Back-rank mate in 2 on c1 (c8·3)
li-07H9Pnaming tag (square·N)Opens in the app if installed, otherwise downloads the APK.
The tactical motive
Back rank: the king is trapped behind its own pawns — use that.
Mate in 2: the first move creates an unstoppable threat, the second delivers mate.
Difficulty 1854 ShuffleRating — for advanced tacticians.
Black to move — find the best continuation
How to recognize this tactic
A back-rank mate strikes when the king is boxed in by its own pawns and the back rank is under-defended. Check whether a rook or queen can reach the first rank with check and whether the only defender can be deflected or overloaded.
Mate in two usually opens with a forcing move — a check, a capture or an unstoppable threat — that strips the king of squares or defenders, so the follow-up mate becomes unavoidable. Look for the first move that leaves the opponent only losing replies.
General method: before you move, list the forcing candidates — every check, every capture, every direct threat — and calculate those first. The solution to a tactic is almost always among them.
Position on the board
White: king g1, queen e6, bishop d2, knight e4, pawn a2 b2 f2 g2 h2.
Black: king h8, rook c8 d8, bishop b7 g7, pawn b4 a6.
9 white and 7 black pieces are on the board; the puzzle position arises after move 40.
The position in numbers
White are ahead by 2 points of material (20 against 18; pawn = 1, knight and bishop = 3, rook = 5, queen = 9) — the tactic has to convert or outweigh that.
The white king stands on g1, the black king on h8.
It is Black to move on move 40, with 32 legal replies to weigh — only the line that keeps the advantage solves the puzzle.
White keeps 5 pawns, Black 2. Files fully open (no pawns of either colour): c, d, e — natural highways for the rooks and queen. Half-open for Black: f, g, h.
Black hold the bishop pair, an edge in open lines. The Black king has 1 empty squares to step to right now — the fewer they are, the closer a mating net.
Solution & explanation
Main line
40... Rc1+ 41. Bxc1 Rd1#
Why it works
- Great move! rook to c1 keeps the pressure (#1).
- Well found: rook to d1 (#).
- The line ends in a forced mate in 2.
- If instead Bxc1, then Rd1# and it is mate.
Move by move
- 40… Rc1+ — rook to c1 with check
- 41. Bxc1 — bishop to c1 (capture)
- Rd1# — rook to d1 and it is checkmate
Types in this puzzle
Back-rank mate
The king is locked behind its own pawns — a heavy piece strikes the last rank.
The back-rank mate strikes a king locked behind its own unmoved pawns when a rook or queen crashes onto the last rank. The signs: no escape hole in front of the king, and the back rank guarded by a single piece or by nobody at all. Often that lone guard is deflected or traded off first, and only then comes the invasion. In your own games, make luft in time — one pawn move prevents a sudden catastrophe.
Mate in 2
A forced checkmate in two moves.
Mate in two: your move, any reply, then the mating blow. Start with the most forcing first moves — checks and sacrifices that shrink the opponent's options to almost nothing. Against every single reply you must have a mate ready, so check them all without exception. The common failure is analyzing the pretty defense and forgetting the boring one.
Royal fork
A fork with check: the king must move, and the second piece is lost.
A royal fork is a fork with check — one of the two targets is the king itself. The check must be answered first, so nobody is left to rescue the second piece. Look for squares where your piece gives check and simultaneously attacks an undefended queen or rook. It is the most reliable fork of all, because your opponent literally has no choice.
Provenance
Derived from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0).
Verified by Stockfish at depth 20+.
Solution forcedness confirmed (verified).
Pack 013
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