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Classic game replay

Alexander Beaufort Meek vs Paul Morphy, 1857

This replay preserves the complete 61-ply score of Morphy playing Black across 31 numbered moves. The board can be advanced one ply at a time; the notes stick to observable board changes rather than guessing at the players’ intentions.

On this page
  1. Practice positions
  2. Replay with move-by-move board facts
  3. PGN
  4. Sources and checking
  5. Continue with another game
White
Alexander Beaufort Meek
Black
Paul Morphy
Event
USA-01.Congress
Year
1857
Result
0-1
Opening
C44 Scotch Game: Göring Gambit

Opening reference: Scotch Game: Göring Gambit (C44).

In this game, 20 half-moves are labelled opening, 41 middlegame and 0 endgame. The score contains 16 captures and 4 checks or mates; before a recorded move, the position offered a median of 40 legal choices. The source score ends after 31.Kf2 with the recorded result 0-1. Its termination tag was not retained, so this record does not infer whether the game ended by resignation, time or another cause.

Practice positions

The daily trainer uses a short set of positions from this complete score. Each link goes to the exact half-move rather than only the numbered move.

  1. 8...Ne7 — Develop the knight8...Ne7 was a leading choice in the fixed engine check.
  2. 15...Qb4 — Create pressure on b515...Qb4 was a leading choice in the fixed engine check.
  3. 21...Nxh3+ — Capture with check on h321...Nxh3+ was a leading choice in the fixed engine check.
  4. 26...Qh6+ — A forcing check26...Qh6+ was a leading choice in the fixed engine check.

Replay with move-by-move board facts

The board, fact panel and transcript use the same legal score. “Fixed engine check” means Stockfish 17.1, one thread, a fixed 25,000-node search and 3 candidate lines. It compares moves under one reproducible setting; it does not claim to reconstruct a player’s thoughts.

♜♞♝♛♚♝♞♜♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♜♞♝♛♚♝♞♜
Alexander Beaufort Meek vs Paul Morphy, 1857

Start position

Use Previous and Next on the board, or select a move in the transcript. The board fact and fixed engine check remain visible until you choose another move.

Opening · 1.e4 to 10...h6

  1. 1.e4 Claim central space

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from e2 to e4; from there it controls d5 and f5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · e4 e5 Nf3 Nc6.

  2. 1...e5 Claim central space

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from e7 to e5; from there it controls d4 and f4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · e5 Nf3 Nc6 d4.

  3. 2.Nf3 Develop the knight

    Board fact: White develops the knight from g1 to f3; from f3 it attacks Black's pawn on e5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nf3 Nc6 d4 exd4.

  4. 2...Nc6 Develop the knight

    Board fact: Black develops the knight from b8 to c6; from there it controls d4 and e5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nc6 d4 exd4 Nxd4.

  5. 3.d4 Change the pawn structure

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from d2 to d4; the move changes the central pawn contact; from d4 it attacks Black's pawn on e5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · d4 exd4 Nxd4 Nf6.

  6. 3...exd4 Exchange on d4

    Board fact: Black's pawn takes the pawn on d4; the move changes the central pawn contact; Black accepts doubled pawns on the d-file; black is ahead by 1 conventional material point after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · exd4 Nxd4 Nf6 Nxc6.

  7. 4.c3 Change the pawn structure

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from c2 to c3; the move changes the central pawn contact; from c3 it attacks Black's pawn on d4.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; Nxd4 ranked higher · c3 dxc3.

  8. 4...dxc3 Exchange on c3

    Board fact: Black's pawn takes the pawn on c3; the move changes the central pawn contact; Black accepts doubled pawns on the c-file; from c3 it attacks White's pawn on b2; black is ahead by 2 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · dxc3 Nxc3 Bb4 Qc2.

  9. 5.Nxc3 Recapture on c3

    Board fact: White's knight recaptures the pawn on c3; from c3 it reinforces the queen on d1; black is ahead by 1 conventional material point after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nxc3 Bb4 Bb5 Nge7.

  10. 5...Bc5 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: Black develops the bishop from f8 to c5; from c5 it attacks White's pawn on f2.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bc5.

