Mating with the queen: the king does the work

From Chess Fundamentals by José Raúl Capablanca (1921), Chapter 1 — First Principles, simple mates · Beginner · about 3 minutes.

A queen alone can never checkmate a bare king — she can only confine it. Capablanca opens Chess Fundamentals with exactly this ending because it teaches the habit every other ending depends on: park the queen a knight's move away from the enemy king so it can't escape the box, then walk your own king up. The mate is delivered by teamwork, not by checks.

Starting position (FEN): 3k4/8/8/3K3Q/8/8/8/8 w - - 0 1

The line

• 1. Qf7 — Not a check — a cage. From f7 the queen sits a knight's move from the black king and seals the 7th rank and the e8 square. Black's king now lives on c8, b8 and a8, and nowhere else.
• 1... Kc8 — Black shuffles. There is nothing better — every square outside the corner is covered.
• 2. Ke6 — The queen has done her job, so she stops moving. Now the white king marches. This is the whole lesson: no checks, just steps.
• 2... Kb8 — Black keeps shuffling between the corner squares.
• 3. Kd6 — Another step. Notice White never gives a check — pointless checks let the king slip out of the box.
• 3... Ka8 — Into the corner. One warning from Capablanca applies here: with the king this short of squares, a careless queen move can stalemate. The queen stays on f7, where a8 and b8 both remain legal.
• 4. Kc6 — The king takes the last square he needs. Everything is now in place.
• 4... Kb8 — Black's only move — a8 and the whole 7th rank are covered.
• 5. Qb7# — The queen steps in, protected by her king. Every square around b8 is covered by one piece or the other. Teamwork, not checks.

Takeaway

Confine first, then bring the king. The queen boxes the enemy king at a knight's distance, your king walks up, and only the final move is a check. If you find yourself giving many checks in this ending, you're doing it the slow way.

Play this lesson move by move on the interactive board at https://www.brilliantknight.com/lessons/chess-fundamentals-first-principles/queen-mate-the-king-does-the-work · All lessons