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Classic game replay

Eugene Znosko Borovsky vs Jose Raul Capablanca, 1913

This replay preserves the complete 74-ply score of Capablanca playing Black across 37 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
Eugene Znosko Borovsky
Black
Jose Raul Capablanca
Event
St Petersburg exhibition
Year
1913
Result
0-1
Opening
C88 Ruy Lopez: Closed

Opening reference: Ruy Lopez: Closed (C88).

In this game, 20 half-moves are labelled opening, 54 middlegame and 0 endgame. The score contains 15 captures and 2 checks or mates; before a recorded move, the position offered a median of 36 legal choices. The source score ends after 37...Re1 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. 10...Nc6 — Improve the knight10...Nc6 was a leading choice in the fixed engine check.
  2. 16...Bxf5 — Recapture on f516...Bxf5 was a leading choice in the fixed engine check.
  3. 23...d5 — Create pressure on e423...d5 was a leading choice in the fixed engine check.
  4. 26...Qb6+ — A forcing check26...Qb6+ was a leading choice in the fixed engine check.
  5. 37...Re1 — Rook on the open e-file37...Re1 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.

♜♞♝♛♚♝♞♜♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♜♞♝♛♚♝♞♜
Eugene Znosko Borovsky vs Jose Raul Capablanca, 1913

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...Nc6

  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.Bb5 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: White develops the bishop from f1 to b5; from b5 it attacks Black's knight on c6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bb5 a6.

  6. 3...a6 Create pressure on b5

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from a7 to a6; from a6 it attacks White's bishop on b5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · a6.

  7. 4.Ba4 Create pressure on c6

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from b5 to a4; from a4 it attacks Black's knight on c6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Ba4 Nf6.

  8. 4...Nf6 Develop the knight

    Board fact: Black develops the knight from g8 to f6; from f6 it attacks White's pawn on e4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nf6 O-O Nxe4 d4.

  9. 5.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 Nxe4.

  10. 5...Be7 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: Black develops the bishop from f8 to e7; from there it controls c5, d6 and f6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Be7 d3 b5 Bb3.

  11. 6.Re1 Improve the rook

    Board fact: White moves the rook from f1 to e1; from there it controls e4 and e3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Re1.

  12. 6...b5 Create pressure on a4

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from b7 to b5; from b5 it attacks White's bishop on a4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · b5 Bb3.

  13. 7.Bb3 Create pressure on f7

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from a4 to b3; from b3 it attacks Black's pawn on f7.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bb3.

  14. 7...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 c3 O-O h3.

  15. 8.c3 Advance the c-pawn

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from c2 to c3; from there it controls d4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · c3 O-O h3 Be6.

  16. 8...Na5 Create pressure on b3

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from c6 to a5; from a5 it attacks White's bishop on b3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Na5 Bc2 c5 d4.

  17. 9.Bc2 Reposition the bishop

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from b3 to c2; from there it controls e4 and d3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bc2 c5 d4 Qc7.

  18. 9...c5 Advance the c-pawn

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from c7 to c5; from there it controls d4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · c5 h3.

  19. 10.d3 Advance the d-pawn

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from d2 to d3; from there it controls e4 and c4.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · d3 Nc6 Nbd2 O-O.

  20. 10...Nc6 Improve the knight

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from a5 to c6; from there it controls d4 and e5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nc6 h3 O-O d4.

Middlegame · 11.Nbd2 to 37...Re1

  1. 11.Nbd2 Develop the knight

    Board fact: White develops the knight from b1 to d2; from there it controls e4, c4 and f3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nbd2 O-O.

  2. 11...Be6 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: Black develops the bishop from c8 to e6; from e6 it attacks White's pawn on a2.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Be6 d4.

  3. 12.Nf1 Reroute the knight

    Board fact: White moves the knight from d2 to f1; from there it controls e3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nf1 O-O h3 a5.

  4. 12...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.

  5. 13.Qe2 Reposition the queen

    Board fact: White moves the queen from d1 to e2; from there it controls e4, d3 and e3.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Qe2 h6 Ne3 a5.

  6. 13...Nh5 Reroute the knight

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from f6 to h5; from there it controls f4 and f6.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; h6 ranked higher · Nh5 h3 g6 Bb3.

  7. 14.Ng3 Develop the knight

    Board fact: White develops the knight from f1 to g3; from g3 it attacks Black's knight on h5.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Ng3 Nxg3.

  8. 14...Nxg3 Exchange on g3

    Board fact: Black's knight takes the knight on g3; from g3 it attacks White's queen on e2 and White's pawn on e4; black is ahead by 3 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nxg3 hxg3 Re8 Be3.

  9. 15.fxg3 Recapture on g3

    Board fact: White's pawn recaptures the knight on g3; the move changes the central pawn contact; White accepts doubled pawns on the g-file; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · fxg3 a5.

  10. 15...f5 Change the pawn structure

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from f7 to f5; the move changes the central pawn contact; from f5 it attacks White's pawn on e4.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; a5 ranked higher · f5.

