ecocodes
Volume C · Open games and the French Defense‹ C11C13 ›
a1b2c3d4e5f6g7h8
Reference position · Black to move

C12 French Defense, Classical, 4. Bg5

Also filed here: French Defense.

C12 holds 14 named lines from two openings, most of them (13) under French Defense. It leaves C11 (French Defense: Classical Variation) with 4.Bg5. Material is no longer level at the end of three of its lines; the widest gap, three pawns in White’s favour, comes in French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Chigorin Variation. That final move, by the bishop, opens a line for the rook on a1 and the queen on d1 and attacks the knight on f6.

Score sheet
#WhiteBlack
1e4e6
2d4d5
3Nc3Nf6
4Bg5

Lines filed under C12

All 14 share the start 1.e4 e6 and then split two ways at White’s move 2.

NameAfter the shared startPliesAt the end
French Defense, Classical, 4. Bg52.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg57
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb48
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Advance Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e59
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Exchange Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.exd59White +1
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Bernstein Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Bh411
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Chigorin Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.exf611White +3
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Dr. Olland Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Bc111
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Janowski Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Be311
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Lasker Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Bd2 Bxc312Black +3
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Tartakower Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Bd2 Nfd712
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Bogoljubow Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.exd5 Qxd5 6.Bxf6 gxf6 7.Qd2 Qa514
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Lasker Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Bd2 Bxc3 7.bxc3 Ne4 8.Qg4 g616
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Duras Variation2.Nc3 d5 3.d4 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.Bd2 Bxc3 7.bxc3 Ne4 8.Qg4 Kf8 9.Bc117
French Defense: McCutcheon Variation, Grigoriev Variation2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Bb4 5.e5 h6 6.exf6 hxg5 7.fxg7 Rg8 8.h4 gxh4 9.Qg417

The road to C12

  1. 1.e4 … 2...d5four earlier stops: B00, C00
  2. 3.Nc3C10 Paulsen Variation
  3. 3...Nf6C11 Classical Variation
  4. 4.Bg5C12

The position after 4.Bg5

White has brought out the knight on c3 and bishop on g5; Black the knight on f6. Black could capture with Nxe4, dxe4. Black is to move and has 31 legal moves.

WhiteBlackMaterial (pawn units)3939Minor pieces developed21Moves spent on pawns22Pawns on d4, e4, d5, e521Squares attacked in the other half95not castlednot castled

Codes that branch off from C12

The reference lines of one other code leave C12 from the position after 4.Bg5, each with its own moves.

CodeMovesReference line
C134...dxe4French Defense: Classical Variation, Burn Variation

Closest boards in other codes

CodeLineDiffers on
C05French Defense: Tarrasch Variation, Closed Variationfour squares: c1, d2, c3, g5
C10French Defense: Paulsen Variationfour squares: c1, g5, f6, g8
D01Richter-Veresov Attackfour squares: e2, e4, e6, e7
D50Queen’s Gambit Declined: Modern Variationfour squares: c2, e2, c4, e4
A83Dutch Defense: Staunton Gambitsix squares: e4, d5, e6, d7, e7, f7
B14Caro-Kann Defense: Panov Attacksix squares: c1, c2, c4, e4, g5, c7
C03French Defense: Tarrasch Variationsix squares: c1, d2, c3, g5, f6, g8

Where lines continue from here

Twenty-three named lines filed under other codes pass through the position after 4.Bg5. Besides the codes above, they belong to C14.

Volume C

  1. 00
  2. 01
  3. 02
  4. 03
  5. 04
  6. 05
  7. 06
  8. 07
  9. 08
  10. 09
  11. 10
  12. 11
  13. 12
  14. 13
  15. 14
  16. 15
  17. 16
  18. 17
  19. 18
  20. 19
  21. 20
  22. 21
  23. 22
  24. 23
  25. 24
  26. 25
  27. 26
  28. 27
  29. 28
  30. 29
  31. 30
  32. 31
  33. 32
  34. 33
  35. 34
  36. 35
  37. 36
  38. 37
  39. 38
  40. 39
  41. 40
  42. 41
  43. 42
  44. 43
  45. 44
  46. 45
  47. 46
  48. 47
  49. 48
  50. 49
  51. 50
  52. 51
  53. 52
  54. 53
  55. 54
  56. 55
  57. 56
  58. 57
  59. 58
  60. 59
  61. 60
  62. 61
  63. 62
  64. 63
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  70. 69
  71. 70
  72. 71
  73. 72
  74. 73
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  82. 81
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  86. 85
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  88. 87
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  90. 89
  91. 90
  92. 91
  93. 92
  94. 93
  95. 94
  96. 95
  97. 96
  98. 97
  99. 98
  100. 99

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