Philidor Defense

The idea

After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6, Black backs up e5 with a pawn rather than a knight. White usually plays 3.d4 at once. Black can take, 3...exd4, giving up the center for free development, or hold the e5 point with the Hanham setup: ...Nd7, ...c6, ...Be7 and ...Ngf6, a sturdy but passive shape.

In the Hanham, White has more space and tries to open lines against f7 or push on the queenside. Black waits for the right moment to play ...exd4 or ...b5 and ...d5. The Lion setup with ...Nd7 and ...Nf6 is a modern cousin of the same idea.

Compact and defensive. Black's pieces sit close together and are hard to attack, but they have less room. It is named after François-André Danican Philidor, the strongest player of the 1700s, who said the pawns are the soul of chess.

Players who want a sturdy, low-risk answer to 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 and are happy to defend and counter-punch.

This is the opening of the Legal Trap and of Paul Morphy's famous Opera Game. Watch for Bc4 with Ng5 and Bxf7+ ideas aimed at f7.

The main line, move by move

1. 1.e4 · White claims the center with a pawn and opens lines for the queen and the bishop on f1. It is the most direct way to start a game.
2. 1...e5 · Black takes an equal share of the center and opens the same lines for the queen and the bishop on f8. Both sides now want to develop quickly.
3. 2.Nf3 · The knight comes out to its best square and attacks the pawn on e5 at once. Black has to do something about that threat.
4. 2...d6 · Black guards e5 with a pawn instead of a knight. This is the Philidor Defense: solid, but the pawn on d6 blocks the bishop on f8, so Black has to be patient.
5. 3.d4 · White opens the center and attacks e5 a second time. Black has to decide whether to hold the pawn on e5 or trade it off with ...exd4.
6. 3...Nd7 · Black defends e5 with the knight from d7 and keeps the pawns on d6 and e5 in place. This is the Hanham Variation; ...Nf6, ...Be7 and ...c6 follow, a compact setup that is hard to crack.

Next moves in book

• 3.d4 · Philidor Defense
• 3.Bc4 · Philidor Defense

Watch out for

• The Légal Trap

A famous game

• The Opera Game Paris Opera House, 1858

Related openings

• Petrov's Defense C42–C43 · 43 named lines
• Ruy Lopez C60–C99 · 200 named lines
• Italian Game C50–C59 · 156 named lines
• Scotch Game C44–C45 · 48 named lines