English Opening: King's English Variation
1.c4 e5
What Is The King's English Variation?
1.c4 e5 answers a flank move with a central one: Black takes the square White declined, and the position becomes a Sicilian with colors reversed and White a tempo ahead. White's play starts on the wing before it hits the centre. You fianchetto with g3 and Bg2, aim at d5 with Nc3, and expand with Rb1 and b4, the queenside attack Black plays in the Sicilian.
The extra tempo buys quality, not a forced attack: it lets you meet Black's central expansion a move early instead of forcing matters. The break that decides games is d2-d4: it strikes e5 and opens the centre and the d-file for your rooks. Black strikes first with ...d5, the Reversed Dragon after 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3 d5.
How Do You Play Against The English Opening: King's English Variation?
58% play 2.Nc3 and 16% choose 2.g3. You are Black with a reversed Sicilian on the board, a tempo up on a defence that already scores respectably, which is a better starting point than the English's quiet reputation suggests.
Play the Sicilian plans you already know from the other side, and the extra tempo means you can be the one taking space rather than reacting. ...Nf6, ...d5 and ...Bb4 all follow naturally. The one habit worth breaking is treating 1.c4 as a move that needs its own theory: most of these positions transpose into structures you have seen. White scores 50% to 45% over 6,854 games.
What Do Players Choose At The Decision Point?
| Move | Share | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|
| e5 | 28% | 8,268 | |
| Nf6 | 16% | 4,683 | |
| e6 | 12% | 3,453 | |
| c5 | 11% | 3,391 |
How Does Play Continue From Here?
| Move | Share | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nc3 | 58% | 4,832 | |
| g3 | 16% | 1,333 | |
| e3 | 9% | 760 | |
| e4 | 3% | 283 |
The Named Lines Of The King's English Variation
| Line | Moves |
|---|---|
| Nimzowitsch Variation | 1.c4 e5 2.Nf3 |
| Reversed Sicilian | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 |
| Nimzowitsch-Flohr Variation | 1.c4 e5 2.Nf3 e4 |
| Kramnik-Shirov Counterattack | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Bb4 |
| Two Knights Variation | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 |
| Reversed Closed Sicilian | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.g3 Bb4 4.e4 O-O 5.Nge2 Nc6 6.Bg2 |
| Three Knights System | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Nf3 |
| Keres Defense | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 d6 3.g3 c6 |
| Two Knights Variation, Reversed Dragon | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.g3 d5 |
| Two Knights Variation, Keres Variation | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.g3 Bc5 4.Bg2 c6 |
| Two Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.g3 g6 |
| Smyslov Defense | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 d6 3.Nf3 Bg4 |
| Two Knights Variation, Smyslov System | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.g3 Bb4 |
| Four Knights Variation | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 |
| Kahiko-Hula Gambit | 1.c4 e5 2.e3 Nf6 3.f4 exf4 4.Nf3 |
| Four Knights Variation, Flexible Line | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.d3 |
| Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.a3 |
| Four Knights Variation, Quiet Line | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.e3 Bb4 5.Qc2 Bxc3 |
| Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line | 1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.d3 |
| Troger Defense | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 d6 4.Bg2 Be6 |
| Adhiban Gambit | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 e4 4.Ng5 c6 |
| Bellon Gambit | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 e4 4.Ng5 b5 |
| Taimanov Variation | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 |
| Four Knights Variation, Bradley Beach Variation | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.d4 e4 |
| Closed System | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 |
| Hungarian Attack | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.Rb1 |
| Closed System, Full Symmetry | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 d6 |
| Botvinnik System | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.g3 g6 4.Bg2 Bg7 5.d3 d6 6.e4 |
| Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with .. d6 | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3 Bc5 5.d3 d6 6.Bg2 |
| Four Knights Variation, Fianchetto Line, with .. d6, a6 | 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3 Bc5 5.d3 d6 6.Bg2 a6 |