The Critical Period of Cambridge Chess

Historical knowledge and information regarding our great game.
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John Upham
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The Critical Period of Cambridge Chess

Post by John Upham » Thu Mar 18, 2021 3:27 pm

Whilst researching Stuart Milner-Barry I learnt that he played hundreds of friendly serious games with Bertram Goulding Brown.

Allegedly BGB wrote a book entitled (according to Google Books)

The Critical Period of Cambridge Chess published in 1917.

and he collaborated with HJR Murray.

Does anyone have a copy or indeed, have they ever seen a copy?

Maybe the word "book" is an exaggeration?

Any help would, as usual, be most appreciated.
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Christopher Kreuzer
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Re: The critical period of Cambridge chess

Post by Christopher Kreuzer » Thu Mar 18, 2021 3:40 pm

Interesting question. John, have you seen this blog post?

https://chessbookchats.blogspot.com/201 ... phlet.html

It sounds like BGB's writings were articles.
The British Chess Magazine, Chess Annual 1916, included an essay, on pages 5 to 13, written jointly by Philip W. Sergeant and B. Goulding Brown entitled Early Oxford and Cambridge Chess. Goulding Brown followed this up with a further article: The Critical Period of Cambridge Chess in the September 1917 issue of The British Chess Magazine, on pages 265 to 273, in which he enlarged and corrected the Cambridge portion of the first essay.
But there is an even more interesting and very rare pamphlet:
Both of these items included a footnote, on the first page of each, giving details of an 8 page pamphlet entitled Particulars of a Match at Chess, played in Cambridge, in March 1831, published in Hatfield in 1831.
Goulding Brown then revealed that a copy had been discovered hidden in a volume from the Rimington Wilson library bound up between William Lewis's two Series of Progressive Lessons on the Game of Chess, published in 1831 and 1832.
How strange!

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John Upham
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Re: The Critical Period of Cambridge Chess

Post by John Upham » Thu Mar 18, 2021 3:48 pm

Many thanks Christopher!

Interesting stuff indeed. :D
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Joseph Conlon
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Re: The Critical Period of Cambridge Chess

Post by Joseph Conlon » Thu Mar 18, 2021 7:42 pm

John Upham wrote:
Thu Mar 18, 2021 3:27 pm
Whilst researching Stuart Milner-Barry I learnt that he played hundreds of friendly serious games with Bertram Goulding Brown.

Allegedly BGB wrote a book entitled (according to Google Books)

The Critical Period of Cambridge Chess published in 1917.

and he collaborated with HJR Murray.

Does anyone have a copy or indeed, have they ever seen a copy?

Maybe the word "book" is an exaggeration?

Any help would, as usual, be most appreciated.
This is in the Bodleian and listed as part of the Bodleian catalogue of Murray's papers - although it may just be the BCM issue referred to below.

Tim Harding
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Re: The Critical Period of Cambridge Chess

Post by Tim Harding » Thu Mar 18, 2021 9:00 pm

Yes it is just an article in the BCM Annual not a book.
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