Chessboard Setup & Coordinates

12. Setting Up the Chessboard

Now that you know all the pieces, let's place them on the board in their starting positions.

• White pieces start on ranks 1 and 2; black pieces on ranks 7 and 8.
• Rooks go in the corners, then knights, bishops, then queen on her colour and king beside her.
• Pawns stand in a wall in front of the other pieces.

Tap the button to watch the pieces appear one by one on their home squares:

Try to remember where each piece begins, then pause the video and set up a real board in front of you in the same way.

10. The Queen

The queen is the strongest piece. She combines the power of the rook and bishop.

• The queen moves any number of squares along files, ranks, or diagonals.
• She cannot jump over pieces, so her path must be clear.
• She captures by moving onto a square occupied by an enemy piece.

Tap a button to see how a white queen moves, captures, and how many points she is worth:

Imagine a white queen standing in the centre on d4. Watch how she combines rook and bishop moves, and remember that a queen is usually worth about 9 points.

11. The King

The king is the most important piece. If your king is checkmated, you lose the game.

• The king moves one square at a time in any direction: up, down, left, right, or diagonally.
• He cannot move onto a square that is under attack by an enemy piece.
• He captures just like he moves: one square away onto an enemy piece.

Tap a button to see how the king moves from the centre, how he captures, and why we do not give him normal point values:

Imagine a white king standing in the centre on d4. He can only move one step at a time, but you must protect him at all costs.

9. The Rook

Rooks move in straight lines along files and ranks. From the centre they can control many squares.

• A rook moves any number of squares up, down, left, or right, as long as nothing blocks its path.
• It cannot move diagonally like a bishop.
• It captures by moving onto a square occupied by an enemy piece on the same file or rank.

Tap a button to see how a white rook moves, captures, and how many points it is worth:

Imagine a white rook standing in the centre on d4. Watch the board to see its straight-line moves, and remember that each rook is usually worth about 5 points.

3. Counting Squares on the Chessboard

The chessboard has 64 squares in total, split equally between light and dark. Let's watch them being counted one by one.

• 64 squares altogether (8 files × 8 ranks).
• 32 light squares and 32 dark squares.
• The pattern always stays balanced, no matter how you look at it.

Tap a button and see the squares light up as we count:

4. Chessboard Layout: Files, Ranks & Diagonals

The chessboard is an 8 x 8 grid. We can travel along files (columns), ranks (rows), and long diagonals. Let's highlight each one.

• Files go up and down using letters a to h.
• Ranks go left and right using numbers 1 to 8.
• Diagonals connect squares of the same colour from corner to corner.

Tap a button to see one example of each on the board:

5. Naming Squares (Coordinates)

Each square has a unique coordinate made from its file letter and rank number. This is called algebraic notation.

• a1 is on the a-file and rank 1 (bottom-left from White's view).
• h8 is on the h-file and rank 8 (top-right from White's view).
• e4 is on the e-file and rank 4, one of the four central squares.

Tap a button to see and hear some example square names on the board:

Being fluent with coordinates will be essential for writing moves and solving puzzles later in the course.

6. The Pawn

Pawns are the smallest pieces, but they are very powerful when they work together. They usually move forward one square at a time.

• Pawns move forward on their file, never backwards.
• On their first move they may go one or two squares.
• Pawns capture diagonally, one square forward left or right.

Tap a button to see how a white pawn can move, capture, and how many points it is worth:

Imagine a white pawn starting on e2. Watch the board to see where it can go and remember that each pawn is worth 1 point.

7. The Knight

Knights are tricky pieces that jump in an L-shape. They are the only pieces that can jump over other pieces.

• A knight moves in an L-shape: two squares in one direction, then one square to the side.
• Knights can jump over both their own pieces and the opponent's pieces.
• They capture by landing on a square occupied by an enemy piece.

Tap a button to see how a white knight moves, captures, and how many points it is worth:

Imagine a white knight placed on e4. Watch the board to see its L-shaped jumps and remember that each knight is worth 3 points.

8. The Bishop

Bishops move along the diagonals and are strongest when they sit in the centre of the board.

• A bishop moves any number of squares along a diagonal, as long as nothing blocks its path.
• Each bishop starts on either a light or dark square and always stays on that colour.
• It captures by moving onto a diagonal square occupied by an enemy piece.

Tap a button to see how a white bishop moves, captures, and how many points it is worth:

Imagine a white bishop standing in the centre on d4. Watch the board to see how it travels along both diagonals from the centre, and remember that each bishop is worth 3 points.