George Alcock MacDonnell (16 August 1830 in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

– 3 June 1899 in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

) was an Anglican clergyman as well as a

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

master and writer. He tied for 3rd-4th at London 1862 (the 5th British Chess Congress,

Adolf Anderssen Karl Ernst Adolf Anderssen (July 6, 1818 – March 13, 1879)"Anderssen, Adolf" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 385. was a German chess master. He won the great internat ...

won), won two matches against

George Henry Mackenzie George Henry Mackenzie (24 March 1837, North Kessock, Scotland – 14 April 1891, New York City) was a Scottish-born American chess master. Biography Mackenzie was educated mainly in Aberdeen, at the Aberdeen Grammar School and the Marischal ...

(8 : 5) and (6.5 : 3.5) both at Dublin 1862, shared 1st with

Wilhelm Steinitz William Steinitz (born Wilhelm Steinitz; May 14, 1836 – August 12, 1900) was an Austrian and, later, American chess player. From 1886 to 1894, he was the first official World Chess Champion. He was also a highly influential writer and c ...

at Dublin 1865, but lost a play-off game to him there, tied for 2nd-3rd at London 1866 (the 1st

British Chess Championship The British Chess Championships are organised by the English Chess Federation. The main tournament incorporates the British Championship, the English Chess Championships and the British Women's Chess Championship so it is possible, although it has ...

, Cecil De Vere won), tied for 3rd-4th at Dundee (

Gustav Neumann Gustav Richard Ludwig Neumann (15 December 1838 – 16 February 1881) was a German chess master. Neumann was born in Gleiwitz in the Prussian Province of Silesia. In matches he lost to Louis Paulsen (+3 –5 =3) at Leipzig 1864, and defeated ...

won), tied for 3rd-5th at London 1868/69 (the 2nd BCA Challenge Cup,

Joseph Henry Blackburne Joseph Henry Blackburne (10 December 1841 – 1 September 1924) was a British chess player. Nicknamed "The Black Death", he dominated the British scene during the latter part of the 19th century. Blackburne learned the game at the relatively late ...

and De Vere won), shared 3rd at London 1872 (Steinitz won), and took 4th at London 1872 (the 4th BCA Challenge Cup, John Wisker and De Vere won). MacDonnell won a match against Wisker (3.5 : 0.5) at Bristol 1873, and lost a rematch (6 : 9) at London 1874. He took 4th at London 1876 (Blackburne won), took 4th at London 1879 (''Quadrangular'', Henry Bird won), took 3rd at London 1883 (''Vizayanagaram'', Curt von Bardeleben won), took 4th at Bath 1884 (Wayte won), tied for 5-6th at London 1885 (

Isidor Gunsberg Isidore ( ; also spelled Isador, Isadore and Isidor) is an English and French masculine given name. The name is derived from the Greek name ''Isídōros'' (Ἰσίδωρος) and can literally be translated to "gift of Isis." The name has survived ...

won), shared 1st at London 1866, tied for 7-8th at London 1886 (Blackburne and

Amos Burn Amos Burn (1848–1925) was an English chess player, one of the world's leading players at the end of the 19th century, and a chess writer. Burn was born on New Year's Eve, 1848, in Hull.Richard Forster, ''Amos Burn: A Chess Biography'', McFar ...

won), lost a match to Blackburne (1.5 : 2.5) at London 1887, and took 6th at Stamford 1887 ( Joseph Henry Blake won). He led a chess column in the ''

Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News The ''Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News'' was a British weekly magazine founded in 1874 and published in London. In 1945 it changed its name to the ''Sport and Country'', and in 1957 to the ''Farm and Country'', before closing in 1970. His ...

'' for many years. He wrote two books: ''Chess Life Pictures'' (London 1883) and ''Knights and Kings of Chess'' (London 1894).Litmanowicz, Władysław & Giżycki, Jerzy (1986, 1987). ''Szachy od A do Z''. Wydawnictwo Sport i Turystyka Warszawa. (1. A-M), (2. N-Z) After a series of curacies (including

St Peter's Church, Walworth St Peter's Church is an Anglican parish church in Walworth, London, in the Woolwich Episcopal Area of the Anglican Diocese of Southwark. It was built between 1823–25 and was the first church designed by Sir John Soane, in the wave of the churc ...

and St Pancras Old Church), MacDonnell was vicar of

Bisbrooke Bisbrooke is a village and civil parish in the county of Rutland in the East Midlands of England. The village is situated about east of Uppingham, south of the A47 road which passes through the parish. In 2001, it had a population of 219, falli ...

in Rutland, 1887-99.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Macdonnell, George Alcock 1830 births 1899 deaths Irish chess players British chess players Alumni of Trinity College Dublin 19th-century English Anglican priests Christian clergy from Dublin (city) People from Rutland 19th-century chess players