The board and setting up
Before the first move: the squares, their names, and where each piece goes.
The board
A chessboard is an 8 × 8 grid of 64 equal squares, alternately light and dark. FIDE Laws of Chess The board goes between the players so that the near corner square on each player’s right is a white (light) square. FIDE Laws of Chess
The eight up-and-down columns of squares are called files, and the eight side-to-side rows are called ranks. FIDE Laws of Chess A straight line of squares of the same colour, running from one edge of the board to the next edge, is called a diagonal. FIDE Laws of Chess
Two armies
At the start, White has 16 light-coloured pieces and Black has 16 dark-coloured pieces. FIDE Laws of Chess White makes the first move, then the players take turns. FIDE Laws of Chess
Where everything starts
- White’s king starts on e1 and Black’s king on e8. A king moves one square in any direction. Britannica: chess
- The white queen starts on d1 and the black queen on d8. Britannica: chess
- Each player has two rooks (once also called castles). They start in the corners: a1 and h1 for White, a8 and h8 for Black. Britannica: chess
- The bishops start on c1 and f1 for White, c8 and f8 for Black. Britannica: chess
- The knights start between the rooks and bishops: b1 and g1 for White, b8 and g8 for Black. Britannica: chess
- White’s pawns start on a2, b2, c2 and so on; Black’s start on a7, b7, c7 and so on. Britannica: chess
- At the start, White’s pieces and pawns stand on ranks 1 and 2, and Black’s on ranks 8 and 7. FIDE Laws of Chess
What you are trying to do
The aim is to put the other king under attack so that the other player has no legal move. FIDE Laws of Chess