About Chess

Chess is a two-player strategy board game played on a 64-square grid. Each player starts with 16 pieces (one king, one queen, two rooks, 2 bishops, two knights and eight pawns. The main goal is to trap the opponent's king so it cannot escape capture, known as checkmate.

Chess began nearly 1,500 years ago in India as chaturanga, a military-themed board game. It sprea to Persia and the Islamic world before reaching Europe by the 10th century. Modern rules, pieces, and the standard Staunton set evolved through the 15th and 19th centuries into today's global competitive sport.