Queen's Gambit Declined · D30

Stonewall Variation

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nbd2 Ne4 6. Bd3 f5

...e6 holds d5 at the cost of the c8-bishop's freedom: Black plays the most solid structure in chess and times ...c5 or ...dxc4 to free the game.

The first 4 moves, explained

• 1. d4 Stakes a claim in the centre, controlling e5, and frees the bishop and queen.
• 1... d5 Stakes a claim in the centre, controlling e4, and frees the bishop and queen.
• 2. c4 Challenges the pawn on d5 - the central tension has to resolve. The pawn is genuinely on offer - this is the Queen's Gambit: development and initiative over material.
• 2... c6 Fights for d5 from the flank - contesting the centre without committing a centre pawn. Theory calls this the Slav Defense.

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