Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais (1795 – December 1840) was a French

chess master A chess title is a title regulated by a chess governing body and bestowed upon players based on their performance and rank. Such titles are usually granted for life. The international chess governing body FIDE grants several titles, the most pre ...

, possibly the strongest player in the early 19th century.

Early life

La Bourdonnais was born on the island of

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island o ...

in the Indian Ocean in 1795. He was the grandson of

Bertrand-François Mahé de La Bourdonnais Bertrand-François Mahé, comte de La Bourdonnais (11 February 169910 November 1753) was a French naval officer and colonial administrator, in the service of the French East India Company. Biography La Bourdonnais entered the service of the Fren ...

. He learned chess in 1814 and began to take the game seriously in 1818, regularly playing at the

Café de la Régence The Café de la Régence in Paris was an important European centre of chess in the 18th and 19th centuries. All important chess masters of the time played there. The Café's masters included, but are not limited to: * Paul Morphy * François ...

. He took lessons from

Jacques François Mouret Jacques François Mouret (1780–1837) was a French chess master of the early 19th century who became chess tutor of the future Louis Philippe I and was one of the most successfulThe Oxford Companion to Chess - David Hooper and Kenneth Whyld (1992 ...

, his first teacher, and within two years he became one of the best players of the ''Café''.

Chess career

La Bourdonnais was forced to earn his living as a professional chess player after squandering his fortune on ill-advised land deals. He played in an era before a

World Chess Championship The World Chess Championship is played to determine the world champion in chess. The current world champion is Magnus Carlsen of Norway, who has held the title since 2013. The first event recognized as a world championship was the 1886 matc ...

was established, but was considered to be perhaps the strongest player in the world from 1821 — when he became able to beat his chess teacher

Alexandre Deschapelles Alexandre Deschapelles (March 7, 1780 in Ville-d'Avray near VersaillesOctober 27, 1847 in Paris) was a French chess player who, between the death of François-André Danican Philidor and the rise of Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais, was prob ...

— until his death in 1840. The most famous match series in that time was the series against Alexander McDonnell in 1834. These matches of 85 games were analyzed by Kasparov in his book ''

My Great Predecessors ''My Great Predecessors'' is a series of chess books written by former World Champion Garry Kasparov et al. The five volumes in the ''My Great Predecessors'' series are about the players who preceded Kasparov in being official World Champions. ...

''.

Death

He died penniless in London on December 13, 1840, having been forced to sell all his possessions, including his clothes, to satisfy his creditors. George Walker arranged his burial a stone's throw from his old rival

Alexander McDonnell Alexander McDonnell may refer to: *Alexander McDonnell (chess player) (1798–1835), Irish chess master *Alexander McDonnell (engineer) (1829–1904), locomotive engineer of the Great Southern & Western Railway (Ireland), & North Eastern Railway (En ...

at London's

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of Queens Park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, it was founded by the barrister George Frederick ...

Notable games

Alexander McDonnell vs. Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais, 16, London 1834, Sicilian Defense: Old Sicilian. Open (B32), 0–1
A game demonstrating the strength of pawns. Its end position is one of the most surprising in the history of chess.
Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais vs. Alexander MacDonnell, 3, London 1834, Queen's Gambit Accepted: Old Variation (D20), 1–0
La Bourdonnais punishes McDonnell's premature attack.

Notes

References

*''World chess champions'' by Edward G. Winter, editor. 1981

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:La Bourdonnais, Louis De 1795 births 1840 deaths 19th-century chess players Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery French chess players French expatriates in England People of French descent from Réunion Deaths from edema