Beginner

10. Pawn Promotion

Learn what happens when a pawn reaches the other side of the board.

Introduction

When a pawn reaches the opposite end of the board, it must promote to another piece—queen, rook, bishop, or knight. This is one of the most exciting moments in chess!

Lesson Content

Try this position

This white pawn on e7 is one square away from the 8th rank. When it advances to e8, it must promote to a piece of your choice. Most players choose a queen since it's the strongest.

Try this position

1. e8=♕︎

Move the pawn from e7 to e8. It will promote to a queen.

Push the pawn to e8 and promote it to a queen!

Try this position

Great—your pawn is now a queen! There's no limit—you could have up to 9 queens if all 8 pawns promote. In practice, one extra queen is usually enough to win.

Try this position

Promoting to a knight can be the winning move! Here e8=♘︎+ checks the king AND attacks the queen at the same time — a fork no queen could make from e8. After the king moves you capture the queen, then push your a-pawn to promote and win. This is called "underpromotion."