Alexander Alekhine held the chess crown from 1927–1935 and 1937–1946, and was the only world champion to die undefeated. Alekhine (1892–1946) came from a wealthy noble family. On the eve of the First World War, he became one of the strongest chess players in the world. He survived the Russian Revolution and Civil War, becoming the first champion of Soviet Russia in 1920. In 1921, he left for Europe to earn the right to play a world championship match with Capablanca.
Alexander Alekhine crowned World Champion (1937) by From FIDE archiveInternational Chess Federation (FIDE)
Alekhine demonstrated spectacular, energetic combinational play, won major tournaments, received prizes for the beauty of his games, and set a record in a simultaneous blind game session.
In 1927, he achieved a match with Capablanca and won convincingly. Over the next seven years, Alekhine reached the highest peak in chess, winning the strongest tournaments and two world championship matches against Efim Bogolyubov.
In 1935, he lost the world champion title to Euwe but reclaimed it in a 1937 rematch. The Second World War prevented Alekhine's new chess matches, with Flohr, Keres, Botvinnik, and Capablanca as potential candidates. In 1946, an agreement was reached for a match with Botvinnik, but it did not take place due to Alekhine's death.
Page from "Chess" periodical announcing the death of Alekhine (1946-05) by From FIDE archiveInternational Chess Federation (FIDE)
The news of Alexander Alekhine dead in his hotel room in Estoril, Portugal, shook the chess world in the spring of 1946. The world champion was 53. Inevitably, the famous picture made it to the article of British monthly periodical, CHESS.
Autograph of Alexander Alekhine by Alexander AlekhineInternational Chess Federation (FIDE)
Alekhine's autograph
Alekhine's signature chess combination
Alekhine – Yates. London 1922
White sacrifices a knight getting dangerously close to the black king: 37.R:g7+! And after 37…R:f6 38.Ke5! White is bringing the king in. Black resigned because mate in 5 moves is unavoidable.
The Chess World Speaks: Opinions on Alekhine
"I can comprehend Alekhine's combinations well enough, but where he gets his attacking chances from and how he infuses such life into the very opening—that is beyond me." - Rudolf Spielmann
"Alexander Alekhine is the first luminary among the others who still have the greatest influence on me. I like his universality, his approach to the game, his chess ideas." - Garry Kasparov
"Alekhine is a poet who creates a work of art out of something that would hardly inspire another man to send home a picture postcard." - Max Euwe
Alexander Alekhine and his cat (1935) by From FIDE archiveInternational Chess Federation (FIDE)
Alexander Alekhine was almost inseparable from his Siamese cat named Chess. They traveled together, and Alekhine frequently brought Chess to tournaments. In this photo, the pair poses together during the 1935 World Championship Match in Amsterdam.
Timeless chess tips from Alekhine
You can become a great chess master only if you recognize your mistakes and shortcomings, just as in life itself. Chess, above all, teaches you to be objective.
Chess, to me, is not a game but an art. And I embrace all the responsibilities that art imposes on its devotees.
The fact that a player is very short on time, in my opinion, is as little of an excuse as a lawbreaker claiming he was drunk when committing a crime.
Dive deeper: explore Alekhine's legacy through these videos
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