World Chess Championship 1892
The fourth World Chess Championship was held in Havana from 1 January to 28 February 1892. Defending champion William Steinitz narrowly defeated challenger Mikhail Chigorin. This was Steinitz' fourth successive world championship match victory, and his second against Chigorin. He had previously defeated Johannes Zukertort in 1886, Chigorin in 1889 and Isidor Gunsberg in 1891.
Following their world championship match in 1889, and their Evans Gambit cable match in 1890-1891, the championship got underway at the beginning of 1892, beginning with a decisive win by Chigorin with the Evans gambit. By the 19th game, Steinitz had a 1-point lead, but Chigorin brought the match to tied. Steinitz ended up reaching the 10-point winning threshold by winning the 22nd and 23rd games.
Background
This was a rematch of the 1889 World chess championship, and held in the same city, Havana, then part of the Spanish Empire. In between the 1889 championship and the 1892 championship, Steinitz had written The Modern Chess Instructor. It included analysis of the Evans Gambit, which Chigorin had taken issue with. This led to Steinitz and Chigorin playing a two-game cable match in 1890-91, with both games played from the starting position of the Evans Gambit, and the players having 3 days for each move. It was billed as a battle between Chigorin's romantic style and Steinitz's more modern school. Chigorin won both games.Before the match, Steinitz said:
Each game began with these six moves:
The first game continued;
And the second game continued;
The cable match attracted public interest, and both the St. Petersburg Chess Society and Havana Chess Club made offers to have a world championship rematch between Steinitz and Chigorin. Steinitz accepted, and chose Havana again as the site of their match.
Results
Games
Game 1: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1-0
Game 2: Steinitz-Chigorin, 1/2
Game 3: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1/2
Game 4: Steinitz-Chigorin, 1-0
Game 5: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1/2
Game 6: Steinitz-Chigorin, 1-0
Game 7: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1-0
Game 8: Steinitz-Chigorin, 0-1
Game 9: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1/2
Game 10: Steinitz-Chigorin, 0-1
Game 11: Chigorin-Steinitz, 0-1
Game 12: Steinitz-Chigorin, 0-1
Game 13: Chigorin-Steinitz, 0-1
Game 14: Steinitz-Chigorin, 1-0
Game 15: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1-0
Game 16: Steinitz-Chigorin, 1-0
Game 17: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1-0
Game 18: Steinitz-Chigorin, 1-0
Game 19: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1-0
Game 20: Steinitz-Chigorin, 1-0
Game 21: Chigorin-Steinitz, 1/2
Game 22: Steinitz-Chigorin, 1-0
Game 23: Chigorin-Steinitz, 0-1
Decisive mistakes
With the match tied at 8–8 after 21 games, Steinitz won the match by capitalising on blunders made by Chigorin in the next two games.In game 22, Chigorin blundered on move 9, losing a pawn and ultimately the game. Playing Black, Chigorin adopted the variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined later known as the Tartakower Defense. 9. cxd5 Nxd5 An elementary error that loses a pawn. 10. Nxd5 Bxd5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Rxc7 Qd6 13. Rc3 Bxa2? When making his 9th move Chigorin may have expected this capture would regain the pawn, but after 14. e4 the bishop was trapped. Play continued 14... Qb4 15. Qa1 Bb3 16. Nd2 Bc2 17. Rc4 Qd6 18. Rxc2 Qxd4. Down a piece for a pawn, Chigorin's position was lost, though he played on until resigning after White's 49th move.
As White in game 23, Chigorin was behind eight wins to nine and played the aggressive King's Gambit. Steinitz defended poorly and was in a hopeless endgame. A piece up, Chigorin should have won after 32.Rxb7. Instead the game and match ended suddenly when Chigorin blundered with 32. Bb4 Rxh2+ White resigns, as Black will mate on the next move. By missing a mate in 2, this is regarded as one of the worst-ever blunders in World Championship play. The Cuban press stated at the time: