Ruy Lopez Opening: Berlin, Steinitz Hedgehog, Showalter
Ruy Lopez Opening
Definition
The Ruy Lopez, also known as the Spanish Opening, arises after the moves 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5. White’s bishop targets the c6-knight, indirectly pressuring the e5-pawn and staking a claim to long-term queenside play.
Typical Usage
- Appears in every level of play, from scholastic events to World Championship matches.
- Favored by players who enjoy rich, maneuvering middlegames with latent tactical possibilities.
- Acts as a gateway to a vast family of sub-variations (Berlin, Closed, Open, Exchange, Steinitz, Marshall, etc.).
Strategic & Historical Significance
First analyzed by the 16th-century Spanish priest Ruy López de Segura, the opening became the cornerstone of positional chess thanks to Wilhelm Steinitz, Emanuel Lasker, and later José Raúl Capablanca. Modern champions such as Karpov, Kasparov, and Carlsen continue to refine its theory.
Illustrative Example
After 8.h3, we reach one of the main tabiyas of the Closed Ruy López where both sides have completed development and the strategic battle for central and queenside space truly begins.
Interesting Facts
- Statistically, the Ruy Lopez produces more decisive results than the Italian Game despite a superficially similar start.
- Many elite players keep specific Ruy Lopez lines as “World Championship weapons,” revealing novelties only at critical moments.
- In computer chess, even engines running at depth 40+ still debate the objective value of the starting position—proof of its enduring richness.
Berlin (“Berlin Defense”)
Definition
The Berlin Defense is reached via 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6. Black immediately challenges the e4-pawn instead of protecting e5, often leading to early queen exchanges and rock-solid structures.
Practical Usage
- Used by Black to neutralize White’s opening initiative without massive memorization.
- Favored in match play because its endgames are notoriously resilient.
- Offers both “Berlin Wall” (4.O-O Nxe4 5.d4 Nd6 6.Bxc6 dxc6) and the sharper 4.d3 systems.
Strategic / Historical Notes
The line lay in relative obscurity until Vladimir Kramnik employed it against Garry Kasparov in the 2000 World Championship, successfully stifling Kasparov’s Ruy Lopez arsenal and earning the nickname “Berlin Wall.” Since then it has become one of the most heavily analyzed openings in grandmaster practice.
Reference Game
Kramnik – Kasparov, WCh London 2000, Game 1: the Queens were exchanged by move 8, yet Kramnik outmaneuvered Kasparov in a long endgame, proving the line’s robustness.
Trivia
- Because the queens often leave the board early, some players joke they are “signing up for a four-hour endgame at move 8.”
- AlphaZero’s self-play games produced sensational pawn sacrifices in the Berlin, reviving interest in dynamic sub-lines.
Improved Steinitz Variation
Definition
The Improved (or Modern) Steinitz Variation of the Ruy Lopez begins 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 d6. Black defers …d6 until after …a6, gaining the useful tempo of chasing the bishop before locking the center.
Why It Is Played
- Combines the solidity of the old Steinitz Defense (3…d6) with the positional benefits of first forcing Ba4.
- Aims for flexible development: …Bd7, …Nf6, …Be7, and possibly …b5–b4 to harass White’s knight.
- Allows Black to steer the game away from the ultra-theoretical Marshall and Berlin systems.
Strategic Considerations
Black accepts a slightly cramped position in exchange for an impeccable pawn structure and a clear development plan. White, meanwhile, may attempt an early c3–d4 pawn duo or launch a kingside expansion with c3, d4, Re1, Nbd2–f1–g3, and sometimes a quick h3–g4.
Model Position
Both sides have many branch-offs here: White can decide between 9.Nbd2, 9.Re1, or 9.Bc2, each aiming to seize space while Black plots …g6 or …Be7 and timely …exd4 breaks.
Fun Fact
Wilhelm Steinitz himself abandoned his original 3…d6 defense after severe criticism by contemporaries, later endorsing the “improved” version because it wasted no tempo on the still-undefended e-pawn.
