C11 · Semi-Open · a defense for Black
French Defense: Classical Variation, Steinitz Variation
7/7
1.e4e62.d4d53.Nc3Nf64.e5
Live databaseLichess 1600–2000 · blitz + rapid
French Defense: Classical Variation, Steinitz Variation3.4M games · Black to move
MoveWhite / draw / BlackPlayedGamesScore
93%3.1M50%
4.3%143k46%
3%102k49%
0.1%2.6k29%
0%1.5k26%
0%1.4k26%
0%70822%
0%42613%
0%21123%
0%14127%
Famous games in this line16k master games
Karjakin, Sergey (2750) – Carlsen, M. (2882)Kasparov, G. (2812) – Caruana, F. (2807)Caruana, F. (2764) – Carlsen, M. (2853)Carlsen, Magnus (2837) – Morozevich, Alexander (2770)Dominguez Perez, Leinier (2758) – Caruana, Fabiano (2835)Karjakin, Sergey (2776) – Carlsen, Magnus (2815)Aronian, L. (2767) – Caruana, F. (2822)Ivanchuk, Vassily (2765) – Carlsen, Magnus (2823)Heroes of this opening Caruana, Fabiano · Carlsen, Magnus · Karjakin, Sergey · Aronian, L.
- Family
- French Defense
- Category
- Semi-Open
- First move
- 1.e4
- ECO
- C11
- Line
- 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e5
Keep exploring
Go deeper — named lines from here
French Defense: Steinitz Variation, Gledhill AttackC11 4…Nfd7 5.Qg4French Defense: Classical Variation, Shirov-Anand VariationC11 4…Nfd7 5.Nce2French Defense: Steinitz Variation, Boleslavsky VariationC11 4…Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3French Defense: Steinitz Variation, Bradford Attack VariationC11 4…Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.dxc5 Bxc5 7.Qg4
Nearby lines in the family
From the archives
In 1834 the city of Paris beat the city of London in a correspondence match opening with 1...e6, and the defense has carried the name ever since. Botvinnik and Korchnoi built careers on its cramped-then-counterpunch character: concede space, then break with ...c5 or ...f6 at the right moment.
Study this opening