The Spread of Ancient Chess (2)
古代国际象棋的传播（2）
As we mentioned last time, chess was spread through Europe in the Middle Ages, and it gained popularity among the secular society. However, at some point, chess was prohibited by the Church. If people were caught playing chess, they would face the same fate as Henry VIII – ex-communication, one of the greatest wrongdoings in Medieval Europe. This is mainly due to the fact that at that time there were no written chess rules, and people decided which side to play or which piece to move by throwing the dice. The use of dice was considered a form of gambling, a sin of Christianity.
我们上次提到过，国际象棋在中世纪欧洲传播，并且受到了世俗社会的欢迎。但是，国际象棋曾一度被教会禁止。如果人们被发现在下棋，他们就会面临和亨利八世一样的命运——被开除教籍，这在中世纪的欧洲被认为是最大的罪过之一。这主要是因为那个时候没有成文的国际象棋规则，人们用掷骰子的方式来决定哪一方走棋、走什么棋子。掷骰子被认为是一种赌博，基督教中的罪恶。
Knights Templar playing chess
下棋的骑士
But the domination of the Church did not last long. The Crusades brought Europeans the opportunity to gain access to the documents of the ancient Greek and Roman people, which were in the hands of the Arabs. They were amazed at the brilliant thoughts of the Greeks and Romans, thinking that their lives must be better than those of the ‘dark age’ under the Church’s regime. Besides this, the Black Death swept across Europe. No matter how people prayed to the God, they died one after another. Even the clergy died, which made people doubt that ‘the clergy and the Church represent the God’ and urged them to reform.
但是教会的统治没有持续很长时间。十字军东征使得欧洲人能够从阿拉伯人的手中获得有关古希腊、古罗马人的文献。这些欧洲人惊叹于古希腊人和古罗马人伟大的思想，认为那些古代民族的生活一定比教会掌控之下中世纪的人们要好。除此之外，黑死病曾席卷欧洲。无论人们怎么对上帝祈祷，他们还是没能逃脱死神的手掌。就连神职人员也死去了，这让人们怀疑“教会和牧师是上帝的代表”这一说法，并且让他们下定了改革的决心。
In the 14th century, Europe entered a brand new era: the Renaissance, which was characterized by the revival of classical Greek and Roman culture. Humanism became the main theme, challenging the power of the Church, but focusing on human lives, the pursuit of beauty and happiness. During the Renaissance, art reached its peak and new approaches to science began to develop.
14世纪，欧洲进入了一个崭新的时代：文艺复兴，这段时期标志着古希腊和古罗马的文化复苏。同时，人道主义成为了这段时期的核心思想，旨在反对教会的统治，关心人们的生活，追求美和幸福。在文艺复兴期间，艺术造诣达到了顶峰，新的科学思想也开始出现。
Painting of the Middle Ages vs. Painting of the Renaissance
中世纪的油画vs.文艺复兴时期的油画
Chess, which began to be considered a form of art or a category of science, was no longer forbidden, but became popular throughout the whole Europe. In Italy, the place where Renaissance began, chess clubs were founded and first chess theories began to appear. Modern chess rules, such as primitive varieties of castling and the possibility for the pawn to advance two squares in their first move, were introduced at that time.
国际象棋开始被认为是一种艺术表现，或者说是一门科学，并且不再被禁止，而是风靡了整个欧洲。在意大利，文艺复兴开始的地方，出现了第一批国际象棋俱乐部和第一批国际象棋理论思想。当今的国际象棋规则，比如王车易位和兵第一步可以走两格，都是在那个时候被引入的。
Early chess club
早期的国际象棋俱乐部
Chess was also considered as a noble culture. In many European countries monarchs and their officials enjoyed playing chess in their leisure time. For example, you must have heard of Ivan the Terrible, the Russian Tsar who was notorious for his bad temper. Once he had a quarrel with his son and beat him to death. But you may never have imagined that such an irritable emperor was crazily in love with chess. He spent a great amount of time playing chess every day. And finally, he died of a stroke when preparing for a game.
国际象棋也被认为是一种贵族文化。在很多欧洲国家，君王和大臣都喜欢在他们的空闲时间下棋。例如，你一定听说过伊凡四世吧，就是那位以他暴躁的脾气而闻名于世的俄国沙皇。他曾经与自己的儿子发生了争吵，并且一拳打死了他。但你肯定不曾想过，这位脾气如此暴躁的沙皇也是国际象棋的狂热爱好者。他每天会花大量的时间下棋。据说最终他是在准备下棋的时候死于中风的。
The death of Ivan the Terrible
伊凡四世之死
In my opinion, in the Renaissance chess was considered more as an art than a science. It was a romantic era of chess. People marveled at brilliant combinations of tactics and considered it the most exciting art forms. They constantly sacrificed pieces, even without careful calculations, in order to checkmate the king. The scientific approaches to chess did not start to develop until the time of the first world champion, Wilhelm Steinitz. He emphasized the importance of accumulating small advantages and improving the position rather than sacrificing pieces recklessly.
我认为，文艺复兴时期国际象棋的艺术性多于它的科学性。那是国际象棋的浪漫主义时期。人们惊异于精彩的战术组合，认为这是最激动人心的艺术形式。那些棋手总是弃子，即使他们还没有计算清楚，只为了将杀对手的王。当时还没有完善的国际象棋科学系统，直到第一位世界冠军威廉·斯坦尼茨的时代。斯坦尼兹强调了积累微小优势、加强局面的重要性，而反对盲目地弃子。
—END—