Queen : The strongest piece on the
board.
Most of the historians agree with the fact that Chess is
originated in India. The commercial and cultural intercourse between the Persia
and India took the game to Persia and then to West. During the ancient period
when the chess was known as ‘Chaturang’ in India there was no piece known as
‘Queen’. But instead there was a piece known as ‘Mantri’ (The canceller of the
King). Since He was second to the king he has limited mobility unlike the
modern Queen has. In Arabic language ‘Mantri’ is called as ’ Wazir’ and still
now in regional languages in India Queen is called as ‘Vazir’.
The moves of kings, Rooks and Knights in Chaturang were the
same as they now, the absence of a Queen (Which even in the two handed chess
was long only represented by a piece with the single square move) and the
limited power of the Bishops and pawns must have made Chaturang a dull affair.
When the King was the tallest cylinder on the board, the
Mantri was the simply somewhere small stick of wood. Later, when the piece
acquires royal characteristics (as the Queen), she was represented as an image,
somewhat shorter than King.
It was the original Sanskrit practice to station the Kings
on different files and to place each counselor on his master’s left. Thus the
queens did not face each other, are they do in the initial position of modern
chess. By the Ninth century, however, the Arabs were stationing the king and counselor
in their present positions.
William Hone, Year Bok of 1832 writes,
“Strangely inconsistent with our ideas of propriety and
probability, the Queen is the chief character in the contest. She is not merely
the soft excitement of the war who bids her king go fourth with her blessing;
no, she is the active, undaunted, indefatigable leader of an army, herself a
host!”
Modern Queen has the advantage of moving as a rook, in
straight forward, backward and sideway, to the extent of board, and as a
Bishop, diagonally, with the same range. This power of mobility made the Queen
most powerful piece on the battle ground.
Place the Queen on e4-square i.e the centre, it controls 27
squares besides the one she stands on.
There are the guidelines while mobilizing it,
·
The Queen should be rarely used to defend or
attack any point if you can do it as well with a subordinates.
·
It is not good to play the queen out in the game
at the beginning, because she can be attacked by inferior pieces and is
compelled to retire with the loss of many moves.
·
Being the strongest piece in the army, its
safety has the paramount importance.
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