Pillsbury's mate

What is Pillsbury's mate?

In Pillsbury's mate a rook checks the king along an open file, and a bishop covers the corner square along the long diagonal. The king's own pieces take the rest of the squares.

The pattern is a twin of Morphy's mate with the roles swapped. It is named after the American Harry Nelson Pillsbury. Read more under Pillsbury's mate.

Look for an open file in front of the king and a bishop on the long diagonal. Sometimes another piece steps aside, so that the rook gives a discovered check.

How the puzzles work

There are 150 puzzles here. Choose a level above the board. Within each level the puzzles get harder and harder, and when you come back you pick up where you left off.

Your opponent makes the first move, then it's your turn. If you get stuck, Hint shows which piece to move, and Show the solution plays the rest. The theme only shows once the puzzle is done, but here you already know what you're looking for.

In Puzzle training you get puzzles in this theme at your own level, and see how you're doing in each theme.

More puzzles

• Mate in one
• Mate in two
• Mate in three
• Fork
• Pin
• Skewer
• Discovered attack
• Double check
• Sacrifice
• Deflection
• Attraction
• Hanging piece
• In-between move
• Back-rank mate
• Smothered mate
• Arabian mate
• Anastasia's mate
• Boden's mate
• Opera mate
• Epaulette mate
• Swallow's tail mate
• Morphy's mate
• Promotion
• Endgame
• Rook endgames
• Pawn endgames
• Zugzwang

The puzzles come from Lichess, fetched on November 1, 2026.

Updated November 14, 2026