Stalemate situation. What is a stalemate in a chess game? What does a stalemate mean in life

lovers chess games it is well known that the result of the rivalry can be not only the well-known but also another, much more ambiguous result, which is called " stalemate situation". This is such a position in a chess game when the king is not in check, but at the same time there is no possibility of steps for the pieces. And for some time means a draw in the classical chess game.

Why are there no winners and losers?

How does a stalemate occur in chess? As a result of previous moves (in particular, the move made by the opposite player), the player who has the right to move cannot use this opportunity, since there are no options for moving pieces that do not violate the rules of the game. At the same time, the king is not in check, which means that no one wins. As a result, a hopeless situation arises, there are no losers and winners, but there are no moves either.

This situation was resolved and designated in the 19th century as a draw, which is quite fair. It is this interpretation of the stalemate that is enshrined in the World Code of Chess Rules (FIDE). However, earlier in different countries of the world other options for interpreting the deadlock that had arisen were proposed. Let's consider some of them.

When did a stalemate not equate to a draw?

So, for example, in the Middle Ages in many European countries, as well as in the Middle East, the winner was the one who made last move in a chess game. In the 15th-18th centuries in Spain, this situation also brought victory to the last player who looked like it, but its price was lower than the classic win. As a result, the winner received not all, but only half of the legal prize.

There were, however, other interpretations of this outcome of the game. The player who put up a stalemate (that is, created a stalemate) was considered a loser. These rules were in force in the 9th century in India, in the 17th century in Russia, and in England they were applied until the 18th century.

The parties were announced in Italy and France, and from the 19th century became the generally accepted rule around the world.

"Our whole life is a game", or On stalemate situations outside the playing field

However, it is not only in chess that the term "stalemate" is used. This is a fairly common expression today, applicable to various life situations. It can be used in a variety of areas of life, from love/family relationships to politics and economics.

Here are some typical examples when a stalemate occurs in life.

Pat in personal life

What does a stalemate in the family mean? Often there are cases when, in the course of living together, relationships come to a standstill. However, to come to some kind of solution, to find a way out of it does not work. For example, a classic story: a housewife takes care of the house and raises children, the husband drinks, but brings money to the family. Their relationship has long been based only on children, but they cannot part, because children need both a father and a mother, and the woman herself cannot provide for the family. On the other hand, the offspring grows up and constantly watches the unhappy mother. Is it worse to divorce or continue to "artificially support family life"? Often in such cases, women feel the hopelessness of their situation, but they cannot solve anything. On the face of a stalemate, but with a strong desire, it can be resolved.

There are also less tragic examples of such situations. The simplest - two young men are looking after the girl. One is promising, promising and stable. She is in love with another, but she is not sure of his constancy, and even the possibilities to achieve success. What to choose - confidence and comfort or love with obstacles? Here is a stalemate for you. This is the inability to make a choice (move).

Stalemate in the economy

Another example is from the field of economics. Disproportion in the Russian venture capital market by sectors and the ratio of free money and real investments. Most of the investors' funds are invested in fast-payback Internet projects (up to 70%), which do not have much potential in the long run. At the same time, biotechnology/pharmaceuticals, the most attractive in terms of importance and growth rates, receive only 15% of the available investments in the market, while other segments account for even less available money. At the same time, there is a shortage of worthwhile projects and companies in which funds could be effectively invested. As a result, a stalemate arises - this is an overabundance of free Money along with a lack of projects to invest.

Stalemate in the political arena

Often this term is used in relation to various political events. So, for example, it was with the rally in and the situation that arose in Ukraine. Particularly noteworthy was the situation on the Maidan. The protest actions, which began with support for European integration, grew into a mass movement as a result of beating protesters by the police. The movement began to grow in scale due to the growth of the discontented (which is not surprising). But it was no longer possible to turn back and leave, otherwise it would have been a defeat and in the future one would have to "hide from the police in any peaceful situation" (according to sociologist Andrei Bychenko). However, the authorities could not simply take and send Zakharchenko to resign, and start criminal cases against the Berkut fighters (who beat the students). So the confrontation continued, which led to numerous deaths and gave rise to what we have on this moment. The situation is a stalemate, but it was possible to get out of it with less losses with competent and deliberate behavior on the part of the authorities.

