On Thursday, July 20, 2023 at 12:55:22 PM UTC-4, Phil Innes wrote:
She was sister to the general,
More importantly, a sister to the Admiral. This is the UK after all (and Howe the general was mediocre, Howe the Admiral excellent).
One of her great nephews, lord Howe, provided the basis for a lovely pun.
William IV's wife, Queen Adelaide, was not getting pregnant. This frustrated William, who had at least a dozen illegitimate
children (David Cameron descends from one). Lord Howe, a conservative courtier, was very close to the conservative
queen (Billy was moving ever leftward). Too close, some thought.
When a rumor spread that Adelaide was indeed pregnant someone murmured :
"Oh lord, how mysterious are thy ways".
and this was a diplomatic mission on her part to woo Franklin to some basis of a peace engagement, but in 1774 she challenged Ben Franklin to a series of games of chess [piece engagement!] of which no record remains of the scores, and no results neither [
unless the reader knows differently?]
In her book "Birth of the Chess Queen" Marilyn Yalom traces the increased power of the Queen from beginnings in Spain as lowly aide to the King, to the most powerful piece on the board — and also the sociology of the power of women in European
affairs which increased similarly,
Does she also explain why the bishops became more powerful?
such that until about 1600 there was little distinction in strength of the player based on their gender.
Ruy Lopez would disagree.
Then, writes the author, inexplicably there was a decline in the playing strength of women players until the current time, not citing but referencing such phenomenon as the Polgar sisters.
Many an author, utterly ignorant of chess, feels that the game provides fodder for whatever argument they want to make on other
grounds. Such books can at least provide us with a laugh or two.
William Hyde
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