Kurt Richter
Notable Games

Kurt Richter

14 celebrated games · 224 in the full archive
Player Index ◈ Biography 224 CURATED GAMES

Notable Games

  • 1928.10.03 Richter, Kurt Paul vsAhues, Carl Oscar 1-0 Ruy Lopez: Closed, Center Attack 36 moves Berliner SV Meisterturnier Berlin 1928 against Carl Ahues, who would take the German championship the following year. Richter storms the kingside with 19.g5, 25.h5 and 26.g6, gives the queen with 29.Qf7 Nxf7, and finishes with mate on the board: 34.Re5+ Kf7 35.Bg6+ Kf6 36.Re6#.
  • 1930 Meyer, E vsRichter, Kurt Paul 0-1 French Defense: Winawer Variation 13 moves Berlin Berlin 1930, thirteen moves with Black in a Winawer French. White goes pawn-hunting with 5.Qxg7 and 7.Qxh7, Richter offers the rook trade 10...Rh8, and after 11.Qxh8+ Qxh8 12.fxe4 Qh4+ 13.Kd2 Qf4+ the exposed king decides it.
  • 1930.12 Richter, Kurt Paul vsDuehrssen, Rudolf 1-0 Torre Attack: Classical Defense, Nimzowitsch Variation 14 moves Berliner SG Meister Berlin 1930 again, fourteen moves in a Torre Attack. 8.Bb5+ Ke7 drives the king out before it can castle, 9.Qh5 pins everything to it, and after 12.exf6+ gxf6 13.Qe5 the threat of 14.Qc7 is unanswerable.
  • 1932.03 Richter, Kurt Paul vsWagner, Heinrich 1-0 Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Exchange Variation 18 moves Niederelbischer SB Hamburg-Berlin 5-11 Hamburg–Berlin 1932, and the record classifies the opening as the Sicilian Defense, Richter–Rauzer Variation — the 6.Bg5 attack that carries his name, played here by the man himself. Eighteen moves: 13.Bd8 buries the bishop behind enemy lines, and 17.Bxf6 gxf6 18.Qh5+ tears the king open.
  • 1933.03.31 Richter, Kurt Paul vsSaemisch, Friedrich 1-0 Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Modern Steinitz Defense 32 moves Berlin-ch of 1933 Berlin championship 1933 against Friedrich Sämisch, another of the strongest German masters. Richter throws the h-pawn up the board from move eight, sacrifices a knight with 19.Nf7 Bxf7, then a rook with 25.Rxf6 Kxf6, and mates the king in the open at 32.Qxf4+.
  • 1934.04.17 Richter, Kurt Paul vsSaemisch, Friedrich 1-0 Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, Modern Steinitz Defense 26 moves Berlin Berlin 1934, Sämisch again and the same Modern Steinitz Ruy Lopez — Richter beat him with this exact set-up more than once. Twenty-six moves: 17.Nxg6 Kxg6 drags the king up, 18.Qf3 and 19.Qxf6 follow, and 24.Rxh6+ Kxh6 25.Rh1+ Bh3 26.Rxh3+ closes it.
  • 1934.06.27 Richter, Kurt Paul vsAhues, Carl Oscar 1-0 Queen's Pawn Game: Chigorin Variation, Alburt Defense 23 moves Bad Niendorf Bad Niendorf 1934, twenty-three moves. Richter gives up the h-pawn and the g-file to Ahues's queen, keeps his own king walking — 13.Kf2, 14.Kg2, 21.Kf3 — and it is the black position that falls apart first: 22.Rah1 Rhf8 23.Nf5.
  • 1935.08.10 Richter, Kurt Paul vsAhues, Carl Oscar 1-0 Rapport-Jobava System 41 moves Bad Nauheim Olympia Trainingsturnier Bad Nauheim 1935, from the German Olympiad training tournament — and the opening is 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Bg5, the line that would later be known by his name alongside Veresov's. Richter grinds it out over forty-one moves, ending 40.Rf7 Kd8 41.Rxe7. 1935 was his best year: German champion, and shared first with Bogoljubow in Berlin.
  • 1937.05.30 Richter, Kurt Paul vsPolzer, Hans 1-0 Sicilian Defense: French Variation 16 moves Bad Elster Bad Elster 1937, sixteen moves. 9.Nxe6 Bxe6 10.Qxd6 wins the bishop outright, and after the queens come off Richter simply has an extra piece and a better position — a reminder that the great attacker did not need an attack.
  • 1941.09.17 Richter, Kurt Paul vsBogoljubov, Efim 1-0 Catalan Opening: Closed 28 moves Europe Tournament Munich 1941 against Efim Bogoljubow, twice a challenger for the world title. A Catalan in which Richter offers the knight on g5 and then on f7 — 21.Nxf7 Qd3 — and takes everything back with interest: 24.Qxe6, 25.Qxe5, 26.Qxb7 and 26.Qxb8+.
  • 1941.09.19 Richter, Kurt Paul vsCortlever, Nicolaas 1-0 Ruy Lopez: Open, Richter Variation 15 moves Europe Tournament Two days later at the same event, and the record names this one the Ruy Lopez, Open, Richter Variation — a second opening carrying his name. Fifteen moves: 10.Nc6 plants a knight on the sixth, and 13.Bxe7 Nxa4 14.Bxd6+ Kd7 15.Bxf8 collects the rook.
  • 1949.05.05 Richter, Kurt Paul vsNuernberg, Friedrich 1-0 Ruy Lopez: Closed, Center Attack 14 moves GER-ch38 (DSB) German championship 1949, fourteen moves. Richter gives back the piece with 8.e5 and 12.e6, prises the king out with 13.exf7+ Kxf7, and 14.Qd5+ wins on the spot.
  • 1950 Richter, Kurt Paul vsKoch, Wilhelm 1-0 Sicilian Defense: Pin Variation, Koch Variation 17 moves Berlin-ch Berlin championship 1950, and the record labels the line after his opponent: the Sicilian Defense, Pin Variation, Koch Variation. Richter answers it with 13.f5 and 14.fxe6, then gives the exchange for the bishop with 15.Rxf6 Qxf6 16.Bg5, and 17.Qg3 leaves the black king on f8 with no defenders.
  • 1937.06.26 Richter, Kurt Paul vsEngels, Ludwig 1-0 Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Classical Variation, Battery Variation 27 moves Bad Saarow Meister Bad Saarow 1937 — a 27-move win with White against Ludwig Engels. Selected in Savielly Tartakower and Julius du Mont, 500 Master Games of Chess, game 307 (PDF page 210).
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