Philidor Defense

The Hanham Setup: an elastic fortress against 1.e4

A solid, reliable defense against 1.e4: Black firmly holds the central outpost e5 with ...d6, ...Nf6, ...Nbd7, ...Be7, and ...c6, castles quickly, and waits for the right moment to counterattack. Learn also how to refute White's aggressive tries against f7.

Chapter 1: Hanham Variation

The main blueprint with ...Nbd7, ...Be7, ...O-O, and ...c6.

  1. Hanham: Main Line with 7.Re1 c6 8.a4 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7 5.Bc4 Be7…
  2. Hanham with ...exd4 and ...Re8 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7 5.Bc4 Be7…

Chapter 2: Attacks on f7 and Central Exchanges

How to neutralize Ng5, piece sacrifices on f7, and the exchange line with dxe5.

  1. 6.Ng5 O-O! 7.Bxf7+ Rxf7 8.Ne6 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7 5.Bc4 Be7…
  2. 6.dxe5 Nxe5: Peaceful Endgame 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7 5.Bc4 Be7…
  3. 4.dxe5 Nxe4 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.dxe5 Nxe4 5.Nbd2 Nxd2…

Chapter 3: Alternative Variations

The traditional ...exd4 line and how to handle an early 3.Bc4.

  1. Old Line 3...exd4 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Be7…
  2. Against 3.Bc4: ...Be7 and Calm Development 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bc4 Be7 4.O-O Nf6 5.d3 O-O…