Chess: A Game Of Skill

Chess history dates back to around the 6th century, according to historians. During this time it is believed that the King of India believed that war was the best way to teach values of decision making, valor, circumspection, bravery, and endurance. This belief is the reason why war was chosen as the model for the rules.

Understanding the History

Perhaps one of the most fascinating stories about how chess came about is that the holy saint. Sissa was with Balhait, the Indian king who was disturbed by the addiction to gambling and games that required no skill. He asked Sissa to create something that would require the mental qualities of foresight, prudence, judgment, valor, circumspection, and reasoning. He wanted this game to be in opposition to the games of chance where luck determines the outcome.

It is said that the saint returned to the King with a board that consisted of 64 squares and the rules are very similar to what is used today. There were 2 armies that each had 32 men and were in 2 colors. The main objective was to capture or kill the king of the other team. In this version there were 4 participants and it was called Chaturanga, which meant 4 bodies. This consisted of foot soldiers, chariots, horses, and elephants.

The game did not reach the western world until almost 1400 years later. The Moors introduced it to Spain and the Italians then learned about it from the Saracens. In the Indian form, the pieces represented the king's army. The vizier would later become a queen in the European version and has stayed that way since that time. The elephants in the first version would become bishops and the chariots turned into rooks.

The Board

The framework of Chess has not changed since it was first brought to India. The square board consists of vertical and horizontal lines that mark off 8 rows containing 8 cells each. The squares are always called black and white, no matter what color they actually are. This is the same for the chessmen that are used. Many scholars are known to play this game and throughout the years it has become available online as well. The online skill game is played in the same manner as the regular board version, with the choice of playing against your friends or playing against a computer program.