Greco's mate is checkmate on the h-file by a rook or queen against a king in the corner, with a bishop covering g8 and the king's own pawn on g7.
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Start0/1
The bishop never moves and never captures, yet it is the reason the mate exists. Without it, the king steps to g8.
How to do it
- 1Put a bishop on the a2 to g8 diagonal, with nothing in its way.
- 2Open the h-file.
- 3Bring a rook or queen down the h-file with check.
For your level
Before you look for the mate, look at the diagonal to g8. A bishop on b3 or c4 aimed at g8 often makes the attack work.
Check you have it
Pitch it for:
Question 1 of 4
White to play. There is a checkmate in one move — find it.
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Play your move on the board.
Question 2 of 4
Play the moves through. What has happened to the king?
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Question 3 of 4
After the last move, how many legal moves does the mated side have?
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Question 4 of 4
Which black pawn has no enemy pawn able to stop it?
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Common mistakes
- Opening the h-file while something still blocks the bishop's diagonal.
- Trading off the bishop because it seems to do nothing, when it makes the mate.
Questions
- Does the black pawn have to be on g7?
- Something must take g7 away from the king. Usually it is the king's own pawn, but another black piece standing there, or a white piece covering the square, does the same job.