You are reading an online version of The Chess Memory Palace by John Holden. Copyright © 2022 John Holden, all rights reserved. Click here to return to the online contents page. For the best reading experience, you can buy a paper copy or the ebook.

In this computer age, engines might be able to show the way to a White plus versus the Schliemann. Fortunately, most mortals do not have the prodigious memory required to recall what the engine proposes to reach that plus[.]

Junior Tay, The Schliemann Defence move by move

This chapter presents an example memory palace. Beginning with the repertoire, I show how I would map the tree diagram onto a setting and memorise the composite images. This puts the theory from Chapters 2 and 3 into practice.

I have chosen a repertoire as White against the Schliemann Defence to the Ruy Lopez, which arises from 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 f5. I present a “pure main line” repertoire: playing White’s most popular move against every common try by Black.


This chapter is not available online. It can be read on a paper copy or the ebook.

The rest of Chapter 4 covers:

  1. Step 1: Draw the tree diagram
  2. Step 2: Choose the setting
  3. Step 3: Map the locations
  4. Step 4: Select the picture words
  5. Step 5: Memorise the palace
  6. Reviewing
  7. Extending the palace