chess-The Oxford Companion to Chess - First Edition by David Hooper & Kenneth Whyld

326 STAUNTON
nane. Acortcmporarv- Charles Tonlinson ( 1808-
97), wdtes: Rumou .. assigned ! different
name to our hero [staunton] vhcn fie nrsr
aPpcared as an actorandnext as a ches amatcrr.
Al the unusually latc agc olz6Staunlon became
anbnious to succeed ar chessi a kcen pariot, hn
notivation nayin part have spnng lrom a desire
to avengc McDoNNrLr's defeat at the hands of a
Fre.chman. A Roo( pLAyER in 1836 (his own
assessment), staunton rosc to the rop in a nere
seved ye.rs. In 1838 he played a lo.g series ot
games wi$ W. D. xva,_s and a match oI2l gamcs
vith ALEXaNDR. in which he suiteied nortilyiilg
deleat du ng the cany sittingsi hut he contidued
to study and to praclise with e.eat d.termi.ation.
l. 1840 he pas slrong enough to defeat H. W.
Pol€rt. a leading Gernan player 1hen residenr in
London. ln the same year he began srning abour
the Cane. A short-livcd column in the Nc, an!/,
Gazcre began in Ma, and ended in Dec. bccausesays
G. wALcR, there *ere 'conplaints ol an
ovcrdose'. More successlul w.s bn work lor rhe
Brnnn t.dratrl which in 1841bccamethe Cte$
PloJ,et s Chlonide,Ea9land s firsi successtul ch css
nagazine. edilcd bv Stamton until 1854. Througb,
out 1842 Staunton played several hu.dred sanes
wilh John cocEMNE. tben on leave lrom India. a
valuabte expcrience lbr rhen bolh.
In 1841the leadinE French player sArNr AMANr
visited London and dclcarcd Stau.ton in a short
conrest (+3=l-2), an elenr that ariracrcd lirdc
atlention; but larerthat yea. th
in a historic encou.ter lasdng lrom 14 Nov. to 20
Dec. Thistook placc belore largc audicn.cs in the
Ianous .arE DE L^ RacENcE. Slaunron\ decisive
victory (+11=4 6) narked the end ol French
chess supremacy, !n end thal Nas sudden, con
pleie. and long-lasting. From thcn unlilihe 1870s
London becane the world s cbes centre. In Od.
18.14St,unlon lnvelledi. Pans r.r i ren,rn mrtch
but belore play could begin he became serio u sly ill
with pneumonia and the match was .ancellcd.
Unwell toi sone nonths aileNards. he neve.tully
rccovcred: his heln Nas pernanently weakened.
In Feb 1845 he beean rhe most imporlanl oi his
joumahft lasks. one ihat he continued until his
death: in the llBnaktl Lod,tr Nc,s he conductcd
thc world\ nost innuendal chess column.
Each weekhe dcaltwith a hundredor6oreleners:
eachtreek hepublishedoneo.morcproblcms j lhc
bestolrhe time. In 1845heconceded oddsof pawn
and tNo molcs and defe.ted several oI hG
cou.tryme. a.d in 18,16 hc won No natches
playing level: soRwrrz (+14=3-7) and HARRwirz
( +7). I. I8,17 Staunron pubhhed bis nost lamous
ches book. the Cnes Pldl.t t Hondbook, kof,
which many generalions oI Englkh-spcaking
playes leamed lhe rudimenls oI ihe game: the lasi
of2l editionswas published in 1939. He published
the Ches Playet s Conpatiatin 1849.
In 1851 Sraunron oreanized rhe wo.lds lirsr
inlernational tournamenl, held in Londo!. He also
played in it. an unwisc decision for one burdened
wnb tbe chore ot organization al tbe same rime
A1ter defeating Horwitz (+4=l 2) in the second
ronnd he lost lo ANDETSSEN. the evcntual winnei
Moreover he sas deleated by wrlrNs. his
erst{hile disciple, in tbe phy otlIorpl.ces. Larer
thar ycar Stannron dcrcatcd,A.Nrs.F (+7=1 2)
andsco.ed +6=l ,1 against Williams, but lost thk
malchbecausehehad conceded hisopponentthree
glmes (art. In1852Stlunlonpublishedl/real.$
Toumametu, ^n
excellent accou.t ol this firsi
ioternational galhering. Subsequenlly he unsuc'
cessfully auedpled to ada.ge a 6arch anh
Anderssen. but forall practical purposcs hc rclired
lrom the gane at tbis time
Anong hn many chess aciliries Slaunton had
long sousht slandardizaiion oI thc rAws oF c Es
and, as Eneland\ representative, he crossed to
Brussels in 1853 lo discuss the laws sith LASA.
Gemany\ Ieading che$ aurhonry. Litlle progress
*as made al $islimc, butthc laNsadoplcd bynDr
in 1929 arc substanliauy in a.cordan.e with
Staunion\ vie$s. This tnp was aho tbeoccasionol
,n innrmsl mrtch hrdlen .ff *hen the \c.re
srood +5=3 4i. Lasat favour. Stlunron rooklhe
milch seriously, succestully requestin8 his Ene
lish liiends to send hin then late( analyses oi tbe
Staunron had narried in 1849 and, recognizing
his neN rcsponsibililics. he nowsough! an o@upa
tio.less haardous lhan thal ofa ches-playcr. In
1856. puuing to use hisknowled8e olElizabethan
and Shakcspearian drama- he oblained a contrac!
to prepare an annotated edirion of shakespe,re's
ptays This Bas published in nonthly instalments
trod No!. 1857 ro May 1860, a worl thar
'combincd commonscns. aith cxhaustive re
search'. (In 1860 lhe monthly paris rcady lor
binding in lhree volumes Nere reissued, in 186,1a
lourlolune repiint withour illustrations Nas
!ri.lcd, and in l9r8 the origi.al version was
published in one volumc.) Staunton, Nho per
formed this task in a remarkably short period. sas
unable to accepl achallenge lron MoRpEt in 1858:
hh publhhcts would nol release hin irod his
.onlract Aite. the proposal lor a mat.n Nd
abandoned Fredeick Milnes Edee (..1830 82), a
lournalisr seekingcopy.sftrcd upa quarrelca(ing
Stau.ton as thc villain. Morphy unvisely signed
some lelter dralted by Edge, while Slaunton.
.odtinuously inportuned by Edge, was once
driven to make a true bur inpoliGly worded
comment about Morphy. Gcn*dly hosever lhese
two greal masters behaved honourably. cach
holding the olher in high regard: but Edgei
insinuations u.fanly blackcncd Slaunton\ repula
Subsequently Sraunton wrotc scveral books,
amoic rhen a1.$ Prari (1860) and thc 6r.ar
School' of Etstdnd (1865), revised with many
additions in 1869 At rhe cnd of his Iife he Nas
working on another cbess book shcn. seized bv a
hcart artack- he died in his library chan.
Staunton was no one\ pupil: what he tearncd