- The moves1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6
- Chosen byBlack
- ECOC41
- Also calledPhilidor's Defence
The Philidor Defense comes after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6. Black protects the pawn on e5 with the d-pawn instead of the knight. It is solid, but the pawn on d6 shuts in the bishop on f8, and Black gets less space than after 2…Nc6. The main line is 3.d4, which challenges the center at once.
The opening is named after the Frenchman François-André Danican Philidor (1726–1795), regarded as the best chess player of his age, who was also an admired opera composer. It was he who wrote that pawns are the soul of chess. Philidor recommended 2…d6 instead of 2…Nc6, but his own idea was a counterattack with …f5, which today is considered too risky.
The opening became popular, but as positional play developed it lost ground, and by the First World War it had almost vanished from top-level chess. Today it is seen as a solid but passive choice, used mostly by players who want to avoid the heavy theory after 2…Nc6.
The main line, move by move
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Be7 6. Bf4 O-O 7. Qd2 Nc6 8. O-O-O Nxd4 9. Qxd4 Be6 10. f3
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The ideas
White wants to
- Challenge the center with d4 and make use of Black's lack of space.
- Exploit Black's cramped position: White often castles long and attacks with the pawns.
- Keep an eye on f7. With the bishop on c4, tactics there show up early.
Black wants to
- Hold on to the pawn on e5, or give up the center with …exd4 and develop quickly.
- Build a solid position with …Nf6, …Be7 and castling short.
- Be careful with the move order. Many traps rely on Black developing in the wrong order.
Important variations
The Hanham Variation: 3…Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7
Black holds on to the pawn on e5 and builds up with …Nbd7, …Be7 and …c6. The result is a solid defensive setup reminiscent of the closed Ruy Lopez. The variation is named after the American James Moore Hanham, who played 3…Nd7. The move order with 3…Nf6 was favored by Aron Nimzowitsch: it avoids the trap below. Larry Kaufman has written that the position could have been as popular as the major defenses to 1.e4, but for one detail: Black can't force it. With 4.dxe5 White can go another way.
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bc4 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Re1 c6 8. a4
Philidor's own move: 3…f5
Philidor himself recommended 3…f5, a counterattack against e4. Paul Morphy played it several times in 1858, and later David Bronstein and Hikaru Nakamura, among others, tried it. But today it is considered dubious, and White has several good answers. The most convincing is 4.Bc4: after Black's best 4…Nc6 comes 5.Ng5! Nh6 6.d5, and White is clearly better.
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 f5 4. Bc4 Nc6 5. Ng5 Nh6 6. d5
The bishop on g4: 3…Bg4?!
The move looks natural but is a mistake. After 4.dxe5 Black can only win the pawn back by trading the bishop for the knight, and then White gets the bishop pair and a lead in development. The best-known example is the Opera Game, where Paul Morphy beat the Duke of Brunswick and Count Isouard in a box at the opera in Paris in 1858.
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Bg4 4. dxe5 Bxf3 5. Qxf3 dxe5 6. Bc4
3… Bg4
The bishop pins the knight to the queen, but it doesn't hold.
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The trap: the trap after 3…Nd7 4.Bc4
With the move order 3…Nd7, White can answer 4.Bc4, and then it is easy to go wrong. The natural 4…Be7? loses at least a pawn after 5.dxe5 Nxe5 6.Nxe5 dxe5 7.Qh5!, which attacks both f7 and e5. If Black recaptures with the pawn instead, 5…dxe5??, 6.Qd5! follows with a mate threat on f7. Black has to give up a piece. After 6…Nh6 7.Bxh6 Black can't take back, because 8.Qxf7 would be mate. Against 4.Bc4 Black usually plays 4…c6. Giving up the center with 4…exd4 also works well.
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nd7 4. Bc4 Be7 5. dxe5 dxe5 6. Qd5 Nh6 7. Bxh6
7. Bxh6
White takes the knight. Black can't recapture with 7…gxh6, because 8.Qxf7# follows. White has won a piece.
