Checkmating with the Queen
The Queen is a very powerful piece and there are several ways to checkmate with it. Here are some checkmating patterns:
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The Queen must force the enemy King to the edge of the board and then the King comes to help the Queen deliver checkmate. Notice how in the first two diagrams the King is protecting the Queen from being captured. In the last two diagrams the King is guarding the escape squares.
In this diagram the Black King is in the centre of the board. White must force it to the edge.
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1.Qc4 The Queen advances to a square that is a Knight's jump away from the King. |
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She then drives the King to the edge of the board
by keeping a Knight's jump distance away. |
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Beware! The Queen cannot get any closer to the King. If White moves the Queen to f7 Black's King is stalemated and the game is a draw. This is a very common trap!
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The White King now needs to come to the Queen's aid. |
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This is the pattern shown in the third diagram above!
Once again, you must practise this way of checkmating. A Queen against a lone
King endgame is very common when a player has managed to promote a pawn so
you must know how to carry it out, especially if your opponent is very stubborn
and will not resign. Remember too that you must checkmate within 50 moves as
it is a draw if 50 consecutive moves occur without a capture or pawn move.
