The Complete Guide About The English Opening

Writing about a very unique opening that I use a lot is a really pleasurable experience for me. I decided to write about the English Opening because this strategy offers great benefits to the player that are using it. That is the reason why in our days, it is a popular opening and many Grand Masters have it in their arsenal. In this article, you will learn more than the basics behind the English opening and you will be able to practice it. Make sure that you will check out other articles that I have written about strategies and recommendations about nice chess sets.

An Introduction to the English Opening

The English Opening is a beautiful and amazing strategy that offers one major advantage in comparison with other openings. Among the players, the English Opening is also known as the ‘real chameleon’, the animal that is changing color depending on its surroundings. They use this metaphor to demonstrate the fact that this opening can be transformed into other popular openings such as Nimzo-Indian Defense, Queen’s Gambit, King’s Indian Defense, Grünfeld Defense and more.

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The starting move of this opening is 1.c4. Actually, if you reverse the color of the pieces, the English Opening is similar to Sicilian Defense. White is trying to add pressure in the critical and central d5 square. It’s a good idea for White to make a fianchetto in the kingside. There many possible responses for Black. Here are the basic Variations.

English, Anglo-Gruenfeld, Smyslov Defense

[ECO "A16"] [Opening "English: Anglo-Gruenfeld, Smyslov defense"] 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. cxd5 Nxd5 4. g3 g6 5. Bg2 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. h4 h6 8. Nh3 O-O 9. Qb3 Nd7 10. Nf4 e6 {White has a slight advantage.} * You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

King’s English Opening

[ECO "A20"] [Opening "English opening"] 1. c4 e5 2. g3 g6 3. d4 exd4 4. Qxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Qe3+ Qe7 7. Nb5 Qxe3 8. Bxe3 Kd8 * You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

English, Queen’s Indian, Romanishin Variation

[ECO "A17"] [Opening "English: Queens Indian, Romanishin variation"] 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. e4 Bb7 5. Bd3 d6 6. Bc2 c5 7. d4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Be7 9. O-O O-O 10. b3 a6 11. Bb2 Nc6 12. Nxc6 Bxc6 {White has a slight advantage.} * You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Illustrative games in the English Opening

I have selected some interesting games that will help you master the English Opening. I have written some comments in order to help you to get the most out of this article. The games are played by World Champions and Grand Masters who have made a few mistakes. Therefore, it would help you a lot to analyze each move.

English Opening, Bremen

[Event "London Chess Classic"] [Site "London ENG"] [Date "2009.12.08"] [Round "1"] [White "Magnus Carlsen"] [Black "Vladimir Kramnik"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A29"] [WhiteElo "2801"] [BlackElo "2772"] [Opening "English: Bremen"] [PlyCount "85"] {The current World Champion Magnus Carlsen was thinking that a good move to start the game was 1.e4 against a strong opponent in defense, Vladimir Kramnik. At the last moment he changed his mind.} 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Nb6 7. O-O Be7 8. a3 O-O 9. b4 Be6 10. Rb1 f6 11. d3 a5 12. b5 Nd4 13. Nd2 Qc8 14. e3 Nf5 15. Qc2 Rd8 16. Bb2 a4 17. Rfc1 Nd6 18. Nde4 Ne8 19. Qe2 Bf8 20. f4 exf4 21. gxf4 Qd7 22. d4 c6 23. Nc5 Bxc5 24. dxc5 Nc4 25. Rd1 Qc7 26. Bc1 {Magnus Carlsen was planning to place the Rook at b4 square and to capture the pawn in the ‘a’ file.} 26... Na5 {Kramnik was planning to make a counterplay in the white squares of the chessboard and he was willing to sacrifice a pawn.} 27. bxc6 bxc6 28. Nxa4 Rxd1+ 29. Qxd1 Rd8 30. Qc2 Qf7 31. Nc3 Qh5 $5 32. Ne2 {[%xcpdao l]} 32... Bf5 $2 ({A better move was} 32... Kf8) 33. e4 Bg4 34. Ng3 Qf7 35. Bf1 Be6 36. Qc3 Ra8 37. Rb4 Qd7 38. f5 Bf7 39. Bf4 Qd1 ({If Kramnik played} 39... Nb7 40. e5 fxe5 41. Bxe5 {Magnus Carlsen would easily win.}) 40. Kf2 Nb3 41. Be2 Qb1 42. Bc4 Rxa3 43. Ne2 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

English Opening Symmetrical Variation

Anatoly Karpov was at an excellent condition in the Linares tournament. He
finished in the first place and he won 11 out of 13 games (2 and a half points
ahead of Kasparov).

