The Marshall Attack is an aggressive line in the Ruy Lopez, where Black sacrifices a pawn by playing d5 to gain initiative and a kingside attack. Frank Marshall famously debuted it in his game against José Raúl Capablanca in 1918.[1] Although Marshall lost the game, the opening gained popularity and was adopted by many top players, still seeing use today at the top level by players such as Levon Aronian and Ding Liren. It is of particular theoretical importance as a way for Black to play actively and avoid the so-called "Spanish Torture" of the Closed Ruy Lopez.[2] Moreover, it has led to the development of several "Anti-Marshall" lines designed to avoid its complications.
History
The Marshall Attack had been played before 1918 by lesser known players[3][4] and by Marshall himself in 1917.[5][6] Its most famous game, called "one of the most famous games in history" by Chessbase Chess News,[7] is Capablanca vs. Marshall, played in 1918 at the Manhattan Chess Club in New York.[5]
Since its debut, many top players have adopted the opening and further developed its theory, notably Boris Spassky in his 1965 match against Mikhail Tal.[8] An important improvement over Marshall's game against Capablanca was 11... c6 instead of Nf6.[9] Even in the last decade, the theory has seen many improvements.[8]
Theory
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Main continuation in the Marshall Attack, illustrating Black's kingside attack.
After the main continuation to Black's pawn sacrifice, 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d4 Bd6 13. Re1, White's kingside has lost an important defender in the f3 knight and Black gets the initiative with threats against the White king via 13... Qh4, forcing 14. g3 and Qh3 (diagram). Black's ideas are playing 15... Bg4 with tempo, developing with ...Rae8 (and possibly playing ...Re6 to ...Rh6) and playing ...f5 followed by ...f4 to activate the dark-square bishop on d6.
White's two primary lines are the older, more principled 15. Be3 (diagram), developing and cutting off the e-file, and the newer, sharper line 15. Re4 g5 !? (diagram), inviting black into a risky middle game where White often sacrifices the Exchange to build up defenses.
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15. Be3, White's older and more played response, has the idea of 15... Bg4 16. Qd3 with the idea of developing the knight to d2 and from there to either f3 or f1 to aid the defense.
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In this unclear position following 15. Re4 g5!?, White's best move is 16. Qf1, and after 16...Qh5 17. Nd2 Bf5, the sacrificial 18. f3! complicates the position.
White suffers from an under-developed queenside and faces some difficulties developing their remaining knight since the pawn on c3 blocks its most natural development square. However, White may reach an endgame with a pawn advantage if they are able to neutralize Black's initiative and stabilize. To this end, White often plays a4 to break up Black's pawn structure and get their a1 rook into the game.
However, in top level games, the Marshall Attack has a very high draw rate, as Black's compensation for the pawn is excellent, and with precise play, White can avoid the initiative and trade down into an equal endgame where neither side has winning chances. In amateur play, however, Black has excellent chances if the opponent is unprepared or plays imprecisely, as Black's attack is very natural and easy to play.
Anti-Marshalls
Common "Anti-Marshalls" include substituting h3 or a4 instead of 8. c3. For many years, 8. a4 was the most common owing to Garry Kasparov's victory over Nigel Short in the 1993 World Chess Championship. Recently, however, the viability of 8... b4 in response to 8. a4 has led to increased use of 8. h3 instead.[10]
↑Chernev, Irving (1987). 1000 best short games of chess: a treasury of masterpieces in miniature. New York: Simon & Schuster. p.238. ISBN0-671-53801-2. OCLC15549438.
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