Checkers History

The History of Checkers

Checkers is one of the oldest board games in human history, with roots stretching back over 5,000 years. From ancient game boards found in the ruins of Ur to the computer program that proved the game is a mathematical draw, checkers has a remarkable story of evolution, competition, and scientific achievement.

Ancient Origins

Archaeological evidence of checkers-like games dates back to approximately 3000 BC. A game board resembling checkers was discovered in the ancient city of Ur (modern-day Iraq), dating to around 3000 BC. In ancient Egypt, a game called Alquerque was played on a 5x5 grid with diagonal lines. Alquerque pieces could move along the lines and capture by jumping, making it the most direct ancestor of modern checkers.

Alquerque was played throughout the ancient Mediterranean world for thousands of years. The Romans knew a similar game called Ludus Latrunculorum. Arab scholars wrote about Alquerque in their game treatises, and the game spread throughout the Islamic world alongside chess.

Medieval Evolution

The transformation from Alquerque to modern checkers occurred in southern France around the 12th century. An unknown innovator had the idea of playing an Alquerque-style game on a chess board, expanding the grid from 5x5 to 8x8 and increasing the number of pieces from 12 to 12 per side. The French called this new game Fierges, later renamed Jeu de Dames (Game of Ladies).

The critical rule change that defined modern checkers was the introduction of mandatory captures around the 16th century. Before this rule, players could choose whether to capture or not, which made the game less tactical. Forcing captures created the rich combinatorial play — shots, sacrifices, and forced sequences — that defines checkers today.

American Checkers and International Draughts

As the game spread across Europe, different regions developed their own rule sets. The English brought the 8x8 version to North America, where it became American Checkers (also called English Draughts). Meanwhile, the French and Dutch developed International Draughts, played on a 10x10 board with 20 pieces per side and “flying kings” that can move multiple squares diagonally.

By the 19th century, competitive checkers was well established. The first American Checkers Championship was held in 1847, and the British Draughts Association was founded in 1890. The game developed a rich culture of named openings, endgame theory, and published analysis — much like chess, but accessible to a wider audience.

Marion Tinsley: The Greatest Player

No account of checkers history is complete without Marion Tinsley (1927-1995), widely considered the greatest checkers player of all time. A mathematics professor from Florida State University, Tinsley dominated the game for over four decades with a record that borders on unbelievable.

Tinsley lost only 7 games in 45 years of competitive play. He held the World Championship title from 1955 to 1958 and again from 1975 to 1991. His understanding of the game was so deep that he could see 20-30 moves ahead without a computer, calculating variations that took modern programs billions of operations to verify.

Tinsley's most famous moment came in 1992 when he defeated Chinook, a computer program, in a World Championship match — the first time a reigning world champion in any board game had faced a computer in a title match. Tinsley won 4 games, lost 2, and drew 33 in a 39-game match.

Chinook and the Computer Era

Chinook was developed by Jonathan Schaeffer and his team at the University of Alberta beginning in 1989. It was the first computer program to win a World Championship in any board game, though its 1994 title match against Tinsley was abandoned when Tinsley withdrew due to illness (he was later diagnosed with cancer and passed away in 1995).

In 2007, Schaeffer's team made history again by solving checkers. After 18 years of computation analyzing approximately 500 billion positions, they proved mathematically that perfect play from both sides results in a draw. This made checkers the most complex game ever solved at the time — a landmark achievement in artificial intelligence and game theory.

The proof does not diminish the game — it confirms what the best human players had long suspected and demonstrates that the game is beautifully balanced. For human players, the 500 billion positions remain far beyond what any person can memorize, ensuring that checkers remains a genuine test of skill.

Checkers in the Digital Age

Today, checkers is played by millions of people worldwide, both on physical boards and through online platforms. Digital checkers has made the game accessible to a new generation — players can compete against AI opponents of any strength, study famous positions, and play opponents around the world instantly. The game's simple rules and deep strategy make it one of the most enduring games in human history, spanning over 5,000 years from the ancient clay boards of Mesopotamia to the screens of smartphones and computers.