What is the London System in chess?

It is an opening for White built on a fixed setup: 1. d4, the dark-squared bishop out to f4 early, pawns on c3 and e3 beside d4, knights on f3 and d2, the other bishop on d3 and short castling. It usually starts 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4. Because White reaches much the same position against almost every defense, the London System takes far less memorization than openings built on forcing theory, and it has become very popular with club players.

How do you play the London System?

Play 1. d4, then 2. Bf4 against both 1...d5 and 1...Nf6, and build the setup: e3, Nf3, Bd3, Nbd2, c3, h3 when the bishop needs a retreat, and short castling. Bring the bishop out before e3, put the queen’s knight on d2 so the c-pawn can reach c3, and keep the e5-square in mind for your king’s knight. Three Black ideas need a prepared answer rather than the usual moves: ...c5 with ...Qb6 against b2 (the trainer plays Qb3), an early ...Bf5 (the trainer plays c4), and ...Bd6 or ...Nh5 aimed at the f4-bishop.

What are the main plans in the London System?

Once the setup is complete, most London middlegames turn on two things: the f4-bishop on the b8-h2 diagonal and the e5-square. The main attacking plan is Ne5 with the d3-bishop aimed at h7, and if Black’s f6-knight is driven away, the Bxh7+ Greek Gift sacrifice comes into play. In some lines White castles long and pushes the kingside pawns instead. Against an early ...Bf5 the plan moves to the queenside, with c4 and Qb3 against b7. And if Black trades the dark-squared bishops, recapturing on f4 with the e-pawn tightens White’s grip on e5.

What are the main traps in the London System?

The trainer drills several for White. After 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 e6 3. e3 Bd6, 4. Qg4 hits g7, and 4...Bxf4 5. Qxg7 wins a pawn. In the main line with ...Bd6 and a white knight on e5, ...c5 can be met by Bb5+, and the natural block ...Bd7 loses a piece after Nxd7. After 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 f6 3. e3 e5 4. dxe5 fxe5 5. Qh5+, blocking with 5...g6 runs into 6. Qxe5+, which forks the king and the h8-rook. And after 2...Bf5 3. c4 dxc4 4. e3, holding the pawn with 4...b5 runs into 5. Qf3, attacking the a8-rook. White has pitfalls too. An automatic Nf3 against ...Qb6 gives up the b2-pawn, and against the Englund Gambit, 1. d4 e5 2. dxe5 Nc6 3. Nf3 Qe7 4. Bf4 Qb4+ 5. Bd2 Qxb2, the natural-looking 6. Bc3 loses material to 6...Bb4, and 7. Qd2 even allows 7...Bxc3 8. Qxc3 Qc1#.

What is the Accelerated London System?

It is the London with the bishop out on move two, 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 or 1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4, rather than the older order with 2. Nf3 and 3. Bf4. In the ECO codes the accelerated order falls under D00 and A45 and the older one under D02, A46 and A48, and both usually reach the same setup. This trainer uses the accelerated order against both 1...d5 and 1...Nf6.

Is the London System good for beginners?

Yes. You play almost the same moves every game, so you reach a familiar, sound position quickly and can spend your study time on plans and tactics rather than long forcing lines. It holds up at the top level as well, so it is an opening you can keep as you improve. The one warning is that it is a setup, not autopilot: learn the answers to ...Qb6, an early ...Bf5 and the attempts to trade your f4-bishop.

📖 London

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London System: Complete Guide

What is the London System?

The London System is a chess opening for White built on a setup rather than a tree of memorized lines. White plays 1. d4, brings the dark-squared bishop out to f4 early, and then builds the same position against almost anything Black does: pawns on c3, d4 and e3, knights on f3 and d2, the other bishop on d3 and short castling, with h3 added when the f4-bishop needs a retreat. The usual way in is 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4, and this trainer plays 2. Bf4 against 1...Nf6 as well. Because the moves change so little from game to game, there is less to memorize than in most 1. d4 openings, and the London System has become very popular with club players.

Two relatives share part of the name but are different openings. The Jobava London, 1. d4 d5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bf4, brings the queen’s knight to c3 before the bishop and plays for Nb5 and an early e4. The Barry Attack, 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bf4, uses the same bishop against a kingside fianchetto. This guide covers the London System itself, the setup built on the c3, d4 and e3 pawns.

