Philidor Defense C41

C — Open games & French · Family: Philidor Defense

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6

The Philidor Defense (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6) is the classical modest defense, named after François-André Danican Philidor — the strongest player of the 18th century and author of the famous "pawns are the soul of chess". Black keeps the structure flexible, avoiding early confrontations while preparing ...Nf6, ...Be7 and ...c6 or ...Nbd7 setups.

White's main option is 3.d4, leading to open centers where Black plays a careful set-up with Be7 and Nbd7; the sharper "Lion" configurations with an early ...Nf6 and ...Nb8-d7 add practical poison. The Philidor has a reputation for passivity, but it teaches the value of the e5/d6 chain and remains a reliable surprise weapon.

Play through the moves on the board above, explore the variations tree below — click any move of any branch — then test yourself against the engine from the position you picked.

Position after 4 half-moves — White to move.
Material is balanced.
Family “Philidor Defense” contains 44 recorded variation(s) here.

Variations tree of the Philidor Defense family

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44 variations of “Philidor Defense” · win% from 1.5M rated games · ♞ Test your knowledge vs engine

Variations of this family

Name	ECO	Main line length
Philidor Defense	C41	5 plies
Philidor Defense	C41	5 plies
Philidor Defense	C41	6 plies
Philidor Defense: Albin-Blackburne Gambit	C41	8 plies
Philidor Defense: Berger Variation	C41	19 plies
Philidor Defense: Bird Gambit	C41	7 plies
Philidor Defense: Boden Variation	C41	8 plies
Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation	C41	6 plies
Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation	C41	7 plies
Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation	C41	8 plies
Philidor Defense: Hanham Variation	C41	6 plies
Philidor Defense: Hanham Variation, Delmar Variation	C41	9 plies