page_title: Wilhelm Steinitz
section_title: Assessment
hierarchical_section_title: Wilhelm Steinitz / Assessment
caption_attribution_description: English: Plaque to Wilhelm Steinitz in Prague's Josefov district Čeština: Pamětní deska na místě rodného domu Wilhelma Steinitze v Široké ulici v Praze, dnes Filozofická fakulta UK; autor Vladimír Oppl, deska odhalena prezidentem Klausem 30.&#160;6. 2004 Deutsch: Gedenktafel am damaligen Eingang des Geburtshauses von Wilhelm Steinitz auf der Široká ulice in Prag (heute die Philosophische Fakultät der Karlsuniversität)
context_page_description: Wilhelm Steinitz was an Austrian and later American chess master, and the first official World Chess Champion, from 1886 to 1894. He was also a highly influential writer and chess theoretician.
  When discussing chess history from the 1850s onwards, commentators have debated whether Steinitz could be effectively considered the champion from an earlier time, perhaps as early as 1866. Steinitz lost his title to Emanuel Lasker in 1894, and lost a rematch in 1896–97.
  Statistical rating systems give Steinitz a rather low ranking among world champions, mainly because he took several long breaks from competitive play. However, an analysis based on one of these rating systems shows that he was one of the most dominant players in the history of the game. Steinitz was unbeaten in match play for 32 years, from 1862 to 1894.
  Although Steinitz became "world number one" by winning in the all-out attacking style that was common in the 1860s, he unveiled in 1873 a new positional style of play, and demonstrated that it was superior to the previous style.
context_section_description: The book of the Hastings 1895 chess tournament, written collectively by the players, described Steinitz as follows:
  Mr. Steinitz stands high as a theoretician and as a writer; he has a powerful pen, and when he chooses can use expressive English. He evidently strives to be fair to friends and foes alike, but appears sometimes to fail to see that after all he is much like many others in this respect. Possessed of a fine intellect, and extremely fond of the game, he is apt to lose sight of all other considerations, people and business alike. Chess is his very life and soul, the one thing for which he lives.
caption: Plaque in honor of Wilhelm Steinitz, in Prague's Josefov district
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