Louis Paulsen
Notable Games

Louis Paulsen

16 celebrated games · 232 in the full archive
Player Index ◈ Biography 232 CURATED GAMES

Notable Games

  • 1857.11.02 Paulsen, Louis vsMorphy, Paul 1-0 Three Knights Opening 34 moves USA-01 Congress Grand Tournament First American Chess Congress, New York 1857, in the final against Paul Morphy, who won the match with five wins, one loss and two draws. This is the one loss. A Three Knights Opening: 30.Rxd7 Rxd7 31.Bxc6 pins the rook on d7 against the black king, and 34.Bxd7 collects it.
  • 1861.09.14 Kolisch, Ignaz vsPaulsen, Louis 0-1 Italian Game: Evans Gambit, Paulsen Variation 28 moves British CA-04 International Masters Bristol 1861, the British Chess Association congress that Paulsen won, against Ignatz Kolisch in the Paulsen Variation of the Evans Gambit, with Paulsen himself defending. 18...c4 and 19...c3 open the c-file, 26...Bxg1 wins the exchange, and the game ends after 28...Nxe4.
  • 1861.10.07 Paulsen, Louis vsMackenzie, George Henry 1-0 Italian Game: Evans Gambit, McDonnell Defense, Main Line 25 moves Paulsen blindfold sim London, October 1861, a game from one of his simultaneous blindfold displays, against George Henry Mackenzie, later the leading player in the United States. An Evans Gambit: the d-pawn breaks through with 21.d6 cxd6 22.Rxd6, and 25.Rxf6 opens the black king.
  • 1862 Paulsen, Louis vsOwen, John 1-0 Owen Defense 24 moves British CA-05 Grand Tournament London 1862, where Paulsen took second prize behind Adolf Anderssen, against John Owen, who finished third, in the Owen Defense. 16.fxe5 Bxf1 17.Rxf1 gives up the exchange, the pawn goes on with 19.e6 and 20.exd7, and 23.d8=Q+ Qxd8 24.Qg7# finishes it.
  • 1862 Steinitz, William vsPaulsen, Louis 0-1 Sicilian Defense: Hyperaccelerated Dragon 51 moves British CA-05 Grand Tournament London 1862 with Black against Wilhelm Steinitz, the future first World Champion, who later wrote that games he saw Paulsen play at this congress changed his ideas about chess. After 48...Rxc3 Steinitz gives up both rooks, 49.Rxg7+ Nxg7 50.Rxg7+ Kxg7 51.Nxe6+, and the game ends after 51...Kg8.
  • 1864 Paulsen, Louis vsSchneider 1-0 Italian Game: Evans Gambit, McDonnell Defense 22 moves Paulsen blindfold sim Leipzig 1864, a blindfold game. In an Evans Gambit Black takes the rook with 12...Qxa1, and the white pawn on d4 runs all the way to promotion: 11.d5, 12.dxc6, 17.cxb7 and 18.bxa8=Q+. The game ends with 22.Rxh6.
  • 1871 Anderssen, Adolf vsPaulsen, Louis 0-1 French Defense: Classical Variation, Swiss Variation 62 moves Westdeutscher SB-09.Kongress plof-1pl Krefeld 1871, the West German congress, with Black against Adolf Anderssen in the play-off after Paulsen, Anderssen and Johannes von Minckwitz tied for first; Paulsen took the title. A French Defense in which the b-pawn decides the bishop ending: 52...b4, 57...b3, the rooks come off with 60.Rxd7+ Kxd7, and 62...Bd1 ends it.
  • 1873.07.22 Paulsen, Louis vsBlackburne, Joseph Henry 1-0 Scandinavian Defense 63 moves Wien International-01 Vienna 1873 against Joseph Henry Blackburne, who tied for first place with Steinitz. A Scandinavian Defense: the queens come off at move 15 and the rook ending begins at move 28. 55.Rxb5 wins the b-pawn, and the game ends at move 63 with the white king on a7 in front of the passed pawn.
