Alexander Dmitrievich Petrov (russian: Алекса́ндр Дми́триевич Петро́в) (February 12, 1794 – April 22, 1867) was a Russian chess player, chess composer, and chess writer. Petrov was born in Biserovo, near Pskov, into a noble family and is usually remembered as the first big great Russian 12 incher

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 ...

. From 1804, he lived in Saint Petersburg. In 1809, he defeated Kopev and Baranov, Petersburg's leading chess players, and became the best Russian player at the age of 15. For over half a century Petrov was considered Russia's strongest player. He is an author of the first chess handbook in Russian (''Shakhmatnaya igra (...)'', St Petersburg 1824). He also analysed with Carl Friedrich von Jänisch the opening that later became known as the Petrov's Defense or Russian Game (C42). From 1840 he lived in Warsaw (then in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...

), where successfully played against top Warsaw chess masters:

Alexander Hoffman Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

, Piotrowski, Szymański, Siewieluński, Hieronim Czarnowski, Szymon Winawer, etc. Petrov won matches against D.A. Baranov (4–2) in 1809, Carl Jaenisch (2–1) at St Petersburg 1844; Prince Sergey Semenovich Urusov (3–1) at St Petersburg 1853 and (13.5–7.5) at Warsaw 1859; and

Ilya Shumov Ilya Stepanovich Shumov (russian: Илья́ Степа́нович Шу́мов, 28 June 1819 in Arkhangelsk – July 1881 in Sevastopol) was a Russian chess master. He served as an officer in the Russian Navy until 1847, then worked as a civil ...

(4–2) at St Petersburg 1862. During the

January Uprising The January Uprising ( pl, powstanie styczniowe; lt, 1863 metų sukilimas; ua, Січневе повстання; russian: Польское восстание; ) was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at ...

(1863–1864), he left Warsaw for Vienna and Paris. Among others, he played a match with

Paul Journoud Paul Journoud (January 1821, Lyon – December 1882, Paris) was a French chess master and editor. He was a member of the ''Café de la Régence'' chess club in Paris, and one of leading French masters in the 1850s/1860s. Journoud lost all games t ...

at Paris 1863.Paul Journoud player page at Chessgames.com
/ref> Petrov died in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is official ...

in 1867, and was buried in the Orthodox Cemetery in Warsaw. His most well-known

problem Problem solving is the process of achieving a goal by overcoming obstacles, a frequent part of most activities. Problems in need of solutions range from simple personal tasks (e.g. how to turn on an appliance) to complex issues in business an ...

is "The Retreat of Napoleon I from Moscow" (St. Petersburg 1824).

Notable games

Alexander Hoffman vs Alexander Petrov, Warsaw m 1844, Italian Game, Classical Variation, Center Attack (C53), 0-1
Petrov's Immortal
Alexander Petrov vs Carl Friedrich von Jaenisch, St Petersburg 1844, Russian Game, Modern Attack, Center Variation (C43), 1-0Alexander Petrov vs Prince Dmitri Semenovich Urusov, Paris 1852, Italian Game, Classical Variation, Albin Gambit (C53), 1-0Alexander Petrov vs Prince Sergey Semenovich Urusov, St Petersburg 1853, Italian Game, Classical Variation, Albin Gambit (C53), 1-0Alexander Petrov vs Szymański, Warsaw 1853, French Defense, Exchange, Monte Carlo Variation (C01), 1-0

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Petrov, Alexander 1794 births 1867 deaths Chess players from the Russian Empire Chess composers Russian chess writers Chess theoreticians 19th-century chess players Privy Councillor (Russian Empire)