Queen Harding’s Great Masquerade

You have really done it this time. After trash-talking beekeeping on social media again, you received a stern e-mail from Dean Harding summoning you to her office. Resigned to your fate, you close your eyes, take a deep breath, and softly open her door.

“Dean Harding, I am so, so, sorry about my—”

You are unable to finish your pathetic apology, stunned by the incredible display before you. Instead of an office, you see an enormous chessboard in the heat of battle. The board is littered with white queens, whose marble eyes rise in unison as you enter.

“I was going to expel you,” says one of them.

“But I have decided to offer you a test of wits first,” chimes in another. 

The one closest to you gazes intently. “Only one of us is the real Queen Harding. The rest are other pieces in disguise. Identify the true Queen, and you may continue to attend this institution.”

Another queen yawns. “Furthermore, if you can determine the true nature of each of the disguised pieces, I may even give you extra credit.” Utterly dumbfounded by this ridiculous situation, you carefully step forward to examine the position. As you do, the black queen whispers in your ear.

“I just moved to my current square.” She gives you a sly wink.

Rules

• There is only one white queen on the board. The rest are other white pieces      in disguise.

• Black just played Qd8.

• The game and position must be legal.

Questions

• Where is Queen Harding?

• What are each of the other disguised Queens?

Want more chess? Check out the Schulich Chess Society!

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Spoiler! Answers below.

Answers

1. Queen Harding is at e3.

2. Queens at g5, f4, and a5 are knights. Queens at d1 and a1 are rooks. Queens at c1 and b1 are bishops.

Explanation

Black just played Qd8, so none of the pieces at g5, f4, and a5 can be placing the black king in check, or that would have been an illegal move. Therefore, they are either knights or dark-squared bishops. However, white’s unmoved pawns on d2 and b2 mean that white’s dark-squared bishop never had a chance to leave its starting square. For white to have three of those pieces, one must be a promoted piece. White’s c-pawn is the only one missing, so it must have been the one to promote. The only black piece the c-pawn could capture is a single knight, so it must have captured that knight on b7, allowing it to promote on b8. Since it could not escape that square if it promoted to a bishop, it must have promoted to a knight; this gives white the three knights it needs to have pieces on g5, f4, and a5.

None of white’s pieces have been captured, so white’s dark-squared bishop is indeed still at c1, where it remains trapped. Due to this unmoved bishop and white’s pawn structure, neither of white’s rooks could have escaped the first two ranks, meaning two of the three pieces at d1, b1, and a1 must be rooks. The bishop makes it impossible for them to both be on b1 and a1, so the piece at d1 must be a rook. White only has one other piece on a light square – which is the piece at b1, meaning this must be white’s light-squared bishop. This leaves the piece at a1 to be the second rook.

Through these deductions, we have accounted for all of white’s pieces, except for the one at e3. This must be the true queen.