Meet the queen

You've already learnt two very useful patterns: rooks travel along ranks and files, while bishops travel along diagonals. What if one piece could do both?

Meet the queen. Each player begins with one queen: White's on d1 and Black's on d8. Remember our rule from the chessboard chapter: the queen begins on her own colour — White on a light square, Black on a dark square.

Just like the bishops, the queen begins behind her own pawns. At the start, she defends nearby pieces but has no clear square to move to. Powerful doesn't mean free to move wherever she likes!

A rook and a bishop combined

Let's put our earlier lessons together:

• A rook moves straight along a rank or file — like a +.
• A bishop moves along diagonals — like an X.
• A queen combines the + and the X. She can move in any of those eight directions.

Imagine a queen on d4 with an otherwise clear view. Use the controls below to show just the rook-style lines, just the bishop-style diagonals, or both together.

From d4 she can reach 14 squares in straight lines and 13 squares diagonally: 27 squares in total. You already know both movement patterns — the queen simply lets you use either one.

One straight line per move

A queen can travel one square or several squares in a single turn, provided she stays on one straight line or one diagonal for the whole move.

She cannot change direction halfway through one move. For example, from d4 she could move to d6 (straight up) or f6 (diagonally). But she cannot move from d4 up to d6 and then across to f6 in the same turn.

Nor can she jump in an L shape like a knight. The queen has more directions than the rook or bishop, but she still follows their familiar lines.

She cannot jump over pieces

Having two movement patterns doesn't mean the queen can pass through other pieces. Use the rule you learnt with both rooks and bishops: stop at the first piece on each line.

• A friendly piece blocks the queen and is defended by her.
• An opponent's piece can normally be captured, if the path is clear.
• A piece behind the blocker is not attacked by the queen along that line.

On this board, the queen on d4 defends her pawns on d6 and c5. She can capture the black pawn on g4 along her rank and the pawn on b2 diagonally. But she cannot reach d7 through the pawn on d6, b6 through c5, or h4 through g4.

Capturing and defending

You won't need to relearn the difference between a move and a square a piece attacks. That distinction works for queens just as it did for rooks and bishops.

The queen on e3 protects two friendly pieces, one along a straight line and one on a diagonal. She can also capture two opposing pawns, again using both types of movement.

Try the Available moves and Attacks & defence controls. The pawn on c5 and rook on e6 are defended; the queen cannot land on their squares. The black pawns on b3 and g5 can be captured.

These diagrams focus on a piece's movement and coverage. In a real game, a move might also be illegal if it leaves your king in check. We'll cover that when we introduce the king and the rules of check.

Unlike a bishop, the queen can change square colour

Remember that a bishop stays on one square colour for the whole game? The queen doesn't have that restriction.

From d4, she could move diagonally to e5, which is the same colour as d4. Or she could move straight to d5, which is a different colour.

This is another way of seeing how combining rook movement with bishop movement gives the queen more freedom. Don't confuse that freedom with the ability to jump or turn during a move — she still can't do either.

Open lines and the queen's reach

In the rook chapter, we saw how an open file gives a rook room to work. In the bishop chapter, we explored clear and blocked diagonals. Both lessons apply to the queen.

A queen near the middle of an otherwise open board can reach more squares than one in a corner. Compare our queen on d4 (27 squares) with one on a1 (21 squares).

But don't confuse number of squares with quality of a move. A queen with lots of choices may still be in danger, and sometimes a quiet, protected square is better than a dramatic one.

Seeing several threats at once

Because a queen combines straight lines and diagonals, she can sometimes attack pieces in several different directions at the same time.

Look at this white queen on c2. Trace her lines towards the black rook on c7, pawn on f2, and bishop on h7.

All three pieces lie on different queen lines: vertical, horizontal and diagonal. For now, the important skill is spotting those lines, not working out a complicated tactic. Later we'll explore how several threats at once can affect a game.

Queen vision: bring the patterns together

Before checking the answers, try these in your head or on a real chessboard:

1. On a clear board, can a queen on d4 reach d7? g7? f5?
2. From a1, can a queen reach a6, f1 and f6? Which direction does each use?
3. A queen on e3 sees a friendly pawn on c5. Can she move to c5, move through it to b6, or simply defend it?
4. A queen on d4 wants to go to f6 by travelling through d6. Is that one legal move? Could she reach f6 another way?

Answers: (1) d7: yes, straight; g7: yes, diagonal; f5: no, it's neither. (2) a6: vertical; f1: horizontal; f6: diagonal. (3) She defends c5, but cannot land there or move through it. (4) No turning mid-move; she can go directly from d4 to f6 along the e5–f6 diagonal if those squares are clear.

Have a go yourself

Use the board below. Select the queen on e3 and try a straight move, a diagonal move, and a capture. Restart to explore another direction. Notice which squares are blocked by friendly pieces.

This practice board is an ordinary chess position with kings and alternating turns. The solo Capture Challenge below uses different training rules.

Capture Challenge: rook moves and bishop moves together

Now use one white queen to capture four black pawns. Every move must be a capture — there are no moves to empty squares between captures.

You will need to look for straight lines and diagonals. After each capture, the queen's position changes, so take another look before choosing your next target.

As with the earlier challenges, there are no kings, checks or alternating turns. This is a board-vision exercise, not a complete game.

If you get stuck, use Undo or Restart. There is a suggested route in the ebook answers, but you may discover another successful route.

What to remember

• The queen starts on d1 for White and d8 for Black, on a square matching her colour.
• She moves like a rook and bishop combined: along ranks, files and diagonals.
• She can travel one or several squares, but cannot turn or jump during a move.
• She captures opposing pieces and defends friendly pieces along those lines.
• Unlike a bishop, a queen can move between light and dark squares.
• Blocked lines matter just as much for a queen as for a rook or bishop.
• A queen is powerful but must still be kept safe.

Knowledge check

Before we move on to the king, check that you can combine the rook's + and the bishop's X to see the queen's moves, captures and defended squares.