Alexander McDonnell

Alexander McDonnell was born in Belfast, Ireland to a surgeon in 1798. He was trained as a merchant and worked for some time in the West Indies. In 1820, he became the secretary of the Committee of West Indian Merchants in London. This position turned him into a wealthy man and he had plenty of time for his passion of playing chess.

In 1825, he became the student of William Lewis, who was the leading player in Britain at the time. Soon, McDonnell became so good, that Lewis, fearing for his reputation, simply would not play him anymore. French aristocrat Charles Louis Mah de La Bourdonnais was the world's strongest player at that time. La Bourdonnais had defeated Lewis in a match in London in 1823, and in the spring of 1825, La Bourdonnais defeated the best players that England had to offer. Nine years later, he returned to London when a challenge was issued on McDonnell's behalf.

La Bourdonnais and McDonnell played a series of six matches, a total of eighty-five games, at the Westminster Chess Club in London between June and October 1834. La Bourdonnais knew no English and McDonnell knew no French. It is said that the only word they exchanged was "check!". After each game, McDonnell would return to his room exhausted and spend hour pacing back and forth in a state of nervous agitation. Meanwhile, La Bourdonnais would be downstairs playing chess. He would continue to play long after midnight smoking cigars, drinking, and gambling. One night, he supposedly played 40 games before going to bed, although he had to play McDonnell the following morning.

McDonnell and La Bourdonnais were evenly matched across the board, but their styles of play contrasted wildly. La Bourdonnais was renowned for the rapidity of his play, often replying to his opponent's moves within seconds. McDonnell on the other hand, sometimes took as many as 2 hours to make a single move. Despite his deliberation, he was a reckless player. Whereas La Bourdonnais preferred to err on the side of caution, McDonnell couldn't resist embarking on wild and often ill-considered attacks.

In the first match of the series, McDonnell was heavily defeated by 16 games to 5, and 4 draws. He quickly recovered from this setback and won the second match by 5 games to 4. La Bourdonnais went on to win the 3rd, 4th, and 5 matches +6 -5 =1, +8 -3, and +7 -4 respectively. The final match was abandoned in obscure circumstances with McDonnell leading +5 -4. Apparently, La Bourdonnais had to return to France to deal with creditors The players had a loose agreement to continue the match at a later date. Unfortunately, McDonnell's health was failing due to Bright's disease. His condition worsened in the summer of 1835, and he died in London on September 15 before his match with La Bourdonnais could be resumed.

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