Strong square: a safe place for your pieces

In short

A strong square is the other side of a weak square. If your opponent can no longer control a square with any pawn, it is weak for them. If your own pawn also controls it, it is strong for you.

Nimzowitsch calls this a strong point, and he means a little more by it. A strong point can be a square, but also an advanced pawn that your play is based on. He also counts a good blockading square in the centre among them.

You use a strong square by putting a piece there. Often a knight suits it best, because it needs a firm place close to the opponent. After that you aim more pieces at this point. In this way you underline the strength of the point, as Nimzowitsch says.

The pieces that secure a strong point stand well themselves while doing so. That is why Nimzowitsch secures strong points in advance with several pieces; he calls this overprotection. For weak points he advises against it.

Lesson 43 shows when extra protection improves a piece and when it only costs time. Lesson 37 practises the outpost, a special case of the strong square on an open file.

Summarised by the editors in their own words. This is not a quotation.

Preparing a strong square

Against Sämisch, Nimzowitsch prepares the square c4 with the pawn moves a6 and b5. Now his pawn on b5 controls the square. White exchanges the first knight that wants to go there. A second knight could have taken the route via d7 and b6, Nimzowitsch writes.

From one strong square to the next

Against Morrison, e4 is the important square. Nimzowitsch protects the pawn on d5, which controls e4, with an extra piece. Then his knight jumps to e4.

When White threatens to exchange the knight, he captures on c3 himself. White gets doubled pawns, and now c4 becomes the next strong square for Black. So a strong square can turn into a different advantage.

Today’s view

Today such a square is often also called an outpost square, even without an open file. Whether a piece is really strong there depends on the whole position. An enemy minor piece can also exchange it.

Where to find it in Nimzowitsch

• My System: II. Teil, 4. Kapitel - Wie man starke Punkte systematisch überdeckt und wie man schwache Bauern bzw. Punkte loszuwerden sucht original text not yet published

  How to secure strong points systematically with pieces: in the centre, on the pawn chain and at the outpost.

• Chess Praxis: 3. Überdeckung und andere Formen der Prophylaxe original text not yet published

  Only important, strong and somewhat contested points should be overprotected; the point becomes a source of strength for the pieces that overprotect it.

• My System: I. Teil, Partie-Beispiele zu den ersten drei Kapiteln (original text)

  Games for the first three chapters; in one of them all the pieces are aimed at a strong point.

• The Blockade: Partie 9 original text not yet published

  Sämisch – Nimzowitsch: with a6 and b5, c4 is made ready for a black knight.

• Chess Praxis: Partie 57 (original text)

  Morrison – Nimzowitsch: the important point e4, the exchange on c3 and the strong point c4.

In the course

• The outpost
• Strong points as a source of energy
• Morrison – Nimzowitsch, London 1927
• Sämisch – Nimzowitsch, Copenhagen 1923