  11. 6.Bc4 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: White develops the bishop from f1 to c4; from c4 it attacks Black's pawn on f7.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bc4 d6 Qb3 Qd7.

  12. 6...d6 Advance the d-pawn

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from d7 to d6; from there it controls e5 and c5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · d6 Qb3.

  13. 7.h3 Advance the h-pawn

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from h2 to h3.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · h3.

  14. 7...Be6 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: Black develops the bishop from c8 to e6; from e6 it attacks White's bishop on c4 and White's pawn on h3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Be6 Bxe6 fxe6 Qb3.

  15. 8.Bb5 Create pressure on c6

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from c4 to b5; from b5 it attacks Black's knight on c6.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; Bxe6 ranked higher · Bb5 Ne7.

  16. 8...Ne7 Develop the knight

    Board fact: Black develops the knight from g8 to e7; from there it controls d5, c6 and f5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Ne7.

  17. 9.Ng5 Create pressure on e6

    Board fact: White moves the knight from f3 to g5; from g5 it attacks Black's bishop on e6 and Black's pawn on f7.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Ng5.

  18. 9...O-O Kingside castling

    Board fact: Black castles kingside, moving the king to g8 and the rook to f8. The move changes king safety and develops the rook in one turn.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · O-O O-O Bd7 Qh5.

  19. 10.Qh5 Create pressure on f7

    Board fact: White moves the queen from d1 to h5; from h5 it attacks Black's pawn on f7 and Black's pawn on h7.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; O-O ranked higher · Qh5 h6 Nxe6 fxe6.

  20. 10...h6 Create pressure on g5

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from h7 to h6; from h6 it attacks White's knight on g5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · h6 Nf3 Ng6 O-O.

Middlegame · 11.Nf3 to 31.Kf2

  1. 11.Nf3 Improve the knight

    Board fact: White moves the knight from g5 to f3; from there it controls d4 and e5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nf3 f6 O-O Ne5.

  2. 11...Ng6 Reroute the knight

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from e7 to g6; from there it controls e5 and f4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Ng6 Bxc6.

  3. 12.g4 Advance the g-pawn

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from g2 to g4; from there it controls f5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · g4.

  4. 12...Nce5 Create pressure on f3

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from c6 to e5; from e5 it attacks White's knight on f3 and White's pawn on g4.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Nce5 Nxe5 dxe5 g5.

  5. 13.Nxe5 Exchange on e5

    Board fact: White's knight takes the knight on e5; from e5 it attacks Black's knight on g6 and Black's pawn on f7; white is ahead by 2 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nxe5 dxe5 g5 c6.

  6. 13...dxe5 Recapture on e5

    Board fact: Black's pawn recaptures the knight on e5; the move changes the central pawn contact; black is ahead by 1 conventional material point after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · dxe5 g5 c6 Be2.

  7. 14.g5 Create pressure on h6

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from g4 to g5; from g5 it attacks Black's pawn on h6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · g5 c6 Be2 hxg5.

  8. 14...Qd4 Create pressure on c3

    Board fact: Black moves the queen from d8 to d4; from d4 it attacks White's knight on c3 and White's pawn on e4.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; c6 ranked higher · Qd4 Be3 Qb4 Bxc5.

  9. 15.Be3 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: White develops the bishop from c1 to e3; from e3 it attacks Black's queen on d4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Be3 Qb4 Bxc5 Qxb2.

  10. 15...Qb4 Create pressure on b5

    Board fact: Black moves the queen from d4 to b4; from b4 it attacks White's bishop on b5 and White's knight on c3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qb4 Bxc5 Qxb2 O-O.

  11. 16.Bxc5 Exchange on c5

    Board fact: White's bishop takes the bishop on c5; from c5 it attacks Black's queen on b4 and Black's rook on f8; white is ahead by 2 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bxc5 Qxb2 O-O Qxc3.

  12. 16...Qxb2 Exchange on b2

    Board fact: Black's queen takes the pawn on b2; from b2 it attacks White's rook on a1 and White's bishop on b5; white is ahead by 1 conventional material point after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qxb2 O-O Qxc3 Rfc1.

