Postponement of the biennial international CCI Congress in St. Louis
Our chairman Bob van de Velde has received the following message from Tom Gallegos und Luann Woneis, the organizers of the 19th Congress of the Chess Collectors International to be held in St. Louis, U.S.A., originally in May 27-31, 2020:
It has been a difficult decision, but with Coronavirus-related closures and travel restrictions worsening by the day, I'm afraid we must bow to the inevitable, and postpone CCI's 19th Biennial Congress (currently scheduled for May 27-31) until September 2-6, 2020. This new date is provisional, of course. If the pandemic is not over by that time, obviously we might have to postpone it further, or even cancel it altogether. We should know more as events continue to unfold over the spring and summer.
After having explained that the new dates are very favourable for especially the American attendance, Tom Gallegos continues with a short survey regarding the exhibition, exposed during the Congress.
As all members of our Society should know, they have a permanent invitation to attend the congresses and the meetings of de CCI. Therefore we publish the complete letter of Tom Gallegos below.
Read more … Postponement of the biennial international CCI Congress in St. Louis
The annual meeting of the Chess Collectors International in 2020 cancelled
Our chairman Bob van de Velde informed us that the German branche of the Chess Collectors International hat postponed its annual meeting for 2020 to 2021. The meeting was originally planned from 24th tot 27th of September in the German city of Wernigerode in the Harz. More information will follow in due time.
No meeting of the chess motive collectors this year
Our member Wolfgang Pähtz informed us, that the Collector meeting 2020 of the GSM (Gemeinschaft der Schachmotivsammler) in Bad Salzuflen will not take place this year!
More information:
A fresh look on a historical tournament
From our chairman:
On our request Johannes Fischer, a long-time friend of the Chess History and Literature Society, wrote a review of Michael Dombrowsky's Cambridge Springs 1904, the tournament book to which the chess world has looked forward for more than a century. The name of Cambridge Springs is better known as a defensive variation of the Queen’s Gambit than as the spa where the first ‘top tournament’ on American soil was organised. The reviewer is a productive contributor to the German language magazine Karl, das kulturelle Schachmagazin, as far as I know, from its start (2000-2001) in the current format until today, and is collaborator of ChessBase.
Juan Sebastián Morgado: El impresionante Torneo de Ajedrez de las Naciones 1939
Our chairman writes:
From our Argentinian member Juan Sebastián Morgado we have received the announcement of his three-volume monograph on the Chess Olympiad 1939 in Buenos Aires: El impresionante Torneo de Ajedrez de las Naciones 1939. Although written in Spanish and therefore not so easily accessible for all lovers of chess history, it will be a most welcome additional source of information to the issue of Karl, das kulturelle Schachmagazin (3/2019) that recently was devoted to this famous tournament, and the single-volume tournament book the Australian author Justin Corfield wrote on the tournament, Pawns in a greater game; The Buenos Aires Chess Olympiad August-September 1939 (Gentext Publications: Lara [Victoria] 2015).
Juan Morgado was as kind as to send us on our request a extensive synopsis of his work, which we publish here.
[Update 2020-02-18] The PDF that contains the complete text of volume 1 of Juan Morgado’s monograph is available for members under Lectures and Articles [/Update]
Read more … Juan Sebastián Morgado: El impresionante Torneo de Ajedrez de las Naciones 1939
Best Trainer Award for John Donaldson
From our chairman :
Our representative for the American members and as well the deputy chairman of our Society John Donaldson recently has been featured in the American Chess Magazine. The immediate cause for it was the The Best Trainer Award presented to him by the FIDE Trainers’ Commission for his captaincy of the successful US Teams (gold and silver) in the Olympics 2016 and 2018. We congratulate him heartily on this honourable award!
Bob van de Velde
More information:
Russian Chess Literature: Early Periodicals - Table
by Michael Clapham
Part one: Russian Chess Literature: A brief history
Part two: Russian Chess Literature: Early Periodicals
Part three: Russian Chess Literature: Early Periodicals - continued
Below is a Table of bibliographic references from four sources for Russian chess periodicals up to 1917. The sources are as follows:
- Sakharov 1968 - Shakhmatnaya Literatura SSSR; Bibliografia (1775-1966), Moscow 1968
- Sakharov 2001 - Shakhmatnaya Literatura Rossii; Bibliograficheskiy Ukazatel (1775-1997), Moscow 2001
- LN - Bibliotheca van der Linde - Niemeijeriana, The Hague 1955
- Di Felice - Chess Periodicals; An Annotated International Bibliography, 1836-2008, Jefferson 2008
Read more … Russian Chess Literature: Early Periodicals - Table
Russian Chess Literature: Early Periodicals - continued
by Michael Clapham
Part one: Russian Chess Literature: A brief history
Part two: Russian Chess Literature: Early Periodicals
7. Shashechnitsa: Ezhemesyachnyĭ Zhurnal, Moscow 1891. edited by D. I. Sargin and P. P. Bobrov. Sakharov (1968) 211, Di Felice 2439, LN 6314.
Shashechnitsa was launched in July 1891, six months after the St Petersburg magazine Shakmatnyĭ Zhurnal had commenced, and for the first time, Russia had two contemporary chess journals. Although titled Shashechnitsa (Draughtsplayer), the magazine was conceived as a publication equally devoted to chess and draughts. However, chess predominated from the outset; the first issue included 38 pages of chess and 10 pages of draughts.
Read more … Russian Chess Literature: Early Periodicals - continued
Russian Chess Literature: Early Periodicals
by Michael Clapham
Part one: Russian Chess Literature: A brief history
This second article on Russian chess literature provides information on early chess periodicals, in chronological order. Further bibliographic details can be found in Chess Literature, USSR, (1775-1966), by N. I. Sakharov, Moscow 1968, and Chess Periodicals, by Gino Di Felice, Jefferson and London 2010. The LN catalogue: Bibliotheca van der Linde-Niemeijeriana, The Hague 1955 only lists the library's holdings.
Russian Chess Literature: A brief history
by Michael Clapham
This is the first of a series of articles tracing the history of chess literature in Russia and the Soviet Union. The information has been compiled from many sources, mainly in the English language; these are listed in the Bibliography at the end.
This is very much a work in progress, and further information may be added. My knowledge of the Russian language is non-existent and some of the sources give conflicting or incorrect information. Furthermore, Russian writers and historians generally praise highly their literary heritage while Western commentators are usually more measured in their views. I therefore invite comments on any errors or omissions so that a comprehensive and accurate account of Russian chess literature can eventually be completed.