Philidor position: how to draw a rook endgame
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The Philidor position is the basic drawing method in rook endgames. One side has rook and pawn, the other only a rook, but the defending king stands in front of the pawn. With the right technique, the defender holds the draw. The method is called the third rank defence. This guide shows the position, explains the defence step by step, shows what happens when the pawn advances and which mistakes lose. Every position on this page was checked with the Syzygy tablebase, and you can play each one against Stockfish in your browser.
The Philidor position
In the diagram, White has king, rook and pawn, Black has king and rook. Three things make it a Philidor position:
- The defending king stands on the promotion square of the pawn, here on e8.
- The pawn has not yet reached the sixth rank, here it is on e5.
- The defending rook stands on its third rank, seen from Black: the sixth rank. From there it keeps the white king away from that rank.
White would like to bring the king to d6 or f6 and then threaten mate on the back rank. The black rook on the sixth rank stops exactly that. The white king cannot cross the rank, and checks from the white rook alone do not achieve anything.
The third rank defence in five steps
- Step 1
Put the king on the promotion square or directly in front of the pawn. Here the black king is already on e8.
- Step 2
Put the rook on your third rank, here the sixth rank. It controls all squares the white king would need to advance.
- Step 3
Wait with the rook along the rank. If White makes waiting moves, move the rook along the sixth rank, for example 1...Rb6. Do not leave the rank as long as the pawn is on e5.
- Step 4
When the pawn advances to the sixth rank, send the rook to the far end of the board. After 2.e6, play 2...Rb1. The pawn now takes the sixth rank away from your rook, but it also takes the shelter away from the white king.
- Step 5
Check from behind. After 3.Kd6, play 3...Rd1+, and after 4.Ke5, play 4...Re1+. The white king has nowhere to hide from the checks.
The order matters. As long as the pawn is on the fifth rank, the rook belongs on the sixth rank. As soon as the pawn steps to the sixth rank, the rook belongs far away, where it can check from behind. A rook giving checks from a distance is hard to approach, because the king that walks towards it leaves its pawn behind.
Why the pawn push does not help White
Before e6, the pawn on e5 would give the white king a shelter. A king that reaches e6 stands in front of its pawn, and checks from behind along the e-file are blocked by the pawn. Together with the white rook, the king would then threaten mate on the back rank. That is why the black rook must hold the sixth rank first. After e6, the situation reverses. The pawn now stands on the sixth rank itself, so the king can only use d6 or f6, and there nothing blocks the checks from behind.
If the white king walks towards the black rook to escape the checks, it moves away from its pawn, and the black king is close enough to attack the pawn. The tablebase confirms the draw after every move of the main line on this page.
Typical mistakes and what they cost
The Philidor position is a draw, but not every defensive move keeps it. These mistakes are common, and the tablebase shows that each one loses.
- Passive rook on the back rank. In the diagram at the top, 1...Ra8? loses at once to 2.Rh8+, and the rook on a8 falls. Even without that trick, a rook on the back rank lets the white king reach the sixth rank.
- Waiting instead of checking. In the position after 3.Kd6, any move other than a check loses, for example 3...Kd8? or 3...Kf8?.
- The king is pushed away from the pawn. If the defending king is cut off from the pawn's file, there is no Philidor position any more, and the attacker often wins.
The last diagram shows why the king must go in front of the pawn early. Once the attacking rook cuts it off along a file, the third rank defence is no longer available, and the defender is fighting a different and usually lost endgame.
Philidor and Lucena compared
Rook and pawn against rook usually ends in one of two textbook positions. Which one you reach depends mostly on the defending king.
| Philidor position | Lucena position | |
|---|---|---|
| Defending king | in front of the pawn | cut off from the pawn |
| Pawn | on the fifth rank or lower | on the seventh rank |
| Result | draw | win for the attacker |
| Key technique | rook on the third rank, then checks from behind | building a bridge with the rook |
Learn both together. As the attacker, you try to cut off the defending king and reach the Lucena position. As the defender, you try to get the king in front of the pawn and set up the Philidor defence. Basic king and pawn endings, which appear when the rooks come off, are covered on the opposition page.
How to practise the Philidor position
- Open the first diagram with "Play this position against Stockfish", choose Black and hold the draw against the Grandmaster level on the play against Stockfish page.
- Repeat until you play the rook move to the first rank immediately after the pawn reaches the sixth rank.
- Play the passive rook and the king cut off diagrams as White and win them. Seeing how the attacker wins helps you avoid those set-ups.
- Set up the structure on other files in the board editor and repeat the defence.
Questions and answers
What is the Philidor position?
A rook endgame where the defending king stands in front of the opponent's pawn and the defending rook holds its third rank. With correct play, it is a draw.
What is the third rank defence?
The defender keeps the rook on the third rank from their own side until the pawn advances to it. Then the rook goes to the far end of the board and gives checks from behind.
When should the rook leave the third rank?
As soon as the pawn reaches the sixth rank, seen from the attacker. Then the rook goes back and checks from behind.
Is rook and pawn against rook usually a draw?
Many of these endgames are draws when the defending king reaches the square in front of the pawn. When the king is cut off, the attacker often wins. A five-piece tablebase gives the exact result for every position.
What is the difference between Philidor and Lucena?
In the Philidor position the defending king blocks the pawn and the defender draws. In the Lucena position the defending king is cut off and the attacker wins by building a bridge.
Continue with
Hold the draw in rook endgames.
Scan endgame diagrams, check them with the tablebase and defend against Stockfish in the ChessWOW app.