Early in the fall of 1858 Morphy moved on to Paris, where he won a match against the French champion Daniel Harrwitz. The winner was to be the first to win seven games, but after a string of losses Harrwitz "fell ill" and the arbiter ruled that he had been defeated (+5 -2 =1). Curiously, Morphy considered that the event was not altogether complete and he gave up his small prize to pay for the great Anderssen to travel from Breslau to Paris, if the latter wished to play a "friendly match". Anderssen, naturally, accepted the challenge (unlike Staunton, Anderssen had no fear or hang ups of facing a potentially stronger opponent!), but informed Morphy that he would be unable to give up his teaching work in the middle of the school year and that he would arrive for the Christmas holiday.
While he was waiting, Morphy gave simultaneous displays, often times blindfolded, and played some friendly games with the French masters, including Arnous de Riviere and Saint-Amant (his future seconde in the match with Anderssen), and also some exhibition games against members of the Royal French court.
But then December came, and Anderssen arrived in Paris. They agreed to play up to seven wins, and a few days later, with Morphy hardly having managed to recover from a flu, there began the historic match between the two most striking and undoubtedly the strongest players of the mid-19th century. As in his match with Harrwitz, Morphy began with a loss. But then he gained a draw and...won five games in a row! Anderssen simply no longer knew what to do: with White he despaired of playing 1.e4 and switched to his patent move 1.a3 (which he later called "crazy"), and with the black pieces he unsuccessfully tried 1...e5, 1...d5, 1...e6 and 1...c5 (all in response to 1.e4). The following is the ninth game of their match. |
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1. e4 c5
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Anderssen, after La Bourdonnais and Staunton, was one of the pioneers of the Sicilian Defense |
 
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2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. Nb5 d6
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It is hard to believe that this modern tabiya occurred over a century and a half ago! |
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6. Bf4
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Fischer's favorite, but later everyone began preferring Karpov's favorite move 6.c4 |
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6... e5 7. Be3 f5
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(?) More than one hundred years would go by in order to show that after 7...Nf6 8.Bg5 Be6 Black has nothing to worry about, ex: 9.N1c3 a6 10.Bxf6 gxf6 11.Na3 d5! etc. (Fischer-Perosian, Buenos Aires 1st match-game 1971). However, Anderssen with his aggressive style wanted to haste a crisis in the center: previously such methods had always worked for him. But he has never had to face an opponent of Morphy's level until now... |
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8. Nb1c3
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(!) Morphy sensed that chess logic was on his side and he found an immediate refutation to Black's premature activity on the kingside. |
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8... f4
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If 8...a6, then 9.Nd5! axb5 10.Bb6 Qh4 11.Nc7+ Kd7 12.Nxa8 Qxe4+ 13.Qe2 with decisive advantage for White. "And after 8...Nf6 9.Bg5 a6 (9...Be7 10.Bxf6 gxf6? 11.Qh5+ Kf8 12.Bc4 Qe8 13.Qh6#) 10.Bxf6 gxf6 11.Qh5+ Kd7 12.Qxf5+ Ke8 13.Qh5+ Kd7 14.Na3 White is a pawn up with the better position" (Maroczy) |
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9. Nd5
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(!) |
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9... fxe3
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there is already no way back for Black |
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10. Nbc7+ Kf7 11. Qf3+
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(?!) 11.Nxa8 was probably stronger, ex: 11...exf2+ 12.Kxf2 Qh4+ 13.g3 Qxe4 14.Bg2. But Morphy did not want to divert his sights from the enemy king, and this presumptuousness allowed some counter-chances... |
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11... Nf6 12. Bc4 Nd4
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(!) Anderssen finds the sharpest reply |
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13. Nxf6+ d5
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(!) Bad is 13...ke7 14.Nfd5+ Kd7 15.Qf7+ Be7 (15...Kc6 16.Nb4+) 16.fxe3 Rf8 (or a6...Nxc2+ 17.Kd2) 17.exd4 Rxf7 18.Bb5#. It is doubtful whether Anderssen worked out all the consequences of 13...Kg6, but his combinative feeling did not let him down: 14.Qh5+ Kxf6 15.Ne8+ (Maroczy suggested 15.fxe3, as in the game, but here after 15...Qxc7 16.Rf1+ Nf5 it comes to nothing) 15...Qxe8 16.Qxe8 Nxc2+ (16...d5 17.0-0-0!) 17.Kf1 e2+! (17...Nxa1 18.g4!) 18.Bxe2 Nxa1 19.g4! and Black, despite the favorable material balance, is helpless against the new wave of the attack. |
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14. Bxd5+
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The critical moment of the battle. |
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14... Kg6
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(?) "An oversight! Black thought that after 15.Qh5+ Kxf6 16.Qf7+ (now 16.Ne8+? is not possible in view of 16...Qxe8 17.Qxe8 Bb4+ -- Kasparov) 16...Kg5 he would be able to save his king, but he overlooked 16.fxe3! with a decisive attack on the f-file. The game was played very quickly, otherwise Anderssen would undoubtedly have noticed this simple move" writes Maroczy. "It was possible to avoid the immediate danger by 14...Qxd5 15.Nfxd5+ Nxf3+ 16.gxf3 exf2+ 17.Kxf2 Bc5+ 18.Ke2 Rb8 when Black, with two bishops against two knights, does not stand badly." But in Kasparov's opinion, Black is simply a pawn down, and after 19.b4 Bf8 (19...Bd6 20.Nb5) 20.Rhd1 (or 20.c4 immediately) 20...bd7 21.c4 Black has a technically lost endgame.
