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Ruy López

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5

The Ruy López is one of the oldest and most respected chess openings, played for control of the center and development of key pieces.

Fun fact: The opening is named after Ruy López de Segura, who covered it in his 1561 book Libro del Axedrez, though it already appears in the Göttingen manuscript of around 1490. Source

Practice this opening

The idea

After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6, White plays 3.Bb5, attacking the knight that defends e5. It isn't an immediate threat: if White takes on c6 and then on e5, Black can win the pawn back. But the pressure on c6, and so on e5, lasts for the whole opening and shapes everything that follows.

The Ruy López is known for long, strategic games in which White keeps a small, lasting edge. Its nickname, "the Spanish torture", comes from how hard it is for Black to equalize completely.

Black's two main replies are 3...a6, the Morphy Defense, and 3...Nf6, the Berlin Defense.

Plans for White

Castle early, play Re1, c3 and d4 to build a strong center, and keep the pressure on e5. The bishop usually retreats to a4 and then b3, where it aims at f7.

In the main lines, White's knight on b1 travels d2-f1-g3, and White slowly prepares to attack on the kingside.

Plans for Black

Hold the e5 pawn, develop quickly and castle. With ...a6 and ...b5 Black gains space on the queenside and chases the bishop, and the ...d5 break or a queenside expansion with ...c5 gives Black counterplay.

Watch out for

For White, the Noah's Ark Trap. After 3...a6 4.Ba4 d6 5.d4 b5 6.Bb3 Nxd4 7.Nxd4 exd4, recapturing with 8.Qxd4?? loses the bishop: 8...c5 9.Qd5 Be6 10.Qc6+ Bd7 11.Qd5 c4, and the bishop on b3 is trapped by Black's pawns.

For Black, the Tarrasch Trap in the Open Variation. After 5...Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.c3 Be7 10.Re1 O-O 11.Nd4, the natural 11...Qd7? allows 12.Nxe6 and 13.Rxe4, winning a piece because the d5 pawn is pinned.

The Noah's Ark Trap

3...a6 4.Ba4 d6 5.d4 b5 6.Bb3 Nxd4 7.Nxd4 exd4 8.Qxd4 c5 9.Qd5 Be6 10.Qc6+ Bd7 11.Qd5 c4

The Tarrasch Trap

3...a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.c3 Be7 10.Re1 O-O 11.Nd4 Qd7 12.Nxe6 fxe6 13.Rxe4

History

The opening was analyzed by Ruy López de Segura in 1561, and it has been one of the most respected openings in chess ever since. The Berlin Defense in particular became a top-level weapon after Vladimir Kramnik used it against Garry Kasparov in 2000.

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