Conclusion: do not create stalemate situations

There are many examples when a dead end occurs in a game or in life. And if in chess this is just a draw, then a stalemate in life can turn into a much sadder, and sometimes even dangerous outcome. In personal life, a sense of hopelessness can gradually develop into a protracted depression; in the economy, it can lead to loss of financial resources and imbalances in a particular market; times happened not only in Ukraine, but also in many other countries).

Therefore, it is so important to always have a choice and not allow a stalemate to arise, when there is no way out, and it is impossible to continue the "game".

Author LIS-ELIS asked a question in Society, Politics, Media

What is a stalemate "situation"? and got the best answer

Answer from Steyaz[guru]
A stalemate is a situation in chess when it is impossible to move a single piece, while the king is not in check. It means a draw (since the 19th century), and in some rule systems it means a loss or a win for the side that has fallen into such a situation.
Stalemate - a hopeless situation

Answer from Maksr[guru]
when the king has nowhere to go and there is no shah

Answer from Colt.45[guru]
in chess the situation is a draw.

Answer from Nadezhda Voronina[guru]
A "stalemate" situation is more correct ... when there is no one out .. and nothing can be done ..

Answer from past[guru]
if in chess - then a situation in which the game can either continue indefinitely (two kings are left and that's it), or a situation in which one of the players cannot make any move (the king cannot be placed under shif, and there are no other moves left)

Answer from Victoria[guru]
any move of the king or retinue and it's over, but there is no check - a draw

Answer from Dima Vilga[guru]
when there is no move in the game of chess and chess, but the game is not lost, since there is no checkmate.

Answer from Ѐonald Stroev[guru]
Agree with previous respondents.

Answer from Ўliya Elkova[newbie]
Dear Colleagues, A stalemate in chess when the king!! It's for him!! there is nowhere to go, because HE (the king) is under attack (check) by the opponent's piece. And the game ends in defeat.
In life, a stalemate means that no matter what path you take, no matter what you do, you will fail for whatever reason.
From folklore, we can recall the painting "The Knight at the Crossroads". Where it is indicated on the stone: if you go to the left, you will die from an arrow; if you go to the right, you will die from a spear; If you go straight, you will die by the sword. The roads are different, but the result is the same - death. Here Vityaz stands and thinks where to go.
A synonym for stalemate is hopelessness

Answer from Yotanislav Osychnyuk[expert]
"Yuliya Elkova Student (121) 1 month ago
Dear Colleagues, A stalemate in chess when the king!! It's for him!! there is nowhere to go, because HE (the king) is under attack (check) by the opponent's piece. And the game ends in defeat. "
What kind of nonsense?)) According to this logic, at the beginning of the game there is already a stalemate)) by the way, a stalemate is a draw, not a defeat.
A stalemate is when yours is hot, but there is nothing to move, for example, the pawns rested against the enemy, there are no pieces, and any move of the king is "in check". Pat and draw.
But "The roads are different, but the result is the same - death" is more like zugzwang

Pat in chess, it is a kind of draw. A stalemate is a position that occurs when a player is unable to make any moves, but their king is not in check. When such a situation arises, according to the rules of chess, a draw is declared, regardless of what advantages one side has over the other, who has more pieces left on the board, and so on.

As a rule, a stalemate occurs already at those stages of a chess game, when there are few pieces left on the board.

The lack of available moves is due to the fact that all existing player pieces are blocked. This can happen for various reasons:

Some pieces may be blocked by other pieces. The squares that pieces can move to can be occupied by other pieces of the same player, and sometimes by enemy pieces.
Some pieces can protect the king from a check, and block the line of attack of enemy pieces. According to the rules of chess, you cannot move such pieces, because then the king will be in check.
The squares around the king can be attacked by enemy pieces, or occupied by friendly pieces, or by enemy pieces protected by other pieces.

