Queen (chess) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Chess pieces |
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King |  |
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Queen |  |
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Rook |  |
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Bishop |  |
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Knight |  |
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Pawn |  |
The queen (♕, ♛) is the strongest piece in the game of chess. It can move in many directions, making it super powerful! Each player starts with one queen. Your queen begins the game on the first row, right next to your king. Because the queen is so strong, players often try to turn one of their pawns into a queen. This is called a promotion and it happens when a pawn reaches the other side of the board.
Contents
How the Queen Moves
The queen is amazing because she can move like two other pieces combined: the rook and the bishop.
- She can move any number of squares straight, either forward, backward, or sideways (like a rook).
- She can also move any number of squares diagonally, in any direction (like a bishop).
Imagine the queen as a super-fast runner who can go anywhere on the board in a single turn, as long as her path isn't blocked by another piece. She can't jump over pieces, though. If she lands on a square with an opponent's piece, she captures it!
Why the Queen is So Powerful
The queen's ability to move in so many ways makes her great for both attacking and defending. She can quickly move across the board to threaten an opponent's king or protect your own pieces. This is why players usually try to keep their queen safe, but also use her to create lots of trouble for their opponent!
History of the Chess Queen
The game of chess has a very long history, going back over a thousand years! In the old days, the piece that is now the queen was called the "Firzān" or "Vizier." This piece was like a wise advisor to the king.
From Advisor to Mighty Queen
For a long time, the Vizier piece was not very strong. It could only move one square at a time, and only diagonally. That's a huge difference from today's powerful queen!
Around the end of the 15th century, something exciting happened. The game of chess changed a lot, especially in Europe. The Vizier piece got a big upgrade! It became the mighty queen we know today, able to move in all directions. People in Italy even called the new game schacci alla rabioso, which means "furious chess," because the queen made the game so much faster and more exciting! This change made chess much more dynamic and popular.
Images for kids
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Vizier piece from a Southern Italian chess set, 12th century
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Queen from Spain, 12th-century (walrus tusk)
See also
In Spanish: Dama (ajedrez) para niños
