Swallow's tail mate

What is the swallow's tail mate?

In a swallow's tail mate the queen gives check from the square right in front of the king, protected by another piece. The king's own pieces stand diagonally behind it, like a swallow's forked tail, and take its way back.

The pattern is a close relative of the epaulette mate. Read more under the swallow's tail mate.

Look for a king that has stepped out with its own pieces behind it, and for a protected square right in front of it.

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
• Morphy's mate
• Pillsbury's mate
• Promotion
• Endgame
• Rook endgames
• Pawn endgames
• Zugzwang

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

Updated November 14, 2026