London, 1834. In the great series of matches between France's La Bourdonnais and England's McDonnell — the first informal world-championship contest — came this 16th game of the fourth match. It ends with one of the most famous images in all of chess: three connected black passed pawns rolling unstoppably to the eighth rank. The young Kasparov later said this position made him fall in love with the game.
Connected passed pawns in the centre can be worth more than pieces. La Bourdonnais sacrificed material to set his d- and e-pawns rolling; once they reached the third rank, supported by the queen, no white piece could stop them all. Trust your passed pawns — they grow more dangerous with every square.
Its finish — three connected black passed pawns marching to the back rank against the white pieces — is one of the most striking images in chess. It is often called the first 'immortal' game and is a textbook lesson in the power of passed pawns.
A series of six matches (85 games) played in London in 1834 between France's La Bourdonnais and England's McDonnell, widely seen as the first unofficial world-championship contest. La Bourdonnais won the overall series.
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