The Howard Staunton Society
Mr. Howard Staunton. Engraving published in Staunton's obituary in 1874
Last Saturday the annual contest between the universities of Oxford and Cambridge was held at the Royal Automobile Club in Pall Mall. There is, in these academic rivalries, a curious mixture of youthful ardour and ancient tradition, and the Varsity Match in chess is no exception. Its origin may be traced to that formidable Victorian polymath, Howard Staunton—de facto world chess champion, educationalist, Shakespeare scholar, and the man after whom the modern chess pieces were named. That so many spheres of intellectual endeavour should converge in one individual is not merely an historical accident, but a reminder that the nineteenth century, for all its faults, did not so rigorously compartmentalise the human mind as we are apt to do today.
This week I write about the Howard Staunton Society—how to join it and support its objectives—while next week I shall focus on the results of the 2026 Varsity Match, giving all the scores and the best games. It is fitting that practical play and historical remembrance should proceed in tandem, for a culture that forgets its pioneers is in danger of mistaking novelty for progress.
For more than thirty years, the Howard Staunton Society has combined commemoration with creativity. From the granite memorial at Kensal Green to the blue plaque honouring Staunton in London, we have sought to secure for him a visible place in the public landscape. These physical tributes are not acts of idle nostalgia; they are reminders that intellectual achievement deserves as permanent a memorial as military triumph. Our current campaign aims to raise a full sculpture in his honour, originally the work of the late Barry Martin, now to be completed by a worthy acolyte. Such enterprises require patience, funds, and—what is rarer—conviction.
Our events have included high-profile competitions, notably the Howard Staunton Memorial Tournament, as well as dinners, lectures, and tours celebrating chess’s role in intellectual and cultural life. The Society’s gatherings at the now newly reopened Simpson’s-in-the-Strand and other notable London venues consciously recall the grand salons of Staunton’s time. There, conviviality and learning are not regarded as mutually exclusive. Indeed, it is my own view that they flourish best together.
Future programmes will extend these traditions through public exhibitions, educational initiatives, and international collaborations. Publications remain central to our work. Recently, we reprinted Staunton’s biography by your columnist, Raymond Keene, OBE, alongside articles and research papers contributed by our members. We continue to serve as a platform for scholarship, supporting writers, collectors, and historians, while promoting chess both as a sport and as a means of maintaining mental agility and cultural engagement. In an age which prizes distraction above reflection, this may be thought a modest but not negligible service.
Howard Staunton was more than a chess player; he was the animating spirit of nineteenth-century chess culture and a figure who bridged the intellectual life of his age. In the 1840s he was widely regarded as the world’s strongest player, defeating rivals in London and Paris. In 1851 he organised the first international chess tournament, timed to coincide with the Great Exhibition, thereby establishing a model still followed today. His name achieved a peculiar immortality through the Staunton chess set, registered in 1849 and still the standard in tournament play throughout the world.
Yet his influence extended far beyond the sixty-four squares. As a pioneering columnist for the Illustrated London News, he shaped public understanding of chess for over two decades. His The Chess-Player’s Handbook guided generations of enthusiasts and contributed materially to the codification of opening theory and competitive standards. Nor was his scholarship confined to the game. He edited a respected edition of Shakespeare’s plays, earning recognition as a literary scholar, and authored The Great Schools of England, which, I note with personal satisfaction, offers praise for my own Alma Mater, Dulwich College. For his time, Staunton’s educational theories were notably progressive, emphasising enthusiasm and inspiration rather than the mechanical repetition that so often stifles curiosity at its birth.
For all his achievements, Staunton’s later years were clouded by declining health and controversy, and he died in relative obscurity. It is one of the paradoxes of civilisation that those who contribute most to its refinement are frequently neglected by it. The Howard Staunton Society exists to ensure that his contributions—to chess, to literature, and to Victorian intellectual life—are not merely remembered, but studied and celebrated with the seriousness they deserve.
How to Join
Membership of the Howard Staunton Society is open to all who share an interest in chess history, Victorian culture, or the preservation of intellectual heritage.
What you receive:
- Regular newsletters and research bulletins
- Invitations to Society events, dinners, and lectures
- Priority booking for tournaments and commemorative occasions
- Opportunities to contribute articles and research
- The satisfaction of supporting the Staunton statue campaign
Subscription:
Annual membership currently stands at £25 for UK members and £35 for overseas members, with concessions for students.
Contact:
Enquiries may be addressed to the Secretary of the Howard Staunton Society via email at secretary@stauntonsociety.org or by post to the Society’s registered London address.
Books
I would commend to readers my own reissued biography Howard Staunton: The English World Champion by Raymond Keene, OBE, which offers both narrative vitality and documentary depth. Staunton’s The Chess-Player’s Handbook remains indispensable, not merely as a manual of instruction but as a window into the intellectual temperament of the mid-nineteenth century.
