Anastasia's mate
A rook and knight trap the king against the edge of the board when a pawn blocks the escape squares.
Anastasia's mate combines a rook on the h-file with a knight that covers the key squares the king would use to escape into the centre. The enemy king is pinned against the edge, with its own pawn blocking one crucial flight square and the knight covering others.
The pattern takes its name from a novel by Wilhelm Heinse published in 1803, making it one of the few checkmates named after a fictional character. In practice you see this pattern when a king has castled kingside and the rook swings to the h-file while a knight reaches a key blocking square.
Rh7# - Anastasia's mate
White's rook on h7 delivers checkmate along the h-file. The black king on h8 has nowhere to go: g8 is covered by the knight on f6 (Nf6 attacks g8), g7 is blocked by the black pawn, and h7 is the rook's square which is protected by the same knight. A rook on the h-file plus a knight and a pawn form the classic Anastasia's mate.
Rh7# in one - rook swings to the h-file
White swings the rook from h1 to h7, delivering Anastasia's mate. The knight on e6 covers key squares including f8 and g7 (if the pawn were not there). The black king's own g7 pawn seals that escape route. The rook checks, the knight guards, and the pawn blocks - three pieces working in concert.
Key chess terms
Related mating patterns
- Arabian mateA rook and knight work together to trap the king in a corner, with the knight guarding the rook and covering the escape square.
- Hook mateA rook, knight, and pawn combine in a hook shape to trap the king in the corner.
- Back-rank mateA rook or queen delivers checkmate on the opponent's back rank because the king is trapped behind its own pawns.
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