Rooks and Bishops — Chess Foundations, Lesson 4
Master the rook's straight lines and the bishop's diagonals. Learn how these long-range chess pieces control files, ranks, and diagonals across the board.
This is lesson 4 of ten in Chess Foundations, a free beginner course from Endgame Society. Each lesson is short, written in plain language, and built around a board you can move pieces on while you read.
Learn how rooks and bishops move and control the board.
Now that you know how pawns move, let's look at two powerful pieces: the rook and the bishop .
The rook moves in straight lines — any number of squares along a rank (horizontal) or file (vertical). It cannot jump over pieces.
The bishop moves diagonally — any number of squares along a diagonal. Each bishop stays on one color for the entire game. That's why you hear players talk about 'the light-squared bishop' and 'the dark-squared bishop.'
A rook on d5 can move to any square along the d-file or the 5th rank — 14 possible squares in total on an empty board.
A bishop on d5 controls both diagonals. On an open board, a centralized bishop can reach up to 13 squares.
Work through the lessons in order and you will finish knowing how every piece moves, how games end, and how to plan your first few moves without memorising anything.
Our courses run from the rules of the board to endgame technique. Lessons are interactive: you read a short passage, then play the position out on a real board before moving on.
How Rooks and Bishops Move — Beginner Chess Rules | Foundations