Intermediate checkmate · 10 of 12
Anastasia's mate
A knight and a rook or queen trap the king on the edge of the board, shut in by its own pawn.
- Learn how it worksThree examples with Capra. You play each one yourself.Three examples with CapraStart the lesson
- Practise on real puzzlesPractise on puzzles80 anastasia's mate puzzles, from easy to very hard.0 of 80 solvedGo to the puzzlesGo to the puzzles
A knight, an open file and a pawn in the way
The knight on e7 covers g8 and g6. The king's own pawn on g7 blocks the square between them.
The rook mates
The rook checks on the h-file, and the king has no square.
A rook sacrifice on h7
The rook takes on h7 with check. The king has to take the rook, and the queen mates on the open file.
The knight check comes first
The knight checks from e7 and drives the king into the corner. A queen sacrifice on h7 comes next.
Anastasia's mates in numbers
Counted from the 259 Anastasia's mates in our puzzle library, all taken from real games- 1 in 1100
of our puzzles ends with Anastasia's mate.
- 47%
of them are mate in 2.
- 67%
of them come in the endgame.
Which piece makes the first move
- Rook65%
- Knight21%
- Queen14%
How many moves the mate takes
- Mate in 142%
- Mate in 247%
- Mate in 310%
- Mate in 41%
Good to know
Anastasia's mates: common questions
What is Anastasia's mate in chess?
Anastasia's mate is a checkmate on the edge of the board. A knight covers the squares on both sides of the king's own pawn, the pawn blocks the square between them, and a rook or queen gives mate along the edge.
Why is it called Anastasia's mate?
The name comes from a novel, Anastasia and the Game of Chess, published by Wilhelm Heinse in 1803. The mate is shown in the book.
Where does the knight need to stand?
With the king on the h-file behind a pawn on g7, the knight belongs on e7. From there it covers g8 and g6.
How do I spot Anastasia's mate?
Look for your knight on e7, a king on h8 or h7 beside its g-pawn, and a rook or queen that can reach the h-file. A sacrifice on h7 often opens the file.