Reginald Walter Bonham (31 January 1906 – 16 March 1984) was an English blind

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 and teacher known for his achievements in both blind and sighted chess. After founding the

International Braille Chess Association The International Braille Chess Association (IBCA) is an organization for blind and visually impaired chess players. The IBCA is a FIDE-affiliated chess organization as well as a part of the International Blind Sports Federation. The Internation ...

in 1951, he became the Blind World Chess Champion in 1958 and the Correspondence Blind World Champion in 1957, 1959, 1961, 1964 (jointly) and 1966.Reginald Bonham at Bill Wall's history of chess
Retrieved 13 September 2009

Biography

In 1906, Reginald Bonham was born in St. Neots,

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

to a family of

butcher A butcher is a person who may Animal slaughter, slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale ...

s.A short biography of Reginald Bonham
Retrieved 12 September 2009 Like others in his family, Bonham was born

visually impaired Visual or vision impairment (VI or VIP) is the partial or total inability of visual perception. In the absence of treatment such as corrective eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment, visual impairment may cause the individual difficul ...

. He was sent to enter Worcester College for the Blind at age 16. During 1922–1925 at Worcester, he revealed a talent for both

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically a ...

and

, which he learned in 1922.BrailleChess.org Hall of Fame: Reginald Bonham
Retrieved 12 September 2009 In 1926, he attended

St Catherine's College, Oxford St Catherine's College (colloquially called St Catz or Catz) is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford. In 1974, it was also one of the first men's colleges to admit women. It has 528 un ...

where he won the Oxford sighted chess championship in 1929, as well as made the final trials for the Oxford rowing team.International Braille Chess Association History
Retrieved 13 September 3009

Teaching career

In 1929, Bonham returned to the Worcester College for the Blind as a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

. He taught

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

and

braille Braille ( , ) is a Tactile alphabet, tactile writing system used by blindness, blind or visually impaired people. It can be read either on embossed paper or by using refreshable braille displays that connect to computers and smartphone device ...

as well as coached rowing, amateur

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

, and chess. "Bon", as he was known by staff, headed four separate chess teams in the local and county leagues, of which all won multiple championships. In his later years, one of his students was Peter White, who later became a prominent radio broadcaster. Bonham is described in detail in White's 1999

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...

, ''See It My Way''. Bonham taught at Worcester until he retired in 1970.

Chess

Bonham won numerous

tournaments A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

throughout

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

and the

English Midlands The Midlands is the central region of England, to the south of Northern England, to the north of southern England, to the east of Wales, and to the west of the North Sea. The Midlands comprises the ceremonial counties of Derbyshire, Herefordshi ...

. In 1934, he founded the Braille Chess Magazine (BCM), which he wrote and edited for 25 years, and after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he took up

correspondence chess Correspondence chess is chess played by various forms of long-distance correspondence, traditionally through the postal system. Today it is usually played through a correspondence chess server, a public internet chess forum, or email. Less commo ...

, and founded the first correspondence chess tournament for the blind in 1951. In 1951 he founded the

which became affiliated with

FIDE The International Chess Federation or World Chess Federation, commonly referred to by its French acronym FIDE ( , ), is an international organization based in Switzerland that connects the various national chess federations and acts as the Spor ...

in 1964. Bonham won the first English Blind Chess Championship in 1956. In addition to his achievements against the visually impaired, Bonham also had many victories against sighted competition. He won the Hastings Reserve Tournament in 1931, the Birmingham Tournament on three consecutive occasions, was Worcestershire County Champion twenty times, was champion of the nine Midlands Counties three times and won the Birmingham Post Cup twice. On six occasions he competed in the

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 ha ...

where his best result was ninth place.

Later life

He died in

, England at the age of 78.

References

External links

*
Reginald W. Bonham at OlimpBase.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bonham, Reginald 1906 births 1984 deaths English chess players English blind people Sportspeople with visual impairment 20th-century British chess players