How to reach it

The trainer’s model game builds the whole setup in nine moves: 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 Nf6 3. e3 e6 4. Nf3 Be7 5. Bd3 O-O 6. Nbd2 c5 7. c3 Nc6 8. h3 b6 9. O-O. Every move has a job. The bishop goes to f4 before e3, because a pawn on e3 would block its diagonal. e3 then props up d4 and opens the way for the other bishop. The knight on f3 is headed for e5, a square the d4-pawn already covers. Bd3 aims at h7, the pawn in front of Black’s king once it castles short. The queen’s knight goes to d2 rather than c3, so the c-pawn can come to c3 and finish the c3-d4-e3 pyramid. h3 gives the f4-bishop a retreat on h2 if a knight comes after it with ...Nh5, and castling short completes the setup.

The middle of that order is flexible: Nf3, Bd3, Nbd2, c3 and h3 can trade places depending on what Black does. Two things do not change. Bf4 comes before e3, and against an early ...c5 the c-pawn goes to c3 quickly so d4 stays supported. The older order 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bf4 reaches the same position. Two Black setups change White’s moves a little: against a ...g6 fianchetto the light-squared bishop goes to e2 instead of d3, because ...g6 already blocks the d3-bishop’s path to h7, and against an early ...Bf5 the trainer leaves the pyramid and plays c4 at once.

Pros & cons

Strengths

One setup against almost everything: the c3-d4-e3 pyramid, Bf4, Nf3, Bd3, Nbd2 and short castling appear in nearly every game, so study time goes into plans and tactics instead of move orders.
The dark-squared bishop gets outside the pawn chain before e3 closes its diagonal, so it is not stuck behind the pawns as it is in setups that play e3 first.
Clear targets are built into the structure: a knight on e5 backed by the d4-pawn, the d3-bishop aimed at h7, and chances for the Bxh7+ Greek Gift when Black’s f6-knight is driven away.
Solid enough for the very top: Gata Kamsky, Levon Aronian and Magnus Carlsen have played it often, and Ding Liren won with it in game 6 of the 2023 World Championship match.
Short, concrete traps for White: Qg4 against an early ...Bd6, Bb5+ against ...Bd6 and ...c5 when White’s knight is on e5, and Qh5+ against ...f6 and ...e5, all drilled in the trainer.

Drawbacks

Played on autopilot it gives Black an easy, level game. The setup is safe, but the edge it keeps is usually small.
When the bishop leaves c1, the b2-pawn loses its defender, so ...c5 followed by ...Qb6 needs a prepared answer.
The f4-bishop is the best piece in the system, and Black has two simple ways to go after it: ...Bd6 to trade it, or ...Nh5 to hunt it.
It puts less early pressure on Black’s center than 2. c4 openings such as the Queen’s Gambit, which is what you give up for a setup you can play every game.
A few replies need their own answer instead of the usual moves: an early ...Bf5, King’s Indian setups with ...g6, and the Englund Gambit, 1...e5.

Main variations

The main setup with ...Bd6 and Ne5

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 Nf6 3. e3 e6 4. Nf3 Bd6 5. Ne5 O-O 6. Bd3 c5 7. c3 Nc6 8. Nd2

Black’s most natural development, ...Nf6, ...e6 and ...Bd6, offers to trade the f4-bishop. The quiet answer is 5. Bg3; this trainer jumps 5. Ne5 at once, with the d4-pawn behind the knight, then finishes the pyramid with Bd3, c3 and Nd2. The knight also blocks the d6-bishop’s path to f4, and together with the d3-bishop it points at the kingside where Black has just castled. The Greek Gift chapter takes the game on from there.

...c5 and ...Qb6 against b2

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 c5 3. e3 Nc6 4. c3 Qb6 5. Qb3 Qxb3 6. axb3 cxd4 7. exd4 Nf6 8. Nf3

One of the most testing replies hits d4 with ...c5 and puts the queen on b6, where it attacks the b2-pawn the bishop stopped guarding when it left c1. The trainer answers with 5. Qb3, which defends b2 and offers the queens. After 5...Qxb3 6. axb3 White’s rook gets the half-open a-file and the b3-pawn covers c4. Do not answer ...Qb6 with an automatic Nf3 here: the queen simply takes on b2.

