The Steinitz Papers: Letters and Documents of the First World Chess Champion - Hardcover

Steinitz, William

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0786411937 ISBN 13: 9780786411931

Publisher: McFarland & Co Inc, 2002

Synopsis

Long known as one of the greatest chess masters of the nineteenth century, William Steinitz is recognized as the first world champion. More exactly (and thanks to the efforts of the author of this book) he has been officially acknowledged as the first American world chess champion. Luckily for chess scholars, many letters and postcards survive written by Steinitz and his associates, friends and foes. After years of research, numerous personal contacts with people on three continents, and unflagging efforts to acquire any and all known letters to and from Steinitz, the author here presents in their own words a remarkable account of Steinitz and his contemporaries in the chess world of over a century ago. Notable personalities that write or are written about include Lasker, Pillsbury, Zukertort, Bird, Blackburne, Janowski, Tschigorin and Winawer.

About this title

Review

"welcome...very useful...fascinating"--The Washington Post; "a very rich collection of material"--British Chess Magazine; "high-quality...lively and entertaining...book deserves high praise... should be enjoyed by anyone who reads chess history"--IM John Donaldson (JeremySilman.com); "impressive...an outstanding work"--Chess Mail; "the author, Steinitz's great-grandnephew, presents all known letters to and from Steinitz"--Chess Horizons; "high-quality...lively and entertaining...the book deserves high praise"--ChessCenter.com; "an amazing collection of correspondences and documents that span Steinitz's chess life...any true history buff or fan of Steinitz would love this collection and derive an immense amount of pleasure from it...the book is a historic gem...there is simply nothing else out there that can provide the kind of detailed information that this book has. It is a phenomenal book for the serious study of the interesting World Champion"--Chessville.com; "well researched and well written"--Seagaard Chess Reviews; "outstanding"--Time Travel-Journal for Chess Players.

From the Back Cover

One of the greatest of chess masters, William Steinitz (he changed his name from Wilhelm when he arrived in America) is recognized as the first world champion. More exactly (and thanks to the efforts of the editor of this book, Kurt Landsberger) he has been officially acknowledged as the first American world chess champion. Many letters and postcards survive: After years of unflagging effort to acquire all known letters to and from Steinitz, the editor has compiled a remarkable record of Steinitz and his contemporaries. Each letter, postcard, scrapbook item, newspaper or chess magazine article or other writing is described along with details of its location, ownership, and circumstances of discovery. It is then printed, nearly always in full, in English (many are translated from the German by Landsberger).

Edition details

• Publisher: McFarland & Co Inc
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0786411937
• ISBN 13: 9780786411931
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 360