  • 1873.08.01 Paulsen, Louis vsRosenthal, Samuel 1-0 Vienna Game 31 moves Wien International-01 Vienna 1873 against Samuel Rosenthal: a Vienna Game with 3.g3, a move Paulsen played five times at this tournament. 21.a5 opens the a-file, 24.Ra7 puts a rook on the seventh, and 30.Rxc6 gxf4 31.Rxd6+ breaks through.
  • 1877.07.16 Paulsen, Louis vsZukertort, Johannes Hermann 1-0 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation 26 moves Leipzig Anderssen Masters Leipzig 1877, the congress held in Anderssen's honor, which Paulsen won with 9 from 11, ahead of Anderssen and Johannes Zukertort. A Four Knights Game, Spanish Variation: 12.Bxf6 gxf6 opens the black king, 17.Qxf6+ wins a pawn, and 23.f6, 25.Bxg8 Nxe3 26.Bxf7 decides it.
  • 1877.07.24 Paulsen, Louis vsAnderssen, Adolf 1-0 Three Knights Opening 26 moves Match Paulsen-Anderssen +5-3=1 Leipzig 1877, from the match Paulsen won against Anderssen after the tournament. A Three Knights Opening, 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 winning the piece back; then 22...Rd4 23.Qxd4 cxd4 24.Bxe7 Rxe7 25.gxh5 leaves White a rook ahead for a pawn.
  • 1879.07.20 Paulsen, Wilfried vsPaulsen, Louis 0-1 Modern Defense 21 moves DSB Kongress-01 Meisterturnier Leipzig 1879, the first German Chess Federation congress, where Paulsen finished second to Berthold Englisch, with Black against his elder brother Wilfried. 13...Bxe4 wins a pawn, the queens come off at move 14, and 20...Rxc4 21.hxg4 Rxg4 leaves Black two pawns ahead.
  • 1882.06.17 Paulsen, Louis vsChigorin, Mikhail Ivanovich 1-0 Scotch Game 30 moves Wien International-02 25years WienerSK Vienna 1882 against Mikhail Chigorin, who later played two world championship matches against Steinitz. A Scotch Game: 15.Bc6 Nxg5 16.Bxa8 wins the exchange, 22.Rxe6 fxe6 23.Bb7 Bxb7 24.Rxd8 clears the way, and the rook takes three pawns before 30.Rh7+.
  • 1883.07.20 Paulsen, Louis vsBier, Martin 1-0 Scotch Game: Classical Variation, Blackburne Attack 16 moves DSB Kongress-03 Meisterturnier Nuremberg 1883, the third German Chess Federation congress, against Martin Bier. A Scotch Game in 16 moves: 11.Nxe6 Bxe3 12.Bb5+ Nc6 13.Nxc7+ Kf8 14.Qxe3 leaves White a piece ahead, and 16.Qxe7+ forces the queens off.
  • 1887.07.20 Zukertort, Johannes Hermann vsPaulsen, Louis 0-1 Sicilian Defense: Grand Prix Attack 41 moves DSB Kongress-05 Meisterturnier Frankfurt 1887 with Black against Johannes Zukertort, who had played Steinitz for the world title the year before. Black wins a pawn with 24...Qxd5, the e-pawn advances with 28...e4 and 33...e3, and 37...Rxd7 wins a piece; the game ends at 41...d4.
  • 1889.07.15 Paulsen, Louis vsBlackburne, Joseph Henry 1-0 Vienna Game: Vienna Gambit 50 moves DSB Kongress-06 Meisterturnier Breslau 1889, at 56, against Blackburne in a Vienna Gambit; Paulsen finished ahead of him in the tournament. 40.Bxb4 wins a rook, 46.Qxd6+ Kxd6 exchanges queens, and the game ends at move 50.
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