘Ali ash-Shatranji, a famous Chess champion at Timur's court. DESCRIPTION: The board has usually 112 squares : 10 lines x 11 columns with one "citadel" square in both sides. (On some historical diagrams, the board may have 11 or 12 lines. Sometimes, the citadels are omitted). Every player has 28 pieces: 1 Shah, 1 Minister (Ferz), 1 Vizir (Wazir), 2 Giraffes (Zurafa) , 2 Vanguards or Scouts (Tali'a), 2 Horses, 2 "Rukhs", 2 "Dabbabas", 2 Camels (Jamal) , 2 Elephants and 11 Pawns. Pawns are all different: they were miniature reproduction of one given major piece. From left to right, they were:
Several starting positions are known. The English orientalist Nathaniel Bland (1850) had reported two.
"Masculine " setup (the most known) "Feminine" setup Manuscripts from ‘Arabshah show a third position. The copy held at BNF (Paris), dated 1451, shows it on a board without citadels! Page of BNF manuscript (taken from http://classes.bnf.fr/echecs/grand/2_07.htm) Setup transcripted from BNF manuscript Thomas Hyde gave a similar array but a different illustration on his Mandragorias seu Historia Shahiludii published in 1689. Here, the board has 12 lines! Illustration of Timur's chess in Thomas Hyde's Mandragorias (1689) In addition, some other manuscripts show a variant where all vacant squares have been filled with new pieces. This "full Tamerlane Chess" is presented on a dedicated page. RULES: Moves and captures of major pieces
Moves of Camel, Dabbaba and Vizir Moves of Vanguard Moves of Giraffe Promotion of Pawns Every Pawn get promoted to the piece that it represents when reaching the last row. The Pawn of Shah is promoted to a Prince (Shâhzâda) and then, moves like a Shah, except that it may be captured. The Pawn of Pawns has a more complex cycle:
End of game Citadels: only the Shah is allowed to penetrate the opposing citadel. By doing this, one can ask for a draw game, or can exchange the places of Shah with Prince or Adventice if the player possesses one of these. No piece can penetrate its own citadel except the Adventice. In such a case, a player prevent his opponent to bring his Shah there and obtain a draw. Shah's evasion: once in the game, a Shah in check or mate or stalemate, can exchange his position with any piece from his side. Victory: the final goal is he capture of the opposing Shah by mate or stalemate, after the possibility of Shah's evasion has been exercised. Baring the opposing Shah is not a victory here: that Shah can continue to play. OTHER SHATRANJ VARIANTS: EXTERNAL LINKS: |
References:
H.J.R.Murray, "A History of Chess", Oxford, 1913.
John Gollon, "Chess Variations, Ancient, Regional, Modern",Charles E.Tuttle Company, Rutland, USA, 1968.
Duncan Forbes,History Of Chess, London, Allen, 1860, reprintPublishing House Moravian Chess, CAISSA-90, ISBN 80-7189-556-3.
(Remark: despite Forbes' book has been completely surpassed by Murray's on many aspects, it is very intersting here because of the very deep study made for Tamerlane Chess. Apparently, Forbes was enthusiast about this game).
Timur (13361405)
05/07/2024