Look at the following diagram. If it is now White's turn, then a stalemate will be declared. Both white pawns are blocked; there is no way to move any of the white knights, since one of them will put the king under check from the rook on g1 (see chess notation), and the other - from the bishop on d4; the king has no available (safe) squares to which he can go. Therefore, this provision - Pat.

It is not uncommon for many beginners to play chess to make stalemate moves, and games that they could easily win end in stalemate.

Look at the following diagram. Now it's White's turn. The solution is simple: 1. Qd5-b5 Ka4-a3 2. Qb5-b3 checkmate. But the beginner may mistakenly move 1. Qd5-c5, which, of course, will lead to a stalemate. Therefore, try to always be attentive, even if you have a tangible advantage over the enemy.

Of course, there are situations when a stalemate is unavoidable in chess, especially when in the last stages of the game only pawns remain on the board besides the kings. For example, in a situation where white is left with a king and a pawn, and black only has a king, black moves his king to the place where the pawn promotion should be made.

In the following diagram, the game will end in a draw, no matter whose turn it is. White moves 1. a6-a7+ Kb8-a8. Now the draw is clear. If White moves his king away from the pawn, he will lose a pawn and the game will end in a draw. If White moves 2. Kb6-a6, the game will end in stalemate because Black has no available squares to move (both squares b7 and b8 are under White's control).

In some situations, a player with a weaker position may try to bring the game to a stalemate if he manages to make the necessary moves to do so.

Author LIS-ELIS asked a question in Society, Politics, Media

What is a stalemate "situation"? and got the best answer

Answer from Maksr[guru]
when the king has nowhere to go and there is no shah

Answer from Colt.45[guru]
in chess the situation is a draw.

Answer from Nadezhda Voronina[guru]
A "stalemate" situation is more correct ... when there is no one out .. and nothing can be done ..

Answer from Victoria[guru]
any move of the king or retinue and it's over, but there is no check - a draw

Answer from Dima Vilga[guru]
when there is no move in the game of chess and chess, but the game is not lost, since there is no checkmate.

Answer from Ѐonald Stroev[guru]
Agree with previous respondents.

It happens that checkmate, as the goal of a chess game, is defined by the comparison "to capture the opponent's king." This is not entirely correct. It would be more accurate to "capture the opponent's king and attack him with your piece." For a situation where the king is simply "captured", but at the same time no one threatens him, i.e. not a single piece of the opponent gives a check, the definition is more suitable - stalemate. What is it - a loss or a draw? With the help of concrete examples and videos, we will now understand everything.

Pat- this is a situation in a chess game when a player cannot make a move without violating , but at the same time his king is not under attack, he has not been declared a check. Let's jump right into the examples.

Black's move. The black king cannot take the pawn or go to g7, since these squares are pierced by the white king, and the g8 square is pierced by the pawn. The possible squares where the black knight can go are occupied by its own pawns, the pawns themselves are blocked and also have no moves. The black bishop is pinned by a rook and cannot move away because it will open check to its king. There is nothing to walk. On the board pat.

A stalemate position in a chess game means a draw (from the Italian "patta" - there is a draw).

Beginning chess players often have a very disappointing result, since one of the sides usually has an advantage and, it would seem, the win was so close...

Typical position:

White has an extra queen, but after their thoughtless move on the board, a stalemate, a draw.

However, it is not always a stalemate - the consequences are only inattention, it happens that a stalemate is the result of clear actions of one of the players in order to fix a draw.

Theoretical draw ending. A passed pawn along the line c on the penultimate rank supported by the king against the queen.

In order not to let the black pawn go to the queen, White must constantly check (in this case, the black king moves along the a1 and b1 squares), or capture the pawn. Then the black king has no moves, stalemate.

"Mad Boat"

Black's move.

Typical stalemate. The frenzied kamikaze rook constantly checks the enemy king, sacrificing itself. But if it is taken, a stalemate is obtained.

Often in chess etudes for finding a draw, the solution is precisely the coming to a stalemate position.