[Event "Linares"] [Site "Linares ESP"] [Date "1994.02.27"] [Round "4"] [White "Anatoly Karpov"] [Black "Veselin Topalov"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A32"] [EventDate "1994.??.??"] [Opening "English: symmetrical variation"] [PlyCount "77"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nf3 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. Nb3 Be7 8. Nc3 O-O 9. O-O d6 10. Bf4 Nh5 11. e3 Nxf4 12. exf4 Bd7 13. Qd2 Qb8 14. Rfe1 g6 15. h4 a6 16. h5 {[%xcpdao l]} 16... b5 $2 ({Veselin Topalov should have played} 16... Ra7 {The Rook would be removed from the ‘h1-a8’ diagonal and later on the game, the Rook would protect the d7 square.}) 17. hxg6 hxg6 18. Nc5 $1 dxc5 19. Qxd7 Rc8 20. Rxe6 $3 {Anatoly Karpov was willing to sacrifice his Rook in order to destroy Topalov’s defense.} 20... Ra7 $1 {Topalov saw the danger.} 21. Rxg6+ $1 fxg6 22. Qe6+ Kg7 23. Bxc6 Rd8 24. cxb5 Bf6 25. Ne4 Bd4 26. bxa6 Qb6 27. Rd1 Qxa6 28. Rxd4 $1 Rxd4 29. Qf6+ Kg8 30. Qxg6+ Kf8 31. Qe8+ Kg7 32. Qe5+ Kg8 33. Nf6+ Kf7 34. Be8+ Kf8 35. Qxc5+ Qd6 36. Qxa7 {[%xcpdao l]} 36... Qxf6 ({Veselin Topalov could have prepared a sneaky trap. He wanted to force <a href="https://www.suffernchessclub.com/everything-chess-draw-rules-benefit-draw-in-chess/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the game to end in a stalemate</a>. If he played} 36... Rd1+ 37. Kg2 Rg1+ $1 {[%xcpdao l]} 38. Kxg1 $2 {That was the error he would have hoped to happen.} ({Such a great player like Karpov would not fall in a trap like this and he would probably play} 38. Kh3 Rh1+ 39. Kg4) 38... Qd1+ 39. Kg2 Qh1+ 40. Kxh1 {That was a forced move and the game would end in a tie.}) 37. Bh5 Rd2 38. b3 Rb2 39. Kg2 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

English Opening, Carls’ Bremen System

[Event "Monte Carlo"] [Site "Monte Carlo MNC"] [Date "1968.04.10"] [Round "7"] [White "Mikhail Botvinnik"] [Black "Lajos Portisch"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A22"] [EventDate "1968.04.03"] [Opening "English: Carls' Bremen system"] [PlyCount "51"] 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. g3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Bg2 Be6 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. O-O Nb6 8. d3 Be7 9. a3 a5 10. Be3 O-O 11. Na4 {Botvinnik was trying to exchange the Knight at b6 square in order to attack the pawn in the ‘b’ file.} 11... Nxa4 12. Qxa4 Bd5 13. Rfc1 Re8 14. Rc2 Bf8 15. Rac1 Nb8 16. Rxc7 Bc6 {Mikhail Botvinnik had to eliminate the threats upon his Rook and his Queen.} 17. R1xc6 $1 {That was an important sacrifice because the black Bishop was one of the most powerful pieces of Portisch.} 17... bxc6 18. Rxf7 $1 {Botvinnik is offering his Rook in order to create defensive problems for Portisch.[%xcpdao l]} 18... h6 ({If Lajos Portisch played} 18... Kxf7 19. Qc4+ Kg6 20. Qg4+ Kf7 21. Ng5+ {he would have to sacrifice his Queen in order to avoid defeat.}) 19. Rb7 Qc8 20. Qc4+ Kh8 21. Nh4 Qxb7 22. Ng6+ Kh7 23. Be4 Bd6 24. Nxe5+ g6 25. Bxg6+ Kg7 26. Bxh6+ $1 {Black would lose his Queen so he surrendered. The following moves demonstrate this fact.} 26... Kxh6 27. Qh4+ Kg7 28. Qh7+ Kf6 29. Ng4+ Ke6 30. Qxb7 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

