Marshall vs Janowski (1905)

Marshall (left), Leo Nardus (patron of the 1908 match), and Janowski (right)

One of the longest running rivalries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was between American master Frank Marshall and the Parisian master David Janowski. The roots of their rivalry began with an abbreviated match in New York in January 1899, a short but revealing contest in which the younger Marshall surprised observers by winning the opening game. Janowski quickly asserted his superiority, reeling off three consecutive victories to clinch the match.

Years later, after finishing first (Marshall) and second (Janowski) at the strong Cambridge Springs International Tournament of 1904, negotiations for another match quickly began. It was speculated that the winner could potentially emerge as the logical challenger to Lasker’s world championship title.

Played in Paris from January 24 to March 7, 1905 under demanding conditions (first to eight wins, draws not counting), the contest proved very competitive with Marshall twice building early leads and Janowski responding accordingly.  Marshall eventually asserted control of the match, winning a critical sequence of games beginning with game eleven. He ultimately prevailed by a margin of 10 to 7 (+8 -5 =4), confirming his emergence as America’s foremost chess figure (considering Harry Nelson Pillsbury’s declining health and Jackson Whipps Showalter’s self-imposed retirement).

Janowski accepted the defeat in his usual classless manner as evidenced by the content of his letter in which he challenged Marshall to a rematch:

“I consider that the result of our match far from proving our respective abilities. On the contrary, as in the great majority of games I allowed the ‘win or draw’ to escape me, I am persuaded that normally I should have won very easily.”

However, it was not until 1908 that the two again crossed swords in match play, with Janowski gaining a measure of revenge at Suresnes (just outside of Paris) in a match to five wins. The two great masters met again in a 1912 ten-game exhibition and an eight-game formal match in 1916, with Marshall prevailing in both. The American held a slight edge in their prolonged match history with 21 wins, 16 losses, and 17 draws.

Both Marshall (1907) and Janowski (1910) eventually earned title shots against Lasker, neither of them being able to win a single game against the German world champion. While there were many interesting games from their 1905 encounter, Janowski’s game five victory (Queen’s Gambit Declined) is shared below and annotated by Marshall, Leopold Hoffer, and Clarence S. Howell.

To play through ALL of the games from this match, visit our match-viewer page.

GAME & ANNOTATIONS: Marshall v. Janowski – Games of the Paris Match (1905); The Match and Return Match (Leopold Hoffer); American Chess Bulletin (Feb. 1905)