Ruy Lopez — what it means in chess
The Ruy Lopez (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5) is the oldest and most respected open game. Learn the Morphy Defense, Berlin, Closed Ruy, Marshall Attack, and more.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5, pressuring the knight that guards e5.
The Ruy Lopez — also called the Spanish Opening — begins 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 . It is the oldest opening still played at the top level, named for the Spanish priest Ruy López de Segura who analyzed it in 1561. Nearly 500 years later, it is still the mainstream answer to 1...e5 for players who want a small, lasting positional edge instead of a wild attack.
[[board pgn="1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5" caption="1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 — the Ruy Lopez"]]
White pins the c6 knight against the imagined weakness on b7 and threatens to remove the defender of e5, forcing Black to defend the pawn while trying to break the pin. Along the way, White develops smoothly, keeps the option of a slow c3-d4 center, and typically maintains a small structural pull deep into the middlegame.
The mainline reply is 3...a6 , the Morphy Defense, played in over 80% of high-level Ruy Lopez games. Black attacks the bishop and forces a decision:
- 4.Ba4 — White retains the bishop for the long game (see the Closed and Open lines below). - 4.Bxc6 dxc6 — the Exchange Variation. White accepts doubled pawns for Black to play an endgame with a slight structural pull.
After 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 , we reach the traditional Closed Ruy Lopez tabiya. Play centers on the following ideas:
- White's slow build: Nb1-d2-f1-g3, Bc2, Qd1-e2 or d3, and eventually d4 to occupy the center. - Black's counter setup: ...Na5-c4 (or ...Nb8-d7), ...Bb7 or ...Be6, and the freeing break ...d5 or a queenside expansion with ...c5. - The Chigorin, Breyer, Zaitsev, and other named systems all correspond to how Black arranges the knight and bishop before deciding on ...d5 or ...c5.
The Endgame Society glossary defines more than 240 chess terms — rules, notation, tactics, strategy, pawn structures, endgames, and openings — in language a beginner can act on rather than dictionary shorthand.