Semi-Open · a defense for Black

French Defense: Marshall Gambit

6/6
1.e4e62.d4d53.Nc3c5
Live databaseLichess 1600–2000 · blitz + rapid
French Defense: Marshall Gambit1.5M games · White to move
MoveWhite / draw / BlackPlayedGamesScore
45%684k61%
20%309k57%
16%236k58%
5.5%83k56%
5.5%83k52%
5%76k46%
0.8%12k53%
0.7%9.9k46%
0.4%6.0k45%
0.4%5.7k54%
Famous games in this line10 master games
Nadanian, Ashot (2428) – Akbaev, Kazbek (2475)20130–1Matei, Cornel (2476) – Darvas, Ignac (2239)20111–0Tokranovs, Dmitrijs (2227) – Miezis, N. (2468)20171–0Triapkin, Pavel (2337) – Kim, Sergey (2295)20111–0Kukel, Imre Jr (2249) – Mihalko, Jozsef (2298)20050–1Contin, Daniel (2300) – Farina, Saverio (2200)19981–0Karacsony, Attila (2225) – Frank, Jozsef (2255)19961–0Vadla, Zeljko (2245) – Lesic, Gordan (2235)19941–0
Heroes of this opening Akbaev, Kazbek · Matei, Cornel · Tokranovs, Dmitrijs · Triapkin, Pavel
Category
Semi-Open
First move
1.e4
ECO
C10
Line
1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 c5
Gambit
★ Read the guide: French DefenseExplore all 212 French Defense lines →
Keep exploring
Nearby lines in the family
From the archives

Paris challenged London by correspondence in January 1834; the match took about two years, Paris met 1.e4 with 1...e6, and Paris won. The defence 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