White could have been caused more problems by Zukertort's suggestion of 14...Ke7:
1) 15.Ng8+?! Kd6 16.Qf7 Nxc2+ 17.Kd1 (17.Ke2 Bg4+ 18.f3 Nd4+ 19.Kxe3 Qxc7 20.Qxc7+ Kxc7 21.fxg4 Bd6) 17...Nxa1 18.Nxa8 Bg4+ 19.f3 Bd7! and Black is winning;
2) 15.Qh5 gxf6 16.Qf7+ Kd6 17.Nxa8! (the only way: 17.Ne8+? Qxe8 18.Qxe8 Nxc2+ 19.Kf1 e2+ 20.Kg1 Nxa1 etc.) 17...Nxc2+ (17...Qe7 18.0-0-0) 18.ke2 Qe7 19.Qxe7+ Bxe7 20.Rac1 Nd4+ 21.Kxe3 Bd7 22.rc7! Rxa8 23.Rxb7 Bc6 24.Bxc6 Nxc6 25.Rc1 Nd8 26.Rd1+ Ke6 27.Rc7 Rb8. According to Maroczy, "White's position is slightly better,", but in Kasparov's opinion after 28.b3 Black cannot hold out. |
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15. Qh5+ Kxf6 16. fxe3
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(!) Perhaps Anderssen was hoping that his young opponent would lose his way in the mass of tactical complications, but Morphy maintained a clear head. It turns out that the King's Gambit is not the only opening where the enemy king can be finished off on the open f-file... |
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16... Nxc2+
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(?) This loses immediately, but 16...Qxc7 would have merely prolonged the agony: 17.Rf1+ (much clearer than Maroczy's suggestion of 17.exd4 Ke7 18.0-0-0) 17...Nf5 (17...Ke7? 18.Rf7+) 18.Rxf5+! Bxf5 19.Qxf5 Ke7 20.Qe6+ Kd8 21.0-0-0! Bd6 (or 21...Qd7 22.Bxb7) 22.Bxb7 etc. |
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17. Ke2
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Black resigned in view of the continuation 17...Nxa1 18.Rf1+ Ke7 19.Qxe5+ Kd7 20.Be6+ Kc6 21.Rc1+ Kb6 22.Qb5#
1-0
An impressive defeat of the champion of the Old World! This game lasted all of half an hour. After gaining revenge on the 77th move in the very next game, Anderssen joked gloomily: "Morphy wins in 17 moves, whereas it takes me 77. However, this is still bearable..." By winning the 11th game, Morphy won the match (+7 -2 =2), and thus in just one year he had clearly demonstrated that he had no equal in the world.
"Morphy possesses the secret of invincibility," the newspapers enthused. The loser of the match, although shocked, also worthily assessed his opponent's immense triumph, publicly declaring that Morphy played much more strongly and solidly than La Bourdonnais, and admitting: "It is useless fighting against this man; for me he is too strong. He is accurate and faultless, like a machine, whereas I am only a mere mortal..." Later, Anderssen shared a very important observation: "Morphy treats chess with the seriousness and conscientiousness of an artist...For him a game of chess is a sacred duty..."
Before Morphy left Paris, a splendid farewell banquet was held in his honor. To the applause of the public, the chairman Saint-Amant crowned with a laurel wreath a marble bust, specially made for the occasion, of the "king of all kings", which became one of the sights of the Cafe de la Regence.
Paul was greeted even more triumphantly in New York. An official celebration in his honor took place in a hall seating two thousand, where enormous shields were erected with the names of his defeated opponents. When Morphy appeared, a hymn was played; then the chess king was presented with a gift from the nation - a rosewood table, encrusted with pearl and silver, a chess board with squares of mother-of-pearl and ebony, with gold and silver pieces on cornelian pedestals...He was also presented with a gold clock with diamonds, where the hours were indicated by red and black chess pieces. For the first time in chess history, a victory was truly recognized as an event of national importance!
What was the secret to Morphy's invincibility? I think that it was a combination of a unique natural talent and brilliant erudition. His play was the next, more mature stage in the development of chess. Morphy had a well-developed "feeling for position", and therefore he can be confidently regarded as the "first swallow" -- the prototype of the strong 20-th century GM.
Like Philidor a hundred or so years before him, Morphy was GREATLY ahead of his time. As Euwe put it: "If the distinguishing feature of a genius is that he is far ahead compared with his epoch, then Morphy was a chess genius in the complete sense of the word." He spontaneously established the three main principles of opening play: 1) the rapid development of the pieces; 2) the seizure of the center; 3) the opening of lines. To formulate these and other principles of positional play required a furth |
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