1st International Chess Tournament
About The Tournament
The London 1851 tournament was the first international chess tournament, organized by English master Howard Staunton and held alongside the Great Exhibition. German master Adolf Anderssen won the 16-player knockout event, earning him the status of the strongest player in the world at the time. The tournament had a significant impact on modern chess, despite some organizational flaws that were addressed in later tournaments.
Tournament Format and Structure
Single-elimination: The tournament featured a knockout format, where the loser of each match was eliminated.
Best-of-three, then best-of-seven: First-round matches were best-of-three games, with draws not counting towards the score. Subsequent rounds were played as best-of-seven.
No seeding: The bracket pairings were made by chance, with no seeding system to separate the stronger players.
Consolation matches: Losers of matches played in a consolation bracket, with Howard Staunton notably finishing fourth after losing his consolation match to Elijah Williams.
Key Players and Money Prize
Rank Player Money Prize
- Adolf Anderssen (Germany) £183.30
- Marmaduke Wyvill (England) £55
- Elijah Williams (England) £39.30
- Howard Staunton (England) £27.50
"The Immortal Game"
During a tournament break, Anderssen played a casual game against Lionel Kieseritzky that later became known as "The Immortal Game". Anderssen won the match by sacrificing a bishop, both rooks, and his queen in a brilliant and famous attacking game.
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