Göttingen manuscript

The Göttingen manuscript is the earliest known work devoted entirely to modern chess. It is a Latin text of 33 leaves held at the University of Göttingen. A quarto parchment manuscript of 33 leaves, ff. 1–15a are a discussion of twelve chess openings, f. 16 is blank, and ff. 17–31b are a selection of thirty chess problems, one on each page with a diagram and solution. Authorship and exact date of the manuscript are unknown. Similarities to Lucena's Repeticion de Amores e Arte de Axedres con CL iuegos de partido (c. 1497) have led some scholars to surmise that it was written by Lucena or that it was one of Lucena's sources. Although the manuscript is generally assumed to be older than Lucena's work, this is not established. The manuscript has been ascribed possible writing dates of 1500–1505 or 1471.

The manuscript is exclusively devoted to modern chess (using the modern rules of movement for the pawn, bishop, and queen, although castling had not yet taken its current form), and no mention is made of the earlier form. The rules are not explained, so the manuscript must have been written at a time and place when the new rules were well established, or it was addressed to a player familiar with the new rules. The addressee of the manuscript is not named, but was evidently a nobleman of high rank. Some particulars of the manuscript suggest that the author was from Spain or Portugal and that it was copied at some point in France, although this is not certain.

The attention paid to the opening in the manuscript reflected the greater importance of study of the early part of the game caused by the changes to the movement of the pieces in modern chess. The old game tended to develop slowly, with victory often achieved by capturing all enemy pieces to the bare king. The modern game developed much more quickly due to the new ability of the pawn to make an initial move of two squares, and the greatly enhanced powers of the bishop and queen. Checkmate became a more common end to the game, and study was required to develop early attacks and defend against them. Subsequent chess writing would continue to emphasise study of the opening (Eales 1985, 78; Murray 1913, 783).

...
Wikipedia