English Opening

[Event "London"] [Site "London ENG"] [Date "1883.05.05"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Johannes Zukertort"] [Black "Joseph Henry Blackburne"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A13"] [EventDate "1883.04.26"] [Opening "English opening"] [PlyCount "65"] 1. c4 e6 2. e3 Nf6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Be2 Bb7 5. O-O d5 6. d4 Bd6 7. Nc3 O-O 8. b3 Nbd7 9. Bb2 Qe7 $6 10. Nb5 $1 Ne4 11. Nxd6 cxd6 12. Nd2 Ndf6 13. f3 Nxd2 14. Qxd2 {None of the players had an advantage and they were not showing their plans’.} 14... dxc4 15. Bxc4 d5 16. Bd3 Rfc8 17. Rae1 $1 {That was the ideal position for this Rook. The other Rook was placed in a good square because it could stop attacks in the ‘f’ file.} 17... Rc7 18. e4 Rac8 19. e5 Ne8 20. f4 g6 21. Re3 {Blackburne had created counterplay in the ‘c’ file.} 21... f5 {Black was trying to break Zukertort’s pawn structure. However, <a href="https://www.suffernchessclub.com/special-chess-moves/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Zukertort may capture</a> <a href="https://www.suffernchessclub.com/special-chess-moves/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">‘en passant’</a>.} 22. exf6 Nxf6 23. f5 Ne4 24. Bxe4 dxe4 25. fxg6 Rc2 26. gxh7+ Kh8 {That was a forced move.} 27. d5+ e5 {[%xcpdao l]} 28. Qb4 $3 {Zukertort played the best possible move and Blackburne could not respond effectively.[%xcpdao l]} ({Everyone would expect from Zukertort to play} 28. d6 {However, Blackburne could respond with a very good move.} 28... Qg5 $1) 28... R8c5 ({The following Variation would not make a difference in the outcome of this game.} 28... Qxb4 29. Bxe5+ Kxh7 30. Rh3+ Kg6 31. Rg3+ Kh6 32. Rf6+ Kh5 33. Rf5+ Kh6 34. Bf4+ Kh7 35. Rh5#) 29. Rf8+ Kxh7 30. Qxe4+ Kg7 31. Bxe5+ Kxf8 32. Bg7+ Kg8 33. Qxe7 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Recommended Books and Courses

Despite my effort to present you the English opening, there are countless variations related to it. So, if you like this opening and you want to use it frequently then, buying a book can be the most efficient way to master it. I have made a research and I have selected some of the best books about the English opening.

If you don’t like reading, there are video courses that will give you condensed knowledge without tiring you with unnecessary information. If you are struggling to win in chess, it’s a great way to rapidly improve your skills and learn your mistakes from the courses’ exercises. You can check out the following courses.

Final Thoughts

The content of this article may seem difficult to master but with a few practice, you will see a huge improvement. Chess is like running a marathon and it is not like a sprint. Keep working and you will see results. You can check my other articles about chess strategies and openings like Pirc Defense, Caro-Kann Defense, French Defense and if you need inspiration in practicing chess then, you should take a look at our reviews about chess sets.

Please write your opinion about this article in the comment section because a good comment is inspiring me to keep writing. If you have found value in this article, please share it with friends so they will get improved in chess. Enjoy chess!

Comments

August 11, 2019 Reply
James Reed

Hi Giannis,

Some random rambling thoughts:

Transpositions between the English, Reti, and Nimzo-Larsen Attack are many. These three are good to know but sometimes leaves my head swimming with too many ideas.

In some of these games an interesting structure is d2+e3+f2+Be2 which looks to me like a fianchetto in the middle of the board…but fianchettos are flank formations by definition. Not sure what to call it but I find my king is very safe here and I can delay castling for some time if I choose.

Thanks again for you nice web site.

Jim
1. Author
  
  October 19, 2019 Reply
  Giannis
  
  I agree the examples demonstrate some interesting concepts. It’s great that you have shared your feedback. Thanks for your comment.
August 11, 2019 Reply
James Reed

the game above Mikhail Botvinnik vs Lajos Portisch is extraordinary!
1. Author
  
  October 19, 2019 Reply
  Giannis
  
  The chosen games offer value both to advanced and amateur players. Thanks for the feedback, James.
October 3, 2020 Reply
E. Lee

Thank you Giannis for posting this. I’m just discovering Carls’ Bremen systems & can’t wait to play them over the board. Do you know of any books addressing1 c4 e5 2 Nc3 Nf6 3 g3 Bc5 4 e3 d5 5 Nf3 Bf5? I guess I’m diverging at 3….Bc5…. thanks again.
1. Author
  
  October 8, 2020 Reply
  Giannis
  
  Thanks for your comment. Grandmaster Repertoires books cover many variations including this. I suggest you take a look at 5-7 games available online so you can get the big picture of this variation. Then you can dive in with these books.