Grand Chess is a chess variant invented by Christian Freeling. It is played on a 10 x 10 board, has two additional pawns, and two new pieces: the Marshall and the Cardinal.

Working from the theory that the queen is merely a combination of a rook's and a bishop's powers, Freeling created the combination of each with a knight (as in the earlier Capablanca chess). The Marshall moves like the knight and the rook of standard chess; the Cardinal moves like the knight and the bishop.

Two other variations are in piece setup, and in pawn promotion. The pieces are set up so that all pawns are defended, on the player's second and third ranks, rather than the first and second. The rooks are then left in the first rank, eliminating the need for castling, and speeding their release into the game.

Pawns may elect to promote upon reaching the eighth or ninth rank, but must promote at the tenth.

External links

• Grand Chess at chessvariants.org
• Grand Chess information on Freeling's website
• 2001 World championship game annotated by the Grand Chess world champion