Opening Traps/know them from both sides/A40/You play White

The Englund Gambit Trap

A bad gambit with one famous trick: the queen takes b2, the bishop that chases her is pinned, and c1 is left without a guard.

Coachedanswers the move you actually played

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Stockfish+0.36

Move 0 of 17 · White up

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Variations3 of 4

The trap, and White's best tryFoundation9 moves The Englund Gambit TrapFoundation8 moves Sidestepping it: 6.Nc3as WhiteFoundationThe 1.d4 player's chair. When the queen takes b2, put the knight on c3 yourself (the bishop is never pinned there) and chase the queen with the rook while you take the centre.9 moves Deep dive: trading queensStructure11 moves

1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.

StartBefore the first move

The starting position. White moves first, and that single tempo is the whole reason opening theory exists.

The moves in the text are buttons. Press one and the board beside it shows the position.

The idea in one paragraph

is objectively a poor gambit, and it survives on one trap. After the queen hits the a1-rook, and the natural chases her. But pins the bishop to the king. guards it, removes it, and is mate, while the better still leaves White a rook down. The cure is : develop the knight onto c3 yourself, and the engine gives White about two pawns.

The pawn structure

No structure, just one square and one diagonal. c1 is the square: White's back rank is guarded only by the queen and the king once the bishop has left. b4–e1 is the diagonal: a white piece on c3 stands between the black bishop and the white king, and a pinned piece cannot chase anything.

The plans

♔ White’s plans

Take the pawn, develop, and keep e5: , and .
Once the queen has taken b2, answer with The knight goes to c3 before the bishop can be pinned there.
Then chase the queen with the rook: Rb1 and Rb3, and take the centre with e4 while she runs.

♚ Black’s plans

Play the gambit only as a trap: after White is better, and after you are worse still.
Set it with ...Nc6, ...Qe7 and ...Qb4+, and take b2 when the bishop has gone to d2.
If the bishop comes to c3, pin it with ...Bb4! and take it off when the queen defends it.

Traps and things that lose games

The Englund Gambit Trap

. The cure:

Trap 2

White's best after is , and White is a rook down instead of mated.

Its cousin with the colours reversed

the London's poisoned b2-pawn, where it is the queen that takes b2 who gets punished.

1.d4 players, because the Englund turns up in fast games far more often than its reputation suggests, and London players especially, since 4.Bf4 is their natural move. Black players who want a blitz surprise should know that the trick is the whole gambit.

Your learning path: The Englund Gambit Trap

Beginner

One trap from both chairs: the pin and the mate on c1 for Black, and the knight that refuses to be pinned for White.

FoundationOne sitting
Goal. Know the mate, White's best try, and the cure.
- The set-up: ...Qe7, ...Qb4+ and ...Qxb2.
- The pin: 6...Bb4! against 6.Bc3, and why 7.Qd2 overloads the queen.
- The mate: 8.Qxc3?? Qc1#, and White's best, 8.Nxc3 Qxa1+.
- From White's chair: 6.Nc3!
DrillDrill all three chapters, then set up the position after 5...Qxb2 and say, before moving, which square White's bishop would be pinned on.
Common mistakePlaying the Englund as a real opening. After 2.dxe5 the engine prefers White, and after 6.Nc3 Black's queen is the one in trouble.
Move on whenYou can play the mate from memory, and as White you put the knight on c3 without thinking.

Whose games to study

Wikipedia's Englund Gambit article gives the trap and the gambit's history. Every evaluation here comes from Stockfish at depth twenty.

What to learn after this

The London System course (4.Bf4 is the London move) and the London's own trap, the poisoned b2-pawn.