An early ...Bf5 and the c4 lever

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 Bf5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. e3

When Black copies the bishop move, the c8-bishop is no longer guarding b7. The trainer stops building the pyramid and strikes with 3. c4, and the Queenside Squeeze chapter follows up with Qb3 against b7. Taking the pawn with 3...dxc4 gains nothing: 4. e3 and Bxc4 win it straight back, and trying to hold it with 4...b5 runs into 5. Qf3, which attacks the a8-rook down the long diagonal.

...Nh5: the bishop hunt

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 Nf6 3. e3 e6 4. Nf3 Nh5 5. Bg3 Nxg3 6. hxg3 Bd6 7. Bd3

Black’s knight crosses to h5 to chase the f4-bishop. The bishop steps back to g3, and if the knight takes it, 6. hxg3 recaptures toward the center and half-opens the h-file for the rook on h1. With h3 already played, the bishop would have h2 instead, which is why the model setup includes h3.

...Bd6 and the bishop trade

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 Nf6 3. e3 e6 4. Bd3 Bd6 5. Nf3 Bxf4 6. exf4 O-O 7. O-O c5 8. c3

Letting Black trade the dark-squared bishops does not break the London. After 6. exf4 the f4- and d4-pawns both cover e5, White gets the half-open e-file, and a knight that lands on e5 later is well supported. 5. Ne5, the main setup line above, is the way to stop the trade; this line shows that allowing it is fine too.

Against the King’s Indian ...g6

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. e3 Bg7 4. h3 O-O 5. Nf3 d6 6. Be2 Nbd7 7. O-O e5 8. dxe5 dxe5 9. Nxe5 Nxe5 10. Qxd8 Rxd8 11. Bxe5

Against ...g6 and ...Bg7 the setup barely changes: h3 comes early so the bishop has h2, and the light-squared bishop goes to e2 because ...g6 blocks its path to h7 from d3. Black’s usual plan is the ...e5 break, and played at once here it costs a pawn. After 8. dxe5 dxe5 the e5-pawn has two attackers, the f3-knight and the f4-bishop, and only one defender, because the g7-bishop is blocked by its own knight on f6.

The Greek Gift on h7

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 Nf6 3. e3 e6 4. Nf3 Bd6 5. Ne5 O-O 6. Nd2 c5 7. c3 Nc6 8. Bd3 Bxe5 9. dxe5 Nd7 10. Nf3 Qc7 11. Bxh7+ Kxh7 12. Ng5+ Kg6 13. Qc2+ f5 14. exf6+ Kxf6 15. Nh7+ Kf7 16. Bxc7

The setup aims the d3-bishop at h7, and this line shows the payoff. When Black takes on e5, the pawn recapture drives the f6-knight away, and h7 loses its best defender. 10...Qc7 attacks the e5-pawn, and 11. Bxh7+ Kxh7 12. Ng5+ punishes it at once. In the trainer’s line the king walks forward and the f4-bishop ends by taking the queen on c7. The Greek Gift chapter drills when the sacrifice works and when it does not.

Playing against the London System

If you face the London with Black, the Anti-London System course gives you a complete answer to 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4, built on an early ...c5, ...Nc6 and ...Qb6.

Plans

For White

Finish the setup before starting anything: Bf4, e3, Nf3, Bd3, Nbd2, c3 and castling, with h3 when the bishop needs a retreat. Then improve the two things every London middlegame turns on, the f4-bishop’s diagonal and the e5-square. With Black castled short and a knight on f6, put a knight on e5, keep the d3-bishop aimed at h7, and look for Ng5, Qh5 and the Bxh7+ sacrifice when the f6-knight is driven away. In some lines White castles long instead and pushes the kingside pawns. Against an early ...Bf5, switch to c4 and Qb3 against b7. The f4-bishop is your best piece: with h3 in, it can drop back to h2 when ...Nh5 comes after it, and if Black trades it on f4 anyway, recapture with the e-pawn and use the half-open e-file. Three pitfalls to watch: a loose b2-pawn against ...Qb6, a knight on d4 that ...e5 can fork together with the f4-bishop, and natural-looking bishop moves against the Englund Gambit.

