Langbahn Team – Weltmeisterschaft

Chess diagram

A chess diagram is graphic representation of a position in a chess game, using standardised symbols. Chess diagrams are widely used in chess publications as an aid to visualisation, or to aid the readers to verify that they are looking at the correct position on their chessboard or computer. The symbols used generally resemble the pieces of the standard Staunton chess set, although a number of different fonts have been used over the centuries.

abcdefgh
8
a8 black rook
b8 black knight
c8 black bishop
d8 black queen
e8 black king
f8 black bishop
g8 black knight
h8 black rook
a7 black pawn
b7 black pawn
c7 black pawn
d7 black pawn
e7 black pawn
f7 black pawn
g7 black pawn
h7 black pawn
a2 white pawn
b2 white pawn
c2 white pawn
d2 white pawn
e2 white pawn
f2 white pawn
g2 white pawn
h2 white pawn
a1 white rook
b1 white knight
c1 white bishop
d1 white queen
e1 white king
f1 white bishop
g1 white knight
h1 white rook
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
This diagram shows the opening position in a game of chess.

Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN) can be used to represent a position without graphics, i.e. with letters and numbers only.

Examples

Further reading