Game and Playe of the Chesse: A Verbatim Reprint of the First Edition, 1474Jacobus, de Cessolis, active 1288-1322
Philosophy
Game and Playe of the Chesse: A Verbatim Reprint of the First Edition, 1474
Jacobus, de Cessolis, active 1288-1322
Chess -- Early works to 1800
The manere and nature of the draught of the Alphyn is suche/ that he
that is black in his propre fiege is sette on the right side of the
kynge/ And he that is whyt is sette on the lifte side/ And ben callyd
and named black and white/ But for no cause that they be so in subftance
of her propre colour/ But for the colour of the places in whiche they
ben sette/ And alleway be they black or white/ whan they ben sette in
theyr places/ the alphyn on the ryght syde/ goynge oute of his place to
the ryght sydeward comyth to fore the labourer/ And hit is reson that
the Iuge ought to deffende and kepe the labourers and possessions whiche
ben in his Iurisdiction by alle right and lawe/ And also he may goo on
the lyste syde to the wyde place to fore the phisicien/ For lyke as the
phisiciens haue the charge to hele the Infirmites of a man/ In lyke wyse
haue the Iuges charge to appese alle stryues and contencions and reduce
vnto vnyte/ And to punyfshe and correcte causes crymynels/ The lyste
alphyn hath also two wayes fro his owen place oon toward y'e right syde
vnto the black space voyde to fore the marchant/ For the marchants nede
ofte tymes counceylle and ben in debate of questions whiche muste be
determyned by the Iuges/ And that other yssue is vnto the place to fore
the rybauldis/ And that ys be caufe that ofte tymes amonge them. falle
noyses discencions thefte and manslaghter/ wherfore they ought to be
punysshid by the Iuges/ And y'e shall vnderstande that the alphyn goth
alleway corner wyse fro the thirde poynt to the thirde poynt kepynge all
way his owne fiege/ For yf he be black/ he goth all way black/ And yf he
be whyte he goth alleway whyte. the yssue or goynge cornerly or
angularly signefieth cautele or fubtylyte/ whiche Iuges ought to haue/
The .iii. poyntes betoken .iii. thynges that the Iuge ought to attende/
A Iuge ought to furder rightfull & trewe causes. secondly he ought to
gyue trewe counceyll/ and thirdly he ought to gyue and Iuge rightfull
sentences after tha legeances/ And neuer to goo fro the ryghtwisnes of
the lawe/ And it is to wete that the Alphyn goth in fix drawhtes alle
the tablier round aboute/ and that he cometh agayn in to his owen place/
And how be hit that alle rayson and good perfection shold be in a kynge/
yet ought hit also specially be in them that ben conceyllours of the
kynge and the Quene And the kynge ought not to doo ony thynge doubtouse/
tyll he haue axid counceyll of his Iuges And of the sages of the royame
And therfore ought the Iuge to be parfaytly wyse and sage as well in
science as in good maners/ And that is signefied whan they meue from
thre poynts in to thre/ For the fixt nombre by whiche they goo alle
theschequer/ And brynge hem agayn in to her propre place in suche wyse
that thende of her moeuynge is conioyned agayn to the begynnynge of the
place frowhens they departed/ And therfore hit is callid a parfayt
moeuynge.
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Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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