| Alexandre Deschapelles | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Alexandre Louis Honore Lebreton Deschapelles |
| Country |  France |
| Born | March 7, 1780 France |
| Died | 1847 (aged ~67) |
| World Champion | c1800-c1820 (Unofficial) |
Alexandre Deschapelles (March 7, 1780 – 1847) was a French chess player who, between the death of Philidor and the arrival of Louis de la Bourdonnais, was probably the strongest player in the world. He was considered the unofficial world champion from about 1800-1820.
A soldier in Napoleon's army, he lost his right hand in battle and was thereafter nicknamed "Manchot" (one-armed). He also received a massive sabre-wound down the entire length of his face, which caused the Phrenology enthusiasts of his era to suggest "cranial sabre-wounds" were responsible for his amazing chess skill.
Deschapelles had an incredible aptitude for games. Three months after learning the moves of Polish Draughts, he defeated the French champion of that game, and claimed to have learned all of his chess knowledge in just three days.
About 1820 he accepted Louis de la Bourdonnais as a student, and following defeats to John Cochrane and William Lewis two years later, Deschapelles switched to playing Whist (the Deschapelles coup in Contract Bridge is named after him). Returning to chess competition in the mid 1830s, Deschapelles continued his trademark of always giving his opponents "odds" (see chess handicap).
Deschapelles reportedly once asked an opponent if they would play a game for stakes, to which they stated "My religion forbids me to play for money", Deschapelles replied "Mine forbids me to be absurd!"
External links
- Alexandre Deschapelles player profile at ChessGames.com
 |
This biographical article related to French chess is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
