{"id":3770,"date":"2026-07-05T10:51:48","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T14:51:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chessinthelibrary.com\/?p=3770"},"modified":"2026-07-05T11:04:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T15:04:13","slug":"march-to-victory-with-the-advance-french-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chessinthelibrary.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/05\/march-to-victory-with-the-advance-french-1\/","title":{"rendered":"March to Victory with the Advance French #1 – Key Ideas"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Introduction<\/h1>\n

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another school year, and, much more importantly, another year of Chess in the Library\u2019s tournaments. As we advance through higher grades, take advanced classes, and advance in our careers, hopefully our chess skills will advance as well. That\u2019s why today\u2019s blog is on the Advance French.<\/p>\n

Before we begin, I\u2019d like to apologize in advance for all the terrible puns incoming.<\/p>\n

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The French Defense first emerged in the early 1800s. Its earliest recorded game was in 1834, when the Paris Chess Club beat the London Chess Club using 1.e4 e6. Back then, clubs had to send each other every single move by mail, so you can imagine how excruciatingly slow the game was \u2013 not unlike some French Defense variations. Maybe if they had Chess.com in those times, the French would be more exciting, and the below quote wouldn\u2019t exist:<\/p>\n

“I have never in my life played the French Defence, which is the dullest of all openings.”<\/strong>
-Wilhelm Steinitz, World Chess Champion<\/h2>\n

But to be fair, when Steinitz said this, the dreary Exchange Variation was the popular way to play. On the other hand, the Advance Variation was considered a bit of a mistake.<\/p>\n

Elite players would write entire books to slam the Advance and any other chess ideas (or players!) they disliked. Then, a different chess master would fall for this archaic literary ragebait, and write another book to argue and over-praise the Advance. (cough cough<\/em> Nimzowitsch and Tarrasch)<\/p>\n

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While it\u2019s interesting how the Advance French was the battleground for these two titans of verbose chess instruction, our understanding of openings has <\/span>advanced <\/span><\/i>greatly since then. Today, we emphasize the nuance behind opening choices. There are many reasons for players of all levels to pick <\/span>3.e5<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why Play the Advance?<\/b><\/h2>\n