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Chess Back Rank Checkmates

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Black's King is checkmated on the back rank.

The back rank checkmate is one of the most critical mating patterns for beginners and novices to understand. The diagram to the right shows the back rank mate in it's basic form. Black's King is hemmed in by his pawns on the back rank. The back rank is the 8th rank when referring the black's King, the 1st rank when referring to white's King. The white Rook delivers check along this rank. The black King can't escape, and is checkmated.


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Black's King is in check on the back rank. Black to play.

Let's look at a slightly different example. In this case, the white rook delivers check on the back rank, but black has an interposing move. He can play 1... Re8 and block the check. However, this block doesn't help, as white can play 2. Rxe8#, completing the back rank mate.


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White to play. Can he mate black on the back rank?

Calculating back rank mates often requires you to use your counting skills to determine if white has enough power to mate on the back rank. In the example to the right, can white deliver mate on the back rank?

The answer is yes. White wins by: 1. Rxd8 Rxd8 2. Rxd8#. White was attacking the black Rook on d8 twice, while black only had one defender.


We'll go through some exercises over the next few pages to emphasize the common patterns and themes in back rank mates.
Back - Next
Chess Tactics - Table of Contents
Introduction - What Are Tactics?
Piece Safety - Exercises (1) - Exercises (2)
Counting - Exercises (1) - Exercises (2)
Tactical Motifs Introduction
The Fork - Exercises
The Knight Fork - Exercises
The Pin - Exercises
The Skewer - Exercises
The Discovered Attack - Exercises
Removal of the Guard - Exercises
Back Rank Checkmates - Exercises (1) - Exercises (2)
Conclusion

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