Chess - The Game of Kings

Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to distinguish it from related games, such as xiangqi (Chinese chess) and shogi (Japanese chess). 

The recorded history of chess goes back at least to the emergence of a similar game, chaturanga, in seventh-century India. The rules of chess, as we know them today, emerged in Europe at the end of the 15th century, with standardization and universal acceptance by the end of the 19th century. Today, chess is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide.

A relationship between chess skills and intelligence has long been discussed in scientific literature as well as in popular culture. Academic studies that investigate the relationship date back at least to 1927. Although one meta-analysis and most children studies find a positive correlation between general cognitive ability and chess skills, adult studies show mixed results.

Chess has recently become increasingly popular in schools, experiencing a renaissance. We applaud this development and want to encourage more of it.