Favourite Chess Tactics/Games/Random Positions

[Keith Ruxton]

We're discussing an artificial position - not a normal game. If Knights cannot move, how do you think they all disappeared from the board? Obviously, they were captured on their original squares.

agreed

Now, let's just take the WN on g1. It can only have been captured by a Black piece moving on Black squares. That restricts the choice to BQ, BB (f8) or BR (h8).

wrong on two counts: 1. The Rh8 can never reach g1 even though they are both black squares - try it! 2. It could also have been a pawn g7-g5xh4xg3xh2xg1

Moreover, the WR (h1) would not have been able to recapture on g1 (wrong colour of square).

agreed, but so what?

Furthermore, if the capture on g1 were effected by the BQ or BR (h8), the WB (f1) would either have had to be on f1 or available to intervene on f1 - to avoid check forcing the WK to move away from e1.

agreed, though it could have been captured by the black bishop then no need for a Bf1, also even if this was the case, it doesn't mean that the white bishop could not have been captured at some subsequent point in the game

Donald's lucid solution is correct which also means that there is nothing special about the squares e3 and e4, they could be any adjacent squares or, indeed any two squares of opposite colour.

Cheers,
Keith