Hedgehog System (“The Hedgehog”)
Definition
The Hedgehog is not an opening per se but a pawn structure, most commonly for Black, characterized by pawns on a6, b6, d6, and e6, with pieces tucked behind the pawns—much like a hedgehog’s spines.
How It Arises
- English Opening: 1.c4 c5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.g3 b6 → later …a6, …d6, …e6.
- Sicilian Defence vs. Anti-Maróczy setups: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.g3 d6 → Hedgehog structure without …b6 yet.
- Queen’s Indian and Catalan transpositions.
Strategic Themes
- Space vs. Flexibility: White enjoys more space; Black’s compact structure hides latent pawn breaks …b5 or …d5.
- Piece Play: Knights usually sit on d7 & f6, bishops on b7 & e7 (or g7), rooks on c8 & e8.
- Break-Timing: The entire system revolves around correctly choosing the moment for …b5, …d5, or occasionally …e5.
Classic Encounter
Kasparov – Andersson, Niksic 1983. Kasparov crashed through with 19.f5!, but only after Black mis-timed …b5. The game is a staple example in strategy manuals on how not to prick the Hedgehog’s spines too early.
Anecdote
Grandmaster Sergey Shipov’s two-volume treatise “The Complete Hedgehog” humorously claims the structure “falls asleep for 30 moves and then suddenly bites.” Many elite players, including Carlsen and Giri, keep it as a surprise weapon because opponents may overreach trying to exploit their extra space.
Closed Ruy Lopez (“Closed Spanish”)
Definition
The Closed Ruy Lopez appears after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7. Black postpones the capture on e4, preferring harmonic development and the possibility of …b5–b4 to chase the c3-knight.
Main Ideas
- White often plays 6.Re1 followed by c3 & d4 to seize the center.
- Black keeps options: …b5, …d6, and sometimes the thematic pawn break …d5 (often prepared by …Re8 & Bf8).
- Leads to rich maneuvering battles; pieces may dance between the kingside and queenside for dozens of moves before the first pawn break.
Historical Context
The Closed Spanish dominated World Championship play throughout the 20th century—Capablanca–Alekhine (1927), Botvinnik–Smyslov, and Karpov–Korchnoi feature classic examples. Computers initially gave a slight edge to White, but modern engine discoveries (e.g., the 9…Na5 Chigorin line) show Black holding firm.
Typical Tabia
The famous “Chigorin” position: Black reroutes the b8-knight to d7, readying …Bb7 and flexible central breaks.
Curiosity
The move 9.h3 earned the nickname “The Little Move That Stops Everything,” because it can prevent …Bg4, discourage …Ng4 ideas, and give White luft—all for the price of a single tempo.
Showalter Variation
Definition
The Showalter Variation of the Queen’s Gambit Declined arises after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 h6 5.Bh4. Named after U.S. champion Jackson Showalter (1860-1935), it features an early …h6 to question the pinning bishop.
Purpose & Typical Plans
- Black avoids the immediate structural concession …Be7 by first asking the bishop’s intentions.
- If White captures on f6, Black recaptures with the queen (…Qxf6), avoiding doubled g-pawns.
- Should White retreat with Bh4, Black may continue …Be7, …O-O, and sometimes …dxc4 followed by …c5.
Key Position
Black prepares …Bb7 and a later …c5 pawn break, while White decides between solid development (Bd3, Rc1) or the sharper g4 advance.
Historical Notes
Showalter introduced 4…h6 in exhibitions against Harry Nelson Pillsbury during the 1890s. Pillsbury initially scoffed, but the move has since become one of the two main responses to 4.Bg5 (the other being 4…Be7). Modern practitioners include Viswanathan Anand and Wesley So.
Fun Tidbits
- Because Jackson Showalter sported a magnificent mustache, some old American newspapers dubbed this line “the Mustachio Defense.”
- In many engine lines, after 6.Bxf6 Qxf6 7.Nf3, the position’s evaluation hovers around 0.00—proving that over 120 years later, Showalter’s idea still holds water.