Ludwig Rellstab (23 November 1904 – 14 February 1983) was a German

chess Chess is a board game for two players. It is an abstract strategy game that involves Perfect information, no hidden information and no elements of game of chance, chance. It is played on a square chessboard, board consisting of 64 squares arran ...

player who won the

German Chess Championship The German Chess Championship has been played since 1861, and determines the national champion. Prior to 1880, three different federations organized chess activities in Germany: the ''Westdeutscher Schachbund'' (WDSB), the ''Norddeutscher Schachbun ...

in 1942 and was awarded the

International Master FIDE titles are awarded by the international chess governing body FIDE (''Fédération Internationale des Échecs'') for outstanding performance. The highest such title is Grandmaster (GM). Titles generally require a combination of Elo rating and ...

title in 1950.

Biography

Rellstab was born in Schöneberg, Berlin to a distinguished family of academics and musicians. His great-grandfather, also named Ludwig Rellstab, was a well-known poet and music critic. His father Ludwig M. E. Rellstab was a professor of physics and electronics, who in 1914 became chief engineer at

Siemens & Halske Siemens & Halske AG (or Siemens-Halske) was a German electrical engineering company that later became part of Siemens. It was founded on 12 October 1847 as ''Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske'' by Werner von Siemens and Johann Geor ...

. His sister Annekäthe was a pianist.

Chess career

He was German Champion, winning at

Bad Oeynhausen Bad Oeynhausen () is a spa town on the southern edge of the Wiehengebirge in the district of Minden-Lübbecke in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe, East-Westphalia-Lippe region of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The closest larger towns are Bielefeld (39 ki ...

1942. He took 8th in the (unofficial) European Championship at

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

1942 (

Alexander Alekhine Alexander Aleksandrovich Alekhine. He disliked when Russians sometimes pronounced the of as , , which he regarded as a Yiddish distortion of his name, and insisted that the correct Russian pronunciation was . (March 24, 1946) was a Russian ...

won). In 1943, he took 6th in

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

(

Paul Keres Paul Keres (; 7 January 1916 – 5 June 1975) was an Estonian chess grandmaster and chess writer. He was among the world's top players from the mid-1930s to the mid-1960s, and narrowly missed a chance at a World Chess Championship match on five ...

and Alekhine won). In 1943, he took 5th in Vienna (10th GER-ch;

Josef Lokvenc Josef Lokvenc (1 May 1899, in Vienna – 2 April 1974, in Sankt Pölten) was an Austrian chess master. In 1925, he was awarded the Chess Master title in Braunau. In 1926, he took 3rd in Vienna. In 1936, he tied for 6-7th in Vienna (19th Trebits ...

won). Rellstab represented Germany at fifth board in the Munich 1936 unofficial Olympiad, and won two bronze medals (team and individual).Unofficial Chess Olympiad: Munich 1936
at olimpbase.org. Retrieved 29 March 2013. He played for West Germany three times in the

Chess Olympiad The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams representing nations of the world compete. FIDE organises the tournament and selects the host nation. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, FIDE held an Online Chess Olympiad in FIDE Onli ...

. * In 1950, at fourth board in

9th Chess Olympiad The 9th Chess Olympiad (), organized by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs, FIDE and comprising an open team tournament, as well as several events designed to promote the game of chess, took place between August 20 and September 11, 1950, ...

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik, historically known as Ragusa, is a city in southern Dalmatia, Croatia, by the Adriatic Sea. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean, a Port, seaport and the centre of the Dubrovni ...

(+3 −2 =6); * In 1952, at second reserve board in

10th Chess Olympiad The 10th Chess Olympiad (; ), organized by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs, FIDE and comprising an openAlthough commonly referred to as the ''men's division'', this section is open to both male and female players. team tournament, as w ...

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

(+5 −1 =3); * In 1954, at fourth board in

11th Chess Olympiad The 11th Chess Olympiad (), organized by the FIDE and comprising an openAlthough commonly referred to as the ''men's division'', this section is open to both male and female players. team tournament, as well as several other events designed to pro ...

in Amsterdam (+2 −2 =2). He won the individual gold medal at Helsinki 1952 and team bronze medal at Dubrovnik 1950.OlimpBase Men's Chess Olympiads Ludwig Rellstab
/ref> Rellstab was awarded the International Master (IM) title in 1950 and the

International Arbiter In chess tournaments, an arbiter is an official who oversees matches and ensures that the rules of chess are followed. International Arbiter ''International Arbiter'' is a title awarded by FIDE to individuals deemed capable of acting as arbiter ...

(IA) title in 1951. He died in

Wedel Wedel () is a town in the Pinneberg (district), district of Pinneberg, in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Elbe, approximately south of Elmshorn, and west of Hamburg. History Foundation and Mi ...

in 1983.

References

External links

* 1904 births 1983 deaths Chess International Masters Chess Olympiad competitors Chess arbiters Chess players from Berlin People from the Province of Brandenburg 20th-century German chess players {{germany-chess-bio-stub German chess players