Opening family
Bishop's Opening Lines and Variations
The Bishop's Opening family contains 41 named lines in this opening book, spanning ECO C23 to C43. Use this page as the map, then open individual lines for exact move orders and diagrams.
How to study this family
White
White should use the move order as a checkpoint: finish development, identify the central break, and compare the continuations below before memorizing moves.
Black
Black should ask what White is threatening in the center, then choose development moves that prepare a clean pawn break or a useful exchange.
Start with the shortest line, then branch to the variations that change the pawn structure or tactical target. Memorizing every branch before understanding the family plan is usually wasted work.
Main named lines
- C23 · Bishop's Opening
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Boi Variation
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Calabrese Countergambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Khan Gambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Philidor Counterattack
- C24 · Bishop's Opening: Berlin Defense
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Calabrese Countergambit, Jaenisch Variation
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Lewis Gambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Lopez Variation
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Philidor Variation
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Stein Gambit
- C24 · Bishop's Opening: Berlin Defense, Greco Gambit
- C24 · Bishop's Opening: Ponziani Gambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Anderssen Gambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: del Rio Variation
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Lewis Countergambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Thorold Gambit
- C24 · Bishop's Opening: Paulsen Defense
- C26 · Bishop's Opening: Horwitz Gambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: Lopez Variation, Lopez Gambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit, La Bourdonnais-Denker Gambit
- C23 · Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit, McDonnell Double Gambit
- C24 · Bishop's Opening: Pachman Gambit
Deep theory branches
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. b4 Bxb4 4. f4 exf4 5. Nf3 Be7 6. d4 Bh4+ 7. g3 fxg3 8. O-O gxh2+ 9. Kh1 — Bishop's Opening: Four Pawns Gambit
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 c6 3. d4 d5 4. exd5 cxd5 5. Bb5+ Bd7 6. Bxd7+ Nxd7 7. dxe5 Nxe5 8. Ne2 — Bishop's Opening: Lisitsyn Variation
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. c3 Nf6 4. d4 exd4 5. e5 d5 6. exf6 dxc4 7. Qh5 O-O — Bishop's Opening: Pratt Variation
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nf3 d5 5. exd5 Bb4+ 6. c3 Qe7+ — Bishop's Opening: Urusov Gambit, Panov Variation
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. c3 d5 4. Bxd5 Nf6 5. d4 — Bishop's Opening: Lewis Countergambit, Walker Variation
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. Qe2 Nc6 4. c3 Nf6 5. f4 — Bishop's Opening: Lopez Gambit
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. f3 Bc5 4. Ne2 Nc6 5. b4 — Bishop's Opening: Krejcik Gambit
- 1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Bb4 5. Ne2 — Bishop's Opening: Vienna Hybrid, Hromádka Variation
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Qxd4 — Bishop's Opening: Urusov Gambit, Keidansky Gambit
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. c3 d5 4. Bxd5 Nf6 — Bishop's Opening: Lewis Countergambit
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d3 Be7 4. Nf3 O-O — Bishop's Opening: Kitchener Folly
- 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bc4 Nxe4 4. Nc3 d5 — Bishop's Opening: Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit, Lichtenhein Defense
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. Qe2 Nf6 4. f4 — Bishop's Opening: Lopez Variation, Lopez Gambit
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. b4 Bxb4 4. c3 — Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit, La Bourdonnais-Denker Gambit
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Bc5 3. b4 Bxb4 4. f4 — Bishop's Opening: McDonnell Gambit, McDonnell Double Gambit
- 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. Ne2 Nxe4 4. Nec3 — Bishop's Opening: Pachman Gambit