Why is the Queen the most powerful in Chess?

Question

I know the Kings is the most important but the Queen is the most powerful. I think it's because the piece represents the Queens power over her soliders, not her running across the battlefield in a dress wielding a sword or something. Men will fight bravely for women.

Answer 1

I suspect that it was an effort to speed up games, which at times could take days during the early Middle Ages.  From my reading of the Wikipedia article, that took place sometime after during the latter part of the 15th century.  Other changes that took place about that time were the development of the bishop and pawn promotion.

Before that time the queen was a relatively weak piece, which symbolized an adviser to the king.  Hence its earlier names of Vizier (Persian) or Mantri (minister in Sanskrit).

Answer 2

In Chess:  The queen can move like two pieces.  Therefore;  Double the power.  she can move like a Bishop, diagonally, and, she can move like a Rook, Horizontally or Vertically.

Answer 3

Tobimaro is on to something.

Originally, the Queen was the weakest piece on the board...it originally could only move one square in any of the four diagonal directions (i.e. like a Bishop, except only one square at a time).

And, the Bishop, originally, could only move two squares diagonally, not like it does today.

Beginning in the late 1400s, the game was sped up with some major rule changes (which started in Europe and eventually made their way across the rest of the civilized world)...

1) The Bishop was allowed to move as many diagonal squares as it could, being limited only by other pieces in its path or by the edge of the board itslef.

2) The Queen's powers were expanded to its modern form, giving her the combined powers of a Rook and Bishop

3) Pawns were now allowed the option of moving two squares on its first move...which also necessitated the "en passant" rule

4) Castling rules were standardized.

So the Queen was not always the most powerful piece on the board, it was, originally, the weakest.  At that time, the Rook was the most powerful piece.

As to why the Queen is the most powerful piece in Chess..well, someone has to be.

Answer 4

define power.  If a  pawn moves and attacks the queen, I don't care how well she is defended, she moves.  If a pawn can make the queen do something, isn't it more powerful?

Answer 5

The queen was the weakest piece until 1470 when it was changed to speed up game play.

Answer 6

angel is right.