Tactic · beginner
Queen and Bishop Mate in chess
Line the queen up in front of a bishop on one diagonal. The bishop protects the queen's landing square.
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What a queen and bishop mate is
Line the queen up in front of a bishop on one diagonal. The bishop protects the queen's landing square.
The bishop on d3 points at h7, the pawn in front of the castled king. When your queen joins it, Qxh7 is often checkmate. This queen + bishop battery is one of the most common ways to mate a castled king.
2 puzzles, solved
Queen + Bishop Battery (beginner, White to move)add
Line the queen up in front of a bishop on one diagonal. The bishop protects the queen's landing square. Solution: 1.Qxh7#. Qxh7#. The king can't take the queen because the b1 bishop protects h7. Batteries double your firepower on one square.
Mate on h7 (intermediate, White to move)add
Queen and bishop aim at the same square next to the castled king. Solution: 1.Qxh7#. Qxh7#. The bishop protects the queen, and the rook on f8 blocks the king's escape.
How to spot it in your games
- The b1–h7 diagonal: queen in front, bishop behind.
- Two of your pieces attack h7.
How the pieces work together
Queen and bishop on the same diagonal form a battery. The queen attacks, and the bishop behind it guards the target square, so the king can't capture.
When players miss it: "Missing checkmates"
When the coach analyses your games, missed queen and bishop mate are counted under "Missing checkmates". When the enemy king is short of squares, look at every check first. Checks are the most forcing moves.