A review by slferg
Birth of the Chess Queen: A History by Marilyn Yalom

5.0

Interesting history of chess. Originally the game, as invented in India in the sixth century, had no queen. There was a vizier instead and also an elephant. The author traces the history of chess and the spread of the game through Europe and Asia to the rise of strong queens who ruled as co-rulers with kings and regents for their minor children. The queen was slowly added to the game, but her moves were extremely limited (the same as the vizier's). Eventually, she connects the increase of the queen's mobility and importance to the game to strong women rulers in Europe and Russia. The increase of the queen's movement was first made in Spain during the reign of Queen Isabella and was called queen's chess. At first, chess was a game that reached across all social levels and genders. It was extremely popular in most royal courts. And at one time, the church tried to discourage the game. It was also seen as a game of romance, with mixed gender matches often depicted in art and story. At one time, it was played with an option of using dice to determine the piece to be moved, although this was just a version of the game.