London 1851

The tournament that started it all. The first international chess tournament in history, held alongside the Great Exhibition. Adolf Anderssen won, announcing the Romantic era of chess.

The Great Exhibition's Side Event

London 1851 was organized by Howard Staunton, the strongest English player of his era, as a cultural event alongside the Great Exhibition at Crystal Palace. Sixteen of the strongest players in Europe were invited to compete in a knockout format. The tournament ran from May 26 to June 30, 1851, at the St. George's Chess Club in London.

Adolf Anderssen of Germany won, defeating Staunton himself in the process. Anderssen's victory games, particularly the "Immortal Game" against Kieseritzky (played as a casual game during the tournament) and the "Evergreen Game" against Dufresne, became icons of the Romantic style of chess: bold sacrifices, dramatic attacks, and brilliant tactical combinations.

London 1851 proved that international chess tournaments were viable and exciting. It established the tournament format that would dominate chess for the next century and a half. Every tournament held since owes something to this first experiment in gathering the world's best players in one place.