Queen's Gambit

The Queen's Gambit (1.d4 d5 2.c4) is the cornerstone of classical chess. White offers the c-pawn to deflect Black's d-pawn and dominate the centre with e4 next. It is not really a gambit - Black can't safely hold the c4 pawn - but the threat to recapture and seize the centre shapes the entire opening.

Main line: Queen's Gambit Declined

Black's most respected reply is 2...e6, declining the gambit and keeping the centre solid. After 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7 you reach the Classical QGD - the opening of world champions from Capablanca to Carlsen. Black's c8-bishop is locked behind the e6 pawn for now, but the structure is rock-solid and hard to crack.

Variations

Slav Defense (2...c6)

Black supports d5 with the c-pawn instead of the e-pawn. The big advantage: the c8-bishop stays free, often coming out to f5 or g4. The trade-off: White gets to play a normal 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.a4 (preventing ...b5) and the game heads into long maneuvering. Anand, Smyslov and many world champions have made the Slav their main weapon.

Queen's Gambit Accepted (2...dxc4)

Black takes the pawn and runs. White doesn't immediately recapture - 3.e4 grabs a huge centre, or 3.Nf3 develops while planning e3 and Bxc4. Black usually tries to hold the pawn briefly with ...b5, but this weakens the queenside. Modern QGA theory has Black returning the pawn quickly and playing for piece activity instead.

Tarrasch Defense (3.Nc3 c5)

Black plays sharply, accepting an isolated d-pawn after 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Nf3 Nc6 in exchange for active piece play. The d-pawn is weak but it's a thorn in White's position, and Black's pieces get great squares. Considered playable but risky - the isolated pawn endgame is just bad for Black.

Common traps

Elephant trap: after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Nbd7 5.cxd5 exd5 6.Nxd5?? (looks free - the knight is pinned!) 6...Nxd5! 7.Bxd8 Bb4+ 8.Qd2 Bxd2+ 9.Kxd2 Kxd8 and Black is up a piece. The pin on the knight was an illusion: capturing the queen on d8 is met by ...Bb4+ winning everything back with check. A famous beginner-killer for over a century.

Don't grab the c-pawn permanently: as Black, trying to hold c4 with ...b5 invites White to break with a4. After a4 c6 axb5 cxb5 Black's queenside is shattered and White's rook on a1 has a free file. The pawn comes back to White soon enough.

Typical plans for White

In the Classical QGD, White's plan is the minority attack: play b4-b5 against Black's c6 pawn, forcing the exchange and leaving Black with a weak c-pawn or an isolated pawn. The whole opening is slow and positional - you're not trying to mate the king, you're trying to outlast Black in a slightly better endgame.

Against the Slav, White's plan shifts to occupying e5 with a knight and gradually pressing on the queenside. Against the QGA, White builds the centre with e3-e4 and tries to convert the space advantage into an attack.

The QGD is the opening of world champions: Capablanca, Botvinnik, Karpov, Kramnik. Slow, strategic, rich. The drills below cover both Declined and Slav setups.