- The ranks are the rows of squares, left to right.
- Three key ranks are:
- The back rank (1st or 8th)
- The seventh rank -- rooks on the seventh rank are very powerful (Capablanca-Tartakower, Marshall-Capablanca)
- The third rank -- rooks can sometimes switch to a different wing quickly using the third rank rook lift[/b] (Miles-Clarke, Whiteley-Anagnostopoulos). Beginners often use this idea, then get put off it because they lose Rooks to Bishops, and have to learn how to use it properly later, perhaps having forgotten all about it.
Click [...] to see list of games
[Event "New York International Masters-01"]
[Site "New York"]
[Date "1924.03.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Capablanca, JR."]
[Black "Tartakower, S."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A85"]
[Annotator "endgame: rook"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "1924.03.16"]
[EventRounds "22"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
1. d4 e6 2. Nf3 f5 3. c4 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. Nc3 O-O 6. e3 b6 7. Bd3 Bb7 8. O-O
Qe8 9. Qe2 Ne4 10. Bxe7 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Qxe7 12. a4 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Nc6 14. Rfb1
Rae8 15. Qh3 Rf6 16. f4 Na5 17. Qf3 d6 18. Re1 Qd7 19. e4 fxe4 20. Qxe4 g6 21.
g3 Kf8 22. Kg2 Rf7 23. h4 d5 24. cxd5 exd5 25. Qxe8+ Qxe8 26. Rxe8+ Kxe8 27. h5
Rf6 28. hxg6 hxg6 29. Rh1 Kf8 30. Rh7 Rc6 31. g4 Nc4 32. g5 Ne3+ 33. Kf3 Nf5
34. Bxf5 gxf5 35. Kg3 Rxc3+ 36. Kh4 Rf3 37. g6 Rxf4+ 38. Kg5 Re4 39. Kf6 Kg8
40. Rg7+ Kh8 41. Rxc7 Re8 42. Kxf5 Re4 43. Kf6 Rf4+ 44. Ke5 Rg4 45. g7+ Kg8 46.
Rxa7 Rg1 47. Kxd5 Rc1 48. Kd6 Rc2 49. d5 Rc1 50. Rc7 Ra1 51. Kc6 Rxa4 52. d6
1-0
[Event "New York"]
[Site "New"]
[Date "1918.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Marshall"]
[Black "Capablanca"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D64"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "1918.??.??"]
1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Rc1 c6 8. Qc2
dxc4 9. Bxc4 Nd5 10. Bxe7 Qxe7 11. O-O Nxc3 12. Qxc3 b6 13. e4 Bb7 14. Rfe1
Rfd8 15. d5 Nc5 16. dxe6 Nxe6 17. Bxe6 Qxe6 18. Nd4 Qe5 19. Nxc6 Qxc3 20. Rxc3
Rd2 21. Rb1 Re8 22. e5 (22. f3 f5 23. exf5 Ree2 {[#] with doubled rooks on the
seventh "enough to frighten a man to death" (Chernev)}) 22... g5! 23. h4 gxh4
24. Re1 Re6 25. Rec1 Kg7 26. b4 b5 27. a3 Rg6 28. Kf1 Ra2 29. Kg1 h3 30. g3 a6
31. e6 Rxe6 32. g4 Rh6 33. f3 Rd6 34. Ne7 Rdd2 35. Nf5+ Kf6 36. Nh4 Kg5 37. Nf5
Rg2+ 38. Kf1 Rh2 39. f4+ Kxf4 0-1
[Event "London BBC TV"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "1976.??.??"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Miles, Anthony"]
[Black "Clarke, Peter H"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D27"]
[WhiteElo "2510"]
[BlackElo "2350"]
[Annotator "strategy: rooks on ranks/files"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "1976.??.??"]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 c5 5. Bxc4 e6 6. Nc3 a6 7. a4 cxd4 8. exd4
Be7 9. O-O Nc6 10. Re1 Nb4 11. Bg5 O-O 12. Ne5 Re8 13. Re3 {[#]} Bd7 {After
playing 13.Re3 Miles spotted 13...Nfd5 14.Nxd5 Nxd5 15.Rh3 Bxg5 16.Qh5 but
wasn't convinced that it worked (16...Qf6!?) - Clarke also thought about it
but avoided it. It does show the risks and opportunities of the Re3-h3 idea}
14. Qb3 a5 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Nxd7 Qxd7 17. Bb5 Nc6 18. d5 {thematic} exd5 19.
Nxd5 Qd6 20. Rd1 Rxe3 21. Qxe3 Nb4 22. Nxf6+ Qxf6 23. Rd7 {[#]} Qxb2 24. Qe7 h6
25. Qxf7+ Kh8 26. h4 Qa1+ 27. Kh2 b6 28. g3 Rc8 29. Re7 Qd4 30. Bd7 {1-0
miles-clarke 1976 (Re8+ Rxe8; Qxe8+ Kh7; Bf5+ mates)} 1-0
[Event "London4"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "1994.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Whiteley, AJ."]
[Black "Anagnostopoulos, Dimitrios"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A52"]
[WhiteElo "2305"]
[BlackElo "2425"]
[Annotator "strategy: rooks on ranks/files"]
[PlyCount "48"]
[EventDate "1994.??.??"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. Nf3 Bc5 5. e3 Nc6 6. Be2 O-O 7. O-O Ncxe5 8.
Nxe5 Nxe5 9. Nc3 Re8 10. b3 a5 11. Bb2 Ra6 {'[#] "A hacker's paradise" - CHESS
magazine'} 12. Ne4 Ba7 13. Qd5 Rae6 {'[#] The Rook pauses to support the
Knight on the half-open e-file'} 14. Qxa5 Bb6 15. Qc3 Qh4 16. f4 Rh6 {'[#] We
all knew that's where it really wanted to go.'} 17. h3 d5 18. Ng5 Qg3 19. c5
Bxh3 20. Nxh3 Rxh3 21. Qe1 Qh2+ 22. Kf2 Bxc5 {'[#] Resigns 0-1'} 23. Bd4 Qxf4+
24. exf4 Bxd4# {0-1 (24) Whiteley-Agnos rooks on ranks and files 1994} 0-1