Bishop and knight checkmate

King, bishop, and knight against a lone king is a win, and it is the hardest of the elementary mates. The king has to be driven to a corner the bishop controls.

  1. The bishop controls one color. Only two corners of the board are that color. The mate has to happen in one of those corners, not in a corner of the other color.
  2. Use the king and the knight to take away squares, and the bishop to hold the fence. The knight changes the color it attacks with every move.
  3. Do not let the enemy king escape into the center. If it does, start the fence again.
  4. The diagram shows a mating move in the corner the bishop controls. The knight covers the flight the bishop cannot, and the king protects the mating piece.

On the board

8
7
6
5
4
3
2
a1
b
c
d
e
f
g
h

Starting position.

Bishop endgame puzzles

These are puzzles tagged for that material, not a claim that every one is this exact ending. Theme page

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Knight endgame puzzles

These are puzzles tagged for that material, not a claim that every one is this exact ending. Theme page

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