ecocodes
Volume C · Open games and the French Defense‹ C46C48 ›
a1b2c3d4e5f6g7h8
Reference position · White to move

C47 Four Knights Game

C47 holds 20 named lines, all under the name Four Knights Game. It leaves C46 (Three Knights Opening) with 3...Nf6. Material is no longer level at the end of ten of its lines; the widest gap, two pawns in Black’s favour, comes in Four Knights Game: Halloween Gambit, Oldtimer Variation. Lines filed under C48 reach one of its named positions by a different move order. After 3...Nf6 the position is a mirror image: every Black man stands opposite its White counterpart.

Score sheet
#WhiteBlack
1e4e5
2Nf3Nc6
3Nc3Nf6

The move that completes C47

The reference line of C48 plays all of these moves and continues beyond them; C47 is the position reached at 3...Nf6.

  1. 3...Nf6 The knight leaves g8 for f6, opening a line for the rook on h8.

Lines filed under C47

All 20 share the start 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 and then split two ways at White’s move 3.

NameAfter the shared startPliesAt the end
Four Knights Game3.Nc3 Nf66
Four Knights Game: Glek System3.Nc3 Nf6 4.g37
Four Knights Game: Gunsberg Variation3.Nc3 Nf6 4.a37
Four Knights Game: Halloween Gambit3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe57White +1
Four Knights Game: Italian Variation3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc37
Four Knights Game: Naroditsky Variation3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nd57
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d47
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation Accepted3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 exd48Black +1
Four Knights Game: Gunsberg Variation, Provincial Opening3.Nc3 Nf6 4.a3 d6 5.h39
Four Knights Game: Italian Variation, Noa Gambit3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nxe4 5.Bxf7+9check
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation, Belgrade Gambit3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.Nd59Black +1
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation, Krause Gambit3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 Bb4 5.Nxe59White +1
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation, Krause Gambit, Leonhardt Defense3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 Bb4 5.Nxe5 Qe710White +1
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation, Oxford Gambit3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 Bb4 5.d5 Nd410
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation, Schmid Defense3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4 Nxe410Black +1
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation, Belgrade Gambit, Modern Defense3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.Nd5 Nxe4 6.Qe2 f512Black +2
Four Knights Game: Glek System3.Nc3 Nf6 4.g3 d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.Bg2 Nxc3 7.bxc313
Four Knights Game: Halloween Gambit, Oldtimer Variation3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Ng6 6.e5 Ng8 7.Bc4 Bb4 8.Qf3 f516Black +2
Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation Accepted, Main Line3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4 Bb4 6.Nxc6 bxc6 7.Bd3 d5 8.exd5 O-O 9.O-O17White +1, both castled
Four Knights Game: Halloween Gambit, Plasma Variation3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 Ne5 7.f4 Ng6 8.e5 Ng8 9.d6 cxd6 10.exd6 Qf6 11.Nb5 Rb822Black +2

The road to C47

  1. 1.e4 … 2.Nf3three earlier stops: B00, C20, C40
  2. 2...Nc6C44 Normal Variation
  3. 3.Nc3C46 Three Knights Opening
  4. 3...Nf6C47

The position after 3...Nf6

White has brought out the knight on c3 and knight on f3; Black the knight on c6 and knight on f6. White could capture with Nxe5. White is to move and has 29 legal moves.

WhiteBlackMaterial (pawn units)3939Minor pieces developed22Moves spent on pawns11Pawns on d4, e4, d5, e511Squares attacked in the other half66not castlednot castled

Codes that branch off from C47

The reference lines of one other code leave C47 from the position after 3...Nf6, each with its own moves.

CodeMovesReference line
C484.Bb5Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation

Closest boards in other codes

CodeLineDiffers on
A28English Opening: King’s English Variation, Four Knights Variationfour squares: c2, e2, c4, e4
C26Vienna Game: Falkbeer Variationfour squares: g1, f3, c6, b8
C28Vienna Game: Stanley Variation, Three Knights Variationfour squares: f1, g1, f3, c4
C42Petrov’s Defensefour squares: b1, c3, c6, b8
C44King’s Knight Opening: Normal Variationfour squares: b1, c3, f6, g8
C49Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Double Spanishfour squares: f1, b4, b5, f8
C55Italian Game: Two Knights Defensefour squares: b1, f1, c3, c4

Where lines continue from here

Twenty-eight named lines filed under other codes pass through the position after 3...Nf6. Besides the codes above, they belong to C49.

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
  65. 64
  66. 65
  67. 66
  68. 67
  69. 68
  70. 69
  71. 70
  72. 71
  73. 72
  74. 73
  75. 74
  76. 75
  77. 76
  78. 77
  79. 78
  80. 79
  81. 80
  82. 81
  83. 82
  84. 83
  85. 84
  86. 85
  87. 86
  88. 87
  89. 88
  90. 89
  91. 90
  92. 91
  93. 92
  94. 93
  95. 94
  96. 95
  97. 96
  98. 97
  99. 98
  100. 99

Other move orders

  • Four Knights Game is also reached inside C48 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Rubinstein Variation, whose order is 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nc3 Nc6.

Open this line in the finderAll Four Knights Game codes