Howard Staunton vs. Pierre Saint-Amant
Staunton – Saint-Amant match, Paris, 1843, game 2
- d4 c5 2. d5 f5 3. Nf3
This is a quieter approach than 3. Nc3, which immediately threatens to challenge the centre and prioritise speedy development.
3… d6
Black fears White sacrificing with d5-d6, but both 3… Nf6 and …g6 are stronger options.
- Nc3 Nf6 5. Bg5
It is still early in their match, and Staunton remains cautious. But at a cost: 5. e4 fxe4 6. Bb5+ Bd7 7. Ng5 Na6 8. Ne6 leaves White with an enviable edge.
5… e5 6. e4 a6
Black plays a routine move, intending …b5 to follow. But it was preferable to challenge white’s dark square control, for example, 6… Be7 (or …f4 7. a4 Be7 8. g3 fxg3 9. hxg3 O-O) 7. exf5 Bxf5 8. Bb5+ Bd7 9. Bxf6 Bxf6 10. Bxd7+ Qxd7 11. Ne4 O-O, limits White’s advantage.
- exf5 Bxf5 8. Nh4 Bc8 9. Bd3 g6?
Perhaps too early to suggest a losing move, yet despite the twists and turns to come, black is never able to fully recover from this blunder. The point is that the g6-pawn is a tactical target, with a sacrifice in some lines, destroying black’s kingside shelter. More circumspect is, 9… Be7 10. Bf5 g6 11. Bxc8 Qxc8 12. O-O O-O, when Black is in difficulties, but not lost.
- O-O?!
Staunton plays conservatively, and though better, misses the critical continuation permitted by black’s last: 10. f4 Bg7 11. fxe5 dxe5 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Bxg6+, with a dominant position.
10… Be7 11. f4 c4?!
Placing white back in complete control. Better, though still in grave trouble, is 11… Bg4 12. Be2 Bxe2 13. Qxe2 Nbd7.
- Bxc4?
White again desists the sacrificial attempt on g6: 12. Bxg6+ hxg6 13. Nxg6 Bg4 14. Qd2 Qb6+ 15. Kh1 Rh5 16. fxe5 dxe5 17. Nxe7! But in fact, he has even better available in, 12. fxe5 Ng4 13. e6 Bxg5 14. Qxg4 cxd3 15. Qd4 Rg8 16. Qf2 Qe7 17. Qf7+ Qxf7 18. exf7+, winning.
12… exf4 13. Rxf4 Nbd7 14. Qd4 Ne5 15. Re1 Nfd7 16. Bxe7 Qxe7 17. Ne4 Rf8 18. Rxf8+?!
While preferable to 18. Ref1, white overlooks another demoralising tactic, so great is his advantage now. After, 18. Nxd6+ Qxd6 19. Nf3 Rxf4 20. Qxf4 Kd8 21. Nxe5, he is winning.
18… Qxf8?
The wrong recapture; black must find refuge for his king, and this is best accomplished with, 18… Kxf8 19. Qf2+ Kg7 20. Qg3 Nf6 21. Nxd6 Nfg4 22. Ne4 Nxc4, when Black is much worse, but his safer king, at least challenges white to find the conclusive continuation.
- Nxd6+ Kd8 20. Rxe5 Qxd6 21. Re3 Kc7 22. Bb3 a5 23. Nf3 Nf6?
This hastens his destruction. Both 23… Ra6 and …Kb8 permit survival a trifle longer.
- c4 b6 25. Ne5 a4 26. Bc2 a3??
And with this irrelevance, 26… Qc5 was comparatively better, black moves from losing to lost.
- Nf7 Qc5 28. Qf4+ Kb7 29. b4 Nh5 30. Nd8+ Ka6 31. bxc5 Nxf4 32. Rxa3 checkmate 1-0.
The game illustrates Staunton’s characteristic blend of strategic foresight and tactical resolution: an embodiment, in miniature, of the intellectual virtues he championed throughout his life.
In preserving such games, and in fostering the study of their author, the Howard Staunton Society does more than indulge antiquarian curiosity. It affirms that clarity of thought, disciplined imagination, and cultural memory remain worthy of cultivation in any age
Ray’s 206th book, “ Chess in the Year of the King ”, written in collaboration with Adam Black, and his 207th, “ Napoleon and Goethe: The Touchstone of Genius ” (which discusses their relationship with chess) can be ordered from both Amazon and Blackwell’s. His 208th, the world record for chess books, written jointly with the late chess playing artist, Barry Martin, Chess through the Looking Glass , is now also available from Amazon.
A Message from TheArticle
We are the only publication that’s committed to covering every angle. We have an important contribution to make, one that’s needed now more than ever, and we need your help to continue publishing throughout these hard economic times. So please, make a donation.