  13. 17.O-O Kingside castling

    Board fact: White castles kingside, moving the king to g1 and the rook to f1. The move changes king safety and develops the rook in one turn.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · O-O Qxc3 Rfc1 Qa5.

  14. 17...Qxc3 Exchange on c3

    Board fact: Black's queen takes the knight on c3; from c3 it attacks White's rook on a1 and White's bishop on c5; black is ahead by 2 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qxc3 Rfc1 Qa5 Bf1.

  15. 18.Bxf8 Exchange on f8

    Board fact: White's bishop takes the rook on f8; from f8 it attacks Black's pawn on g7; white is ahead by 3 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Rfc1 ranked higher · Bxf8 Nf4 Rfc1 Qxc1+.

  16. 18...Rxf8 Recapture on f8

    Board fact: Black's rook recaptures the bishop on f8; from f8 it reinforces the pawn on f7; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Nf4 ranked higher · Rxf8 Rfc1 Qa5 Bf1.

  17. 19.Rac1 Rook on the semi-open c-file

    Board fact: White moves the rook from a1 to c1; the rook now works on a semi-open c-file; from c1 it attacks Black's queen on c3.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Rfc1 ranked higher · Rac1 Qa5 Be2 Nf4.

  18. 19...Qb2 Create pressure on c1

    Board fact: Black moves the queen from c3 to b2; from b2 it attacks White's rook on c1 and White's bishop on b5.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Qb4 ranked higher · Qb2 Rb1 Qa3 gxh6.

  19. 20.Bc4 Create pressure on e6

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from b5 to c4; from c4 it attacks Black's bishop on e6.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Rb1 ranked higher · Bc4 Nf4 Qf3 Nxh3+.

  20. 20...Nf4 Create pressure on h5

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from g6 to f4; from f4 it attacks White's queen on h5 and White's pawn on h3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nf4 Qd1 Nxh3+ Kh2.

  21. 21.Qd1 Reposition the queen

    Board fact: White moves the queen from h5 to d1; from there it controls d4, d5 and d3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qd1 Nxh3+ Kg2 Nxg5.

  22. 21...Nxh3+ Capture with check on h3

    Board fact: Black's knight takes the pawn on h3; the move checks White's king; from h3 it attacks White's pawn on f2 and White's pawn on g5; black is ahead by 1 conventional material point after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nxh3+ Kh2 Nxg5 Bxe6.

  23. 22.Kg2 Answering the check

    Board fact: White answers the check by moving the king from g1 to g2; from g2 it attacks Black's knight on h3.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; Kh2 ranked higher · Kg2 Nxg5 Re1 Bxc4.

  24. 22...Nf4+ A forcing check

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from h3 to f4; the move checks White's king; from there it controls d5, d3 and e6.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Nf4+ Kh2 Bxc4 Rxc4.

  25. 23.Kh1 Answering the check

    Board fact: White answers the check by moving the king from g2 to h1.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Kh1 Bxc4 Rxc4 Qa3.

  26. 23...Qb6 Create pressure on f2

    Board fact: Black moves the queen from b2 to b6; from b6 it attacks White's pawn on f2.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; hxg5 ranked higher · Qb6 Qb3 Qd4 Qe3.

  27. 24.gxh6 Exchange on h6

    Board fact: White's pawn takes the pawn on h6; the move changes the central pawn contact; from h6 it attacks Black's pawn on g7; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Qb3 ranked higher · gxh6 Bxc4 Qf3 Qxh6+.

  28. 24...Bxc4 Exchange on c4

    Board fact: Black's bishop takes the bishop on c4; from c4 it attacks White's rook on f1 and White's pawn on a2; black is ahead by 3 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bxc4 h7+ Kxh7 Rc3.

  29. 25.h7+ A forcing check

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from h6 to h7; the move checks Black's king; the pawn is now passed.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; Qh5 ranked higher · h7+ Kxh7 Rc3 Qh6+.

  30. 25...Kxh7 Answering the check

    Board fact: Black's king takes the pawn on h7; from h7 it reinforces the pawn on g7; black is ahead by 4 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; Kh8 ranked higher · Kxh7 Rc3 Qh6+ Kg1.

