What is Queen's Gambit Declined?
The '''Queen's Gambit Declined''' is a [[chess opening]] which starts with 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6. It is an old opening, and one of the most important. It is often used in top-class play. In this opening, called QGD for short, the struggle for the centre is the [[List of chess terms#Strategy|strategy]] of both players. Unlike the [[Queen's Gambit|Queen's Gambit Accepted]], Black keeps his pawn on d5 protected. A simple example: {{Chess diagram small | tright | The QGD |rd|__|bd|qd|__|rd|kd|__ |pd|pd|__|nd|bd|pd|pd|__ |__|__|pd|__|__|nd|__|pd |__|__|__|pd|__|__|__|__ |__|__|__|pl|__|__|__|bl |__|__|nl|bl|pl|nl|__|__ |pl|pl|__|__|__|pl|pl|pl |rl|__|__|ql|__|rl|kl|__ |<center>position after 10...Bh4</center> }} :1.d4 d5 :2.c4 e6 :3.Nc3 Nf6 :4.Bg5 Be7 :5.e3 0-0 :6.Nf3 c6 :7.cxd5 exd5 :8.Bd3 Nbd7 (Black could play 8...Ne4 here) :9.0-0 h6 :10.Bh4 Here White has more space, and Black has to decide how to develop his pieces. It is easier to play the white pieces in this kind of position. However, overall, black players do as well with this defence as with most others. Best for Black in this position is 10...Ne4 or 10...Re8. [[Category:Chess openings]] {{wikibooks|Chess Opening Theory/1. d4/1...d5/2. c4/2...e6}}{{Chess}}