For Black

Black’s main tries attack the setup before it is finished: ...c5 and ...Qb6 against b2, ...Bd6 or ...Nh5 to trade off the f4-bishop, and ...Bf5 to develop the light-squared bishop before ...e6 locks it in. Three traps to avoid. An early ...Bd6 before ...Nf6 allows Qg4, and taking on f4 then loses the g7-pawn. With a bishop on d6, a pawn on c5 and a white knight on e5, blocking Bb5+ with ...Bd7 loses a piece. And ...f6 with ...e5 opens the e8-h5 diagonal for Qh5+.

History

The London System takes its name from the strong London tournament of 1922, where the setup appeared in seven games. It was not new even then: James Mason had played 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 from the 1880s, which is why that move order is sometimes called the Mason Variation. For most of the twentieth century it saw little master play, and it was in the twenty-first that it became a favorite of club players. Top players took it up as well: Gata Kamsky, Levon Aronian and Magnus Carlsen have played it often, and Ding Liren used it to win game 6 of his 2023 World Championship match against Ian Nepomniachtchi.

Frequently asked questions

What is the London System in chess?: It is an opening for White built on a fixed setup: 1. d4, the dark-squared bishop out to f4 early, pawns on c3 and e3 beside d4, knights on f3 and d2, the other bishop on d3 and short castling. It usually starts 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4. Because White reaches much the same position against almost every defense, the London System takes far less memorization than openings built on forcing theory, and it has become very popular with club players.
How do you play the London System?: Play 1. d4, then 2. Bf4 against both 1...d5 and 1...Nf6, and build the setup: e3, Nf3, Bd3, Nbd2, c3, h3 when the bishop needs a retreat, and short castling. Bring the bishop out before e3, put the queen’s knight on d2 so the c-pawn can reach c3, and keep the e5-square in mind for your king’s knight. Three Black ideas need a prepared answer rather than the usual moves: ...c5 with ...Qb6 against b2 (the trainer plays Qb3), an early ...Bf5 (the trainer plays c4), and ...Bd6 or ...Nh5 aimed at the f4-bishop.
What are the main plans in the London System?: Once the setup is complete, most London middlegames turn on two things: the f4-bishop on the b8-h2 diagonal and the e5-square. The main attacking plan is Ne5 with the d3-bishop aimed at h7, and if Black’s f6-knight is driven away, the Bxh7+ Greek Gift sacrifice comes into play. In some lines White castles long and pushes the kingside pawns instead. Against an early ...Bf5 the plan moves to the queenside, with c4 and Qb3 against b7. And if Black trades the dark-squared bishops, recapturing on f4 with the e-pawn tightens White’s grip on e5.
What are the main traps in the London System?: The trainer drills several for White. After 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 e6 3. e3 Bd6, 4. Qg4 hits g7, and 4...Bxf4 5. Qxg7 wins a pawn. In the main line with ...Bd6 and a white knight on e5, ...c5 can be met by Bb5+, and the natural block ...Bd7 loses a piece after Nxd7. After 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 f6 3. e3 e5 4. dxe5 fxe5 5. Qh5+, blocking with 5...g6 runs into 6. Qxe5+, which forks the king and the h8-rook. And after 2...Bf5 3. c4 dxc4 4. e3, holding the pawn with 4...b5 runs into 5. Qf3, attacking the a8-rook. White has pitfalls too. An automatic Nf3 against ...Qb6 gives up the b2-pawn, and against the Englund Gambit, 1. d4 e5 2. dxe5 Nc6 3. Nf3 Qe7 4. Bf4 Qb4+ 5. Bd2 Qxb2, the natural-looking 6. Bc3 loses material to 6...Bb4, and 7. Qd2 even allows 7...Bxc3 8. Qxc3 Qc1#.
What is the Accelerated London System?: It is the London with the bishop out on move two, 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 or 1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4, rather than the older order with 2. Nf3 and 3. Bf4. In the ECO codes the accelerated order falls under D00 and A45 and the older one under D02, A46 and A48, and both usually reach the same setup. This trainer uses the accelerated order against both 1...d5 and 1...Nf6.
Is the London System good for beginners?: Yes. You play almost the same moves every game, so you reach a familiar, sound position quickly and can spend your study time on plans and tactics rather than long forcing lines. It holds up at the top level as well, so it is an opening you can keep as you improve. The one warning is that it is a setup, not autopilot: learn the answers to ...Qb6, an early ...Bf5 and the attempts to trade your f4-bishop.