White to Play and Mate in Two
Published in Chess Puzzles
This is the final one of our trio of tricky two-movers. Dr. A. Chicco composed this in the 1930s.
Solution:
1.0–0–0 Nd2 [1...Nc7 2.Rd8#; 1...Rh6 and every other move leads to 2.Rc6#] 2.Qa3# For those of you who ask, "How was I supposed to know I could castle?" the answer is simple: it's the only move that works! That's why the Black rook is on e6. If White tries 1.Rd1 then Black has one and only one defensive move: 1...Nd2. In contrast to 1.0-0-0, the queen can't go to a3 to mate because the queen is pinned because the king is on e1. Tricky!
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