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How to Capture En Passant in Chess

Chess is a game of strategy and positioning with six types of pieces. Each type moves in a different way. The most basic piece is the pawn, which moves forward one space at a time, or two spaces on its first move, and can capture pieces by moving diagonally, up and over one space. A lesser known move that a pawn can use is the en passant. It is used only in specific circumstances.

Things You'll Need

Chess board and pieces

Instructions

- 1
  Advance one of your pawns to the fifth rank. This is the row five up from the bottom of the board as it faces you, in other words, three spaces forward from the rank where your pawns start the game.
- 2
  Wait for your opponent to move one of his pawns in the files next to yours, two spaces on its first move. His pawn right next to yours, in a position where if it had only moved forward one space, you would have been able to capture it without the en passant.
- 3
  If the move improves your position, use the en passant. Move your pawn diagonally forward to the space that your opponent's pawn would have occupied had it only moved forward one space.
- 4
  Capture his pawn and take it off the board. This is the only move in chess where you can capture a piece while not moving into the space that it occupies.

Chess & Checkers