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How it goes in real games
How the games ended once the position had come up on the board, in blitz, rapid and classical games. White wins, draws and Black wins, as a percentage of the games.
| Position | Level | Games | White wins | Draw | Black wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philidor Defense 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 | Club players | 53,166,523 | 52% | 5% | 44% |
| Strong players | 5,601,451 | 52% | 5% | 43% | |
| Philidor Defense, main line, up to 6…O-O 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Be7 6. Bf4 O-O | Club players | 196,800 | 57% | 5% | 39% |
| Strong players | 75,554 | 57% | 5% | 37% | |
| The Hanham Variation: 3…Nf6 4.Nc3 Nbd7, up to 6…O-O 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bc4 Be7 6. O-O O-O | Club players | 248,949 | 47% | 7% | 46% |
| Strong players | 192,381 | 48% | 7% | 45% | |
| Philidor's own move: 3…f5 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 f5 | Club players | 333,755 | 52% | 4% | 45% |
| Strong players | 71,193 | 50% | 4% | 45% | |
| The bishop on g4: 3…Bg4?! 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Bg4 4. dxe5 Bxf3 5. Qxf3 dxe5 6. Bc4 | Club players | 751,280 | 62% | 4% | 33% |
| Strong players | 53,734 | 66% | 4% | 30% |
The most common continuations after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6
Club players, share of the games in the position.
- 3.Bc4 43% (22,698,616 games)
- 3.d4 36% (18,979,950 games)
- 3.Nc3 8% (4,319,515 games)
- 3.h3 5% (2,708,592 games)
- 3.c3 4% (2,114,439 games)
Source: games on Lichess, fetched November 6–7, 2026. Club players means games where the players average 1600 or more, strong players games where they average 2000 or more. The strong players' games are counted among the club players' too. Each position is counted however it was reached, and a line that goes further than we have numbers for is shown up to its last position with numbers.
Explore the position on the analysis board: the moves club players choose from here, how the games tend to end, and what Lavi thinks of each move.
Is this opening for you?
The Philidor Defense suits players who want to stand solid with Black and have patience. It is a way to avoid the big theoretical lines after 2…Nc6, such as the Ruy Lopez. The price is a cramped position, where Black has to know in what order the pieces come out.
It is also an instructive opening to meet with White. The traps show how dangerous it is to develop in the wrong order, and the Opera Game shows what a lead in development can mean.
A famous game
The Philidor Defense was played in the Opera Game of 1858, which Paul Morphy won in seventeen moves. The Opera Game
Practice the main line
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The main line with all the comments as text
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 The knight attacks the pawn on e5. 2… d6 This is the Philidor Defense. The pawn protects e5, but it also shuts in the bishop on f8. 3. d4 White challenges the center at once. 3.Bc4 is common too. 3… exd4 The most common reply. Black gives up the center but frees the pieces. 4. Nxd4 White has a pawn in the center, Black has none. Black's plan is to develop quickly and stand firm. 4… Nf6 The knight attacks e4. 5. Nc3 White protects e4 and develops. 5… Be7 The Antoshin Variation, after the Soviet player Vladimir Antoshin. Black wants to castle short and stand firm. 6. Bf4 A move that has become more and more popular. White intends to castle long. 6… O-O With the king safe, Black is solid. 7. Qd2 The queen prepares to castle long. 7… Nc6 Black challenges the knight on d4. 8. O-O-O Castling long. The kings stand on opposite wings. 8… Nxd4 Black trades off the knights. 9. Qxd4 The queen is centralized. 9… Be6 Black develops the last minor piece. 10. f3 White supports e4 and prepares g4 and a pawn attack. White has more space and is slightly better, but Black's position holds together.
More openings
Italian Game
The bishop to c4 aims at f7. Classical, logical and perfect to learn first.
Ruy Lopez
The bishop to b5 presses on e5 from a distance. The masters' favorite since the 1800s.
Petrov's Defense
Black strikes back at e4 instead of protecting e5. A solid choice that several world champions have trusted.
Pirc Defense
Black fianchettoes and lets White take the center, then strikes at it.
Every move on this page has been checked against the rules of chess.
Updated November 6, 2026
2… d6
This is the Philidor Defense. The pawn protects e5, but it also shuts in the bishop on f8.