Opposition

The key idea

Kings facing each other with one square between them: whoever does NOT have to move is in charge. The king goes first and the pawn marches behind.

Example 1 · The king clears the way

King and pawn against king. Watch the order: first the king advances gaining ground, and the pawn queens almost unassisted.

1. Kd6 The white king outflanks. The black king was blocking head-on; by going around the side, we force it to choose which half to defend.
2. Kd8 It keeps blocking head-on, the most stubborn thing it has left.
3. e6 Now the pawn finally advances, with the king escorting from in front. Notice the order: the king had already gained the ground BEFORE pushing.
4. Ke8 The black king plants itself in front again.
5. e7 The pawn reaches the seventh WITHOUT giving check — that detail matters, you'll see it in the practice. The black king is running out of squares.
6. Kf7 Forced to step away from the queening square.
7. Kd7 And the white king takes control of e8. Next move the pawn queens. Game decided: that's how an extra pawn becomes a queen.

Example 2 · Winning the opposition and going around

The black king plants itself right in front of the pawn. Since you can't go through the middle, you go around a side — and that detour is what decides the endgame.

1. Kd6 Going head-on (Ke7) would be illegal: kings can't stand next to each other. So you go around a side — here, to the left.
2. Kd8 The black king shifts to keep blocking the path.
3. e6 With the flank won, the pawn advances escorted. Same order as always: ground first, pawn after.
4. Ke8 The black king returns to the center, its most stubborn resistance.
5. e7 The pawn reaches the seventh WITHOUT giving check — that's why there's no stalemate in sight. The black king can no longer touch it: your king on d6 defends it.
6. Kf7 Unable to capture or block head-on, the black king steps aside as best it can.
7. Kd7 The finishing touch before queening: your king plants itself next to the queening square, protecting it in advance.
8. Kg8 It can't even approach f8: the pawn on e7 itself guards that square diagonally.
9. e8=Q+ Queens with check. From pawn to queen: that's what going around at the right moment is worth.
10. Kg7 The black king escapes as best it can. Game decided: queen and king against a lone king.

Practice

Your turn. King and pawn against king. Remember the order of the method: the king clears the way in front, the pawn marches behind, and the queening square is protected by the king.

1. That's it: the king outflanks and gains ground. The pawn can wait; the ground can't. Don't push the pawn yet. Advance your king diagonally, toward e6, to go around the black king.
2. Now yes: the pawn advances with the king escorting from in front. Your king already controls the ground. It's time to advance the pawn.
3. One step from queening, and without check. The black king has to let go of the queening square. Push the pawn again: it reaches the seventh without check, exactly what you want.
4. Champion's detail: the king protects the queening square BEFORE queening. The black king was lurking around d8 to capture your future queen. Careful: if you queen now, the black king captures the queen on d8. Protect that square with your king first.
5. New queen on the board, protected by your king. From here on, you already know: it's the queen and king mate you've mastered. Now yes: queen. Your king defends the square.

Opposition, learned exactly where it counts: turning an extra pawn into a queen. This mechanism — king in front, pawn behind, protected queening square — decides an enormous number of endgames.