Chess, often (1 )______ to as a Royal Game, is the oldest of all board games which do not contain an element of chance. The origins of chess are uncertain, (2) ______ there are a number of legends regarding its invention. One story says that it was King Solomon who invented chess, another that it was the Greeks god Hermes, and yet another that the Chinese mandarin Han-Sing was responsible for its creation. In fact, chess almost certainly originated in India in the sixth or seventh century ...

Chess, often (1 )______ to as a Royal Game, is the oldest of all board games which do not contain an element of chance.

The origins of chess are uncertain, (2) ______ there are a number of legends regarding its invention. One story says that it was King Solomon who invented chess, another that it was the Greeks god Hermes, and yet another that the Chinese mandarin Han-Sing was responsible for its creation. In fact, chess almost certainly originated in India in the sixth or seventh century AD. The game’s popularity then spread quickly through Persia (now known as Iran) and from there came to Europe. The first documented reference to chess in literature is in a Persia romance which was written about 600 AD.

It is (3)______ the word ‘chess’ comes from ‘shah’, the Persian word for ‘King’ and that ‘checkmate’, the game’s winning (4)______, comes from the phrase ‘shah mat’, (5)______ ‘the king is dead’.

The rule and pieces used in the game have undergone changes over the centuries. Modern chess owes much to the Spaniard Lopez de Sagura, who in 1561 wrote the first book on how to play the game. In it, he introduced the concept of ‘castling’, which has not been part of the game until then.

Chess, often (1 )______ to as a Royal Game, is the oldest of all board games which do not contain an element of chance.