The Havana Blunder

Mikhail Chigorin and Wilhelm Steinitz played their world championship rematch in Havana over January and February 1892, a contest between two men with almost opposite views of chess: Chigorin the romantic attacker, Steinitz the founder of modern positional theory. Going into the twenty third and final game, played on 28 February, Steinitz led by a single point, and Chigorin needed a win to force the match into further games.

Chigorin got exactly the kind of position he wanted, a king's gambit with attacking chances and, for much of the game, a material edge. By move thirty two the game had reached a tense rook and minor piece ending where accuracy mattered more than aggression, and Chigorin's bishop on d6 was quietly doing an important job, covering both a black rook and the pawn on h2. He then played 32.Bb4, moving the bishop off that square to attack a black rook, apparently missing that it also abandoned the defence of h2. Steinitz replied 32...Rxh2+, and Chigorin resigned at once, since 33.Kg1 Rdg2 is checkmate.

It remains one of the most cited blunders in championship history precisely because Chigorin was not under time pressure or facing a crushing attack; he simply miscounted what one move was defending. It is a useful reminder for club players that a quiet defensive piece needs checking before every move, not only the obviously threatened ones.