Paul Charles Morphy was not just a chess player. He was a phenomenon. He was born in New Orleans on June 22, 1837, and died there nearly 50 years later, on July 10, 1884. But in between? In less than two years he became the best in the world.
Some call him the greatest player of all time. Why? Because he changed the way the game was played. Before Morphy, people attacked blindly. He showed that you have to develop your pieces first. * Control the center. Move the knights. Then strike.* It sounds easy now. It was revolutionary at the time.
At the age of 10, he picked up the board. At 19, he had already passed the Louisiana bar exam. There was a catch. He was unable to practice law until he was of age. So he was sat on his license. Instead, he played chess.
In 1857, he won the first American chess masterhip in New York. It was a warm-up. Then he left for Europe.
He destroyed Germany’s Adolf Anderssen. Anderssen was the unofficial world champion. He was a titan. Morphy didn’t just beat him. He dismantled him. He beat all the other master who dared to sit across from him. Even Howard Staunton, England’s leading player, refused the match. Staunton backed down.
Morphy played blindfolded against eight strong opponents in Paris. Six wins. Two draws. No losses.
He returned to the United States in 1859. Still undefeated. He made such a bold challenge that it now sounds arrogant. He offered to play against any player in the world. Pawn and move. He would take Black. He would give up the first move. He would start with one less pawn.
Nobody took the bait.
The silence was deafening. Morphy had beaten everyone. All had withdrawn. So he went away. Although still at the top, he gave up his public career.
He tried to practice law. It didn’t work. The world was too loud, or maybe he was just too far away from it. He withdrew. He lived in seclusion. Eccentric behavior occurred. Paranoia haunted him.
The man who conquered the board had nowhere to go.