  11. 16.exf5 Exchange on f5

    Board fact: White's pawn takes the pawn on f5; the move changes the central pawn contact; from f5 it attacks Black's bishop on e6; white is ahead by 1 conventional material point after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · exf5 Bxf5 Bb3+ Kh8.

  12. 16...Bxf5 Recapture on f5

    Board fact: Black's bishop recaptures the pawn on f5; from f5 it attacks White's pawn on d3; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bxf5 Bb3+ Kh8 Bd5.

  13. 17.Bb3+ A forcing check

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from c2 to b3; the move checks Black's king; from there it controls d5, c4 and e6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bb3+ Kh8.

  14. 17...Kh8 Answering the check

    Board fact: Black answers the check by moving the king from g8 to h8; from h8 it reinforces the pawn on g7.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Kh8 Bd5 Qd7 a4.

  15. 18.Bd5 Create pressure on c6

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from b3 to d5; from d5 it attacks Black's knight on c6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bd5 Rc8 Rf1 h6.

  16. 18...Rc8 Improve the rook

    Board fact: Black moves the rook from a8 to c8; from there it controls c6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Rc8 Rf1 h6 h3.

  17. 19.a4 Create pressure on b5

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from a2 to a4; from a4 it attacks Black's pawn on b5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · a4 b4 Rf1 h6.

  18. 19...Bf6 Reposition the bishop

    Board fact: Black moves the bishop from e7 to f6; from there it controls e5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bf6 axb5 axb5 h3.

  19. 20.axb5 Exchange on b5

    Board fact: White's pawn takes the pawn on b5; the move changes the central pawn contact; White accepts doubled pawns on the b-file; from b5 it attacks Black's knight on c6 and Black's pawn on a6; white is ahead by 1 conventional material point after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · axb5 axb5.

  20. 20...axb5 Recapture on b5

    Board fact: Black's pawn recaptures the pawn on b5; the move changes the central pawn contact; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · axb5.

  21. 21.Bd2 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: White develops the bishop from c1 to d2; from there it controls c3, e3 and f4.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Bd2 c4 dxc4 bxc4.

  22. 21...Ne7 Create pressure on d5

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from c6 to e7; from e7 it attacks White's bishop on d5.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Ne7 Be4 Be6 c4.

  23. 22.Be4 Create pressure on f5

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from d5 to e4; from e4 it attacks Black's bishop on f5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Be4 c4 Bxf5 Nxf5.

  24. 22...c4 Change the pawn structure

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from c5 to c4; the move changes the central pawn contact; from c4 it attacks White's pawn on d3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · c4 Bxf5.

  25. 23.Ng5 Create pressure on h7

    Board fact: White moves the knight from f3 to g5; from g5 it attacks Black's pawn on h7.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Bxf5 ranked higher · Ng5 d5.

  26. 23...d5 Create pressure on e4

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from d6 to d5; from d5 it attacks White's bishop on e4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · d5 Bxf5 Nxf5 g4.

  27. 24.Bxf5 Exchange on f5

    Board fact: White's bishop takes the bishop on f5; from f5 it attacks Black's rook on c8 and Black's pawn on h7; white is ahead by 3 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bxf5 Nxf5 Nh3 Nd6.

  28. 24...Nxf5 Recapture on f5

    Board fact: Black's knight recaptures the bishop on f5; from f5 it attacks White's pawn on g3; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nxf5 Nh3 Nd6 Rad1.

  29. 25.Qh5 Create pressure on h7

    Board fact: White moves the queen from e2 to h5; from h5 it attacks Black's pawn on h7.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qh5 Bxg5 Bxg5 Qb6+.

  30. 25...Bxg5 Exchange on g5

    Board fact: Black's bishop takes the knight on g5; from g5 it attacks White's bishop on d2; black is ahead by 3 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bxg5 Bxg5.

  31. 26.Bxg5 Recapture on g5

    Board fact: White's bishop recaptures the bishop on g5; from g5 it attacks Black's queen on d8; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bxg5 Qb6+.

  32. 26...Qb6+ A forcing check

    Board fact: Black moves the queen from d8 to b6; the move checks White's king; from there it controls d4, c5 and c6.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qb6+ d4.

  33. 27.Kh1 Answering the check

    Board fact: White answers the check by moving the king from g1 to h1; from h1 it reinforces the pawn on g2.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Kh1.

  34. 27...Rce8 Improve the rook

    Board fact: Black moves the rook from c8 to e8; from there it controls e5 and e6.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; cxd3 ranked higher · Rce8 d4.

  35. 28.g4 Create pressure on f5

    Board fact: White moves the pawn from g3 to g4; from g4 it attacks Black's knight on f5.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · g4 Nd6.

  36. 28...Nd6 Improve the knight

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from f5 to d6; from there it controls e4, c4 and f5.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nd6 d4.

  37. 29.Be3 Create pressure on b6

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from g5 to e3; from e3 it attacks Black's queen on b6.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Be3 d4.

  38. 29...d4 Change the pawn structure

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from d5 to d4; the move changes the central pawn contact; from d4 it attacks White's bishop on e3 and White's pawn on c3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · d4 cxd4 exd4 Bg1.

