The Philidor is the most solid and the most cramped answer to 1.e4 e5. With 2...d6 Black defends the e5 pawn with a pawn and gives up the fight for space in exchange for a position without weaknesses. The opening is named after Francois Philidor, who wrote that pawns are the soul of chess. It is also the home of Legal's Mate, the most famous queen sacrifice in the openings.
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After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 the e5 pawn has to be defended, and Black has two main ways: with a piece (2...Nc6) or with a pawn (2...d6). The second is the Philidor. The d6 pawn holds the centre rock solid, but it takes the best square away from the b8 knight and leaves Black short of space.
In return Black gets a position without weaknesses: no holes, no loose pawns, no long forcing lines. It is an opening for players who are willing to sit tight and wait for a mistake rather than force matters from move one.
It is named after Francois-Andre Philidor, the strongest player of the eighteenth century, who wrote that pawns are the soul of chess. Holding the centre with pawns and developing behind them was exactly his idea.
The first is to exchange in the centre: 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4. The position simplifies at once and Black can breathe, but any hope of an advantage is gone: White keeps a small space edge. Play continues with ...Be7, ...O-O and preparation of ...d5.
The second is to hold the e5 pawn: 3...Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7, the Hanham System. The knight goes to d7 rather than c6 precisely because it defends e5 without blocking the bishop. The position gets very cramped, and Black's main task is to play ...c6 and ...d5 before suffocating.
Both are sound, and both demand patience. The Philidor punishes impatience rather than bad moves: trying to equalise immediately with active sorties is what usually loses.
The most famous trap of the opening comes after 3.Bc4 Bg4 4.Nc3 g6? The move 5.Nxe5! looks like a blunder of the queen, but it is a sacrifice: after 5...Bxd1 6.Bxf7+ Ke7 7.Nd5# three minor pieces give mate while Black has an extra queen.
The trap is possible exactly here because the pin with ...Bg4 is natural in this structure and the e5 pawn is defended only by the d6 pawn. Remove the pin and there is no sacrifice; defend e5 with a piece and the knight is simply lost.
The practical lesson cuts both ways: in this system you cannot capture on autopilot.
There is a simpler trap too: 3.d4 Bg4 4.dxe5 Bxf3 5.Qxf3 dxe5 6.Bc4 Nf6 7.Qb3, a double attack on f7 and b7. The bishop on g4 is worth less in the Philidor than it looks.
Black players who would rather not learn theory and do not mind cramped positions: there is little to memorise, the set-up repeats, and there are no fifteen-move forcing lines at all.
White players should know it from the other side: 2...d6 is common at club level, and the most practical answer is 3.d4, opening the centre immediately. While Black is undeveloped, space does the work.
It does not suit players who want to win with Black: the Philidor promises no advantage and does not sharpen the game.
These are the main named variations. Click any one of them and it loads straight onto the board above, where you can play it out move by move. The trainer itself holds more lines than this: it also covers main-line continuations and transpositions that have no name of their own.
What to avoid, and what catches an unprepared opponent.
After 3.Bc4 Bg4 4.Nc3 g6? White sacrifices the queen with 5.Nxe5! Taking loses: 5...Bxd1 6.Bxf7+ Ke7 7.Nd5# is mate by three minor pieces. Black should play 5...dxe5, when 6.Qxg4 simply leaves White a pawn up.
The bishop on g4 hands White the bishop pair and a tempo, and the queen on b3 attacks f7 and b7 at the same time. Covering both is awkward and material usually drops.
Traps in other openings - the 12 most common opening traps.
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Yes, if the beginner is happy in cramped positions. There is almost no theory, the set-up repeats, and only two things need understanding: where the knight goes and when to break with ...d5.
Space. After 2...d6 Black has less room and the b8 knight loses the c6 square. In return there are no weaknesses and no long forcing lines to memorise.
A set-up inside the Philidor: 3...Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7, holding the e5 pawn. The knight goes to d7 so as not to block the c8 bishop, followed by ...Be7, ...O-O, ...c6 and the ...d5 break.
After the French player Kermur de Legal, Philidor's own teacher, in whose mid-eighteenth-century game the queen sacrifice first appeared.
Play 3.d4 and open the centre before Black develops, then hold the space and put the bishop on c4. There is no need to study traps: they appear by themselves if the opponent plays ...Bg4.
Want the tactics that decide these positions? Start with the 12 most common opening traps and tactics for beginners. If you are just starting out, read the rules of chess and how to set up the board.
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