  31. 26.Qg4 Create pressure on f4

    Board fact: White moves the queen from d1 to g4; from g4 it attacks Black's knight on f4 and Black's pawn on g7.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qg4 Qh6+ Kg1 Be6.

  32. 26...Qh6+ A forcing check

    Board fact: Black moves the queen from b6 to h6; the move checks White's king; from there it controls c6, d6 and e6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qh6+ Kg1 Be6 Qxf4.

  33. 27.Kg1 Answering the check

    Board fact: White answers the check by moving the king from h1 to g1; from g1 it reinforces the rook on f1.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Kg1 Be6 Qf3 Rh8.

  34. 27...Bxf1 Exchange on f1

    Board fact: Black's bishop takes the rook on f1; black is ahead by 9 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; Be6 ranked higher · Bxf1 Rxf1 Qg6 Qxg6+.

  35. 28.Rxf1 Recapture on f1

    Board fact: White's rook recaptures the bishop on f1; from f1 it reinforces the pawn on f2; black is ahead by 6 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Rxf1 Qg6 Qxg6+ Kxg6.

  36. 28...Rd8 Rook on the open d-file

    Board fact: Black moves the rook from f8 to d8; the rook now occupies the open d-file; from there it controls d4, d5 and d3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Rd8 Rb1 b6 Rf1.

  37. 29.a4 Advance the a-pawn

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from a2 to a4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · a4 Qg6 Qxg6+ Kxg6.

  38. 29...Rd6 Rook on the open d-file

    Board fact: Black moves the rook from d8 to d6; the rook now occupies the open d-file; from there it controls d4, d5 and c6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Rd6 Re1 Rg6 Qg3.

  39. 30.f3 Advance the f-pawn

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from f2 to f3; from there it controls e4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · f3 Rg6 a5 Qh3.

  40. 30...Rg6 Create pressure on g4

    Board fact: Black moves the rook from d6 to g6; from g6 it attacks White's queen on g4.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Rg6 Rf2 Rxg4+ fxg4.

  41. 31.Kf2 Reposition the king

    Board fact: White moves the king from g1 to f2; from there it controls e3 and f3.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Rb1 ranked higher · Kf2 Qh2+ Qg2 Qxg2+.

PGN

[Event "USA-01.Congress"] [Site "?"] [Date "1857.??.??"] [White "Meek, Alexander Beaufort"] [Black "Morphy, Paul"] [Result "0-1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. c3 dxc3 5. Nxc3 Bc5 6. Bc4 d6 7. h3 Be6 8. Bb5 Ne7 9. Ng5 O-O 10. Qh5 h6 11. Nf3 Ng6 12. g4 Nce5 13. Nxe5 dxe5 14. g5 Qd4 15. Be3 Qb4 16. Bxc5 Qxb2 17. O-O Qxc3 18. Bxf8 Rxf8 19. Rac1 Qb2 20. Bc4 Nf4 21. Qd1 Nxh3+ 22. Kg2 Nf4+ 23. Kh1 Qb6 24. gxh6 Bxc4 25. h7+ Kxh7 26. Qg4 Qh6+ 27. Kg1 Bxf1 28. Rxf1 Rd8 29. a4 Rd6 30. f3 Rg6 31. Kf2 0-1

Sources and checking

Score source: Chess Database, version 1 by Ana Schaigorodsky (2016), licensed under CC BY 4.0. LibreChess selected the exact score identified by sha256:1098641372b833dc352d51bdbf4091810826473e8e8a108eecc2068af45b7ef7 and pins it in the selection manifest.
Exact Figshare tags:
White="Meek, Alexander Beaufort"; Black="Morphy, Paul"; Event="USA-01.Kongress"; Date="1857.10.17"; Result="0-1".
Reviewed display mapping: event USA-01.Kongress → USA-01.Congress. LibreChess parsed the main line with chess.js and stores normalised SAN. Source comments, side variations and termination detail were not retained.

LibreChess checks every SAN move with chess.js and compares the result and move sequence with a stored reference. The engine comparison was calculated offline from the fixed settings above; it is not a source for historical claims. No termination is inferred where the imported score does not preserve one.

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