  39. 30.Bg1 Create pressure on d4

    Board fact: White moves the bishop from e3 to g1; from g1 it attacks Black's pawn on d4.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Bg1 cxd3.

  40. 30...cxd3 Exchange on d3

    Board fact: Black's pawn takes the pawn on d3; the pawn is now passed; 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 · cxd3 Rxe5.

  41. 31.Rxe5 Exchange on e5

    Board fact: White's rook takes the pawn on e5; the rook now occupies the open e-file; from e5 it attacks Black's rook on e8 and Black's pawn on b5; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Playable; Red1 ranked higher · Rxe5 d2.

  42. 31...Rxe5 Recapture on e5

    Board fact: Black's rook recaptures the rook on e5; the rook now occupies the open e-file; from e5 it attacks White's queen on h5; black is ahead by 5 conventional material points after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Rxe5 Qxe5 Nc4 Qd5.

  43. 32.Qxe5 Recapture on e5

    Board fact: White's queen recaptures the rook on e5; from e5 it attacks Black's knight on d6 and Black's pawn on b5; material is level after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qxe5 Nc4.

  44. 32...Nc4 Create pressure on e5

    Board fact: Black moves the knight from d6 to c4; from c4 it attacks White's queen on e5 and White's pawn on b2.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Nc4 Qg5 h6 Qd5.

  45. 33.Rf1 Rook on the open f-file

    Board fact: White moves the rook from a1 to f1; the rook now occupies the open f-file; from f1 it attacks Black's rook on f8.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Qf5 ranked higher · Rf1 Qd8.

  46. 33...Qd8 Reposition the queen

    Board fact: Black moves the queen from b6 to d8; from there it controls d4, d5 and d6.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Qb8 ranked higher · Qd8.

  47. 34.Qxd4 Exchange on d4

    Board fact: White's queen takes the pawn on d4; from d4 it attacks Black's queen on d8 and Black's knight on c4; white is ahead by 1 conventional material point after the capture.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Qxd4 Re8 Qxd8 Rxd8.

  48. 34...Re8 Rook on the open e-file

    Board fact: Black moves the rook from f8 to e8; the rook now occupies the open e-file; from there it controls e4, e5 and e3.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Re8 Qxd8 Rxd8 b3.

  49. 35.Qa7 Create pressure on g7

    Board fact: White moves the queen from d4 to a7; from a7 it attacks Black's pawn on g7.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Re1 ranked higher · Qa7 d2 b3 Re1.

  50. 35...d2 Advance a passed pawn

    Board fact: Black moves the pawn from d3 to d2; the pawn is now passed.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · d2 b3 Ne3 Bxe3.

  51. 36.Bd4 Develop the bishop

    Board fact: White develops the bishop from g1 to d4; from d4 it attacks Black's pawn on g7.

    Fixed engine check: Near the leading choice · Bd4 Re7 Qa1 Qe8.

  52. 36...Re7 Rook on the open e-file

    Board fact: Black moves the rook from e8 to e7; the rook now occupies the open e-file; from e7 it attacks White's queen on a7.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Re7 Qa1 Qe8 Bf2.

  53. 37.Qc5 Create pressure on e7

    Board fact: White moves the queen from a7 to c5; from c5 it attacks Black's rook on e7 and Black's knight on c4.

    Fixed engine check: Recorded move; Qa1 ranked higher · Qc5 Re1 Rg1 d1=R.

  54. 37...Re1 Rook on the open e-file

    Board fact: Black moves the rook from e7 to e1; the rook now occupies the open e-file; from e1 it attacks White's rook on f1.

    Fixed engine check: Ranked first · Re1 Rg1 d1=Q Qf5.

PGN

[Event "St Petersburg exhibition"] [Site "?"] [Date "1913.??.??"] [White "Znosko Borovsky, Eugene"] [Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"] [Result "0-1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 Na5 9. Bc2 c5 10. d3 Nc6 11. Nbd2 Be6 12. Nf1 O-O 13. Qe2 Nh5 14. Ng3 Nxg3 15. fxg3 f5 16. exf5 Bxf5 17. Bb3+ Kh8 18. Bd5 Rc8 19. a4 Bf6 20. axb5 axb5 21. Bd2 Ne7 22. Be4 c4 23. Ng5 d5 24. Bxf5 Nxf5 25. Qh5 Bxg5 26. Bxg5 Qb6+ 27. Kh1 Rce8 28. g4 Nd6 29. Be3 d4 30. Bg1 cxd3 31. Rxe5 Rxe5 32. Qxe5 Nc4 33. Rf1 Qd8 34. Qxd4 Re8 35. Qa7 d2 36. Bd4 Re7 37. Qc5 Re1 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 sha256:675141ea4c722392ee22a63f45ce7495968306c5f7bb31175614faa53f9ed58e and pins it in the selection manifest.
Exact Figshare tags:
White="Znosko Borovsky, Eugene"; Black="Capablanca, Jose Raul"; Event="St Petersburg exhibition"; Date="1913.??.??"; Result="0-1". 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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