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I learned recently, from Václav Kotěšovec's useful website, about the death of veteran French chess problemist Jacques Savournin. I never met him and know nothing of him other than his published chess problems, so will limit myself to presenting two of his creations, selected from among the 527 listed in WinChloe. He was a specialist in the two-mover, so here is one of his orthodox ones followed by one of his unorthodox ones.

At the age of 81, Savournin won 4th Prize in the prestigious German chess problem magazine Die Schwalbe, with this rendering of the Hannelius Theme.

Jacques Savournin

4th Prize, Die Schwalbe, 2011

1.Sc3?     (2.Rc4# A)

1...Qxc3    2.Qxc3#
1...Se5! a

1.e5?      (2.Rd5# B)

1...Qxd4    2.exd4#
1...Qd1     2.Qc3#
1...Sf6! b

1.Qh4!     (2.Qe7#)

1...Sf6 b   2.Rc4# A
1...Se5 a   2.Rd5# B
1...Qxd4+   2.exd4#
1...Sb8,Sf8 2.Qh5#

The Hannelius theme – which is a pattern of threats, tries, refutations and mates – is noted by the red letters in the solution above. The solver will want to see what happens when the wRd4 is unpinned by Black and indeed, 1...Se5 2.Rd5# and 1...Sf6 2.Rc4# are set in the diagram position. The key is the only way to force both black moves.

The next problem features grasshoppers. If you are unfamiliar with them, please check out their definition at my glossary. It is in the nature of the Grasshopper's movement that it can be immobilised by the removal of the hurdle over which it has just jumped. Our next problem illustrates this idea intensively.

Jacques Savournin

3rd Prize, diagrammes, 1978 (v)

1.Rc4!  ()

1...Gxd6 2.Sdc3#
1...Gb6  2.G5c3#
1...Gb4  2.Rcc3#
1...Gxd2 2.Rdc3#
1...Gf2  2.Gec3#
1...Gf4  2.Sec3#
1...Ga1+ 2.Gac3#
1...Gh8  2.Be5#

The black king can't move, but neither can the black grasshopper, it being pinned. If it were to move away, then the black king would be in check by the white grasshopper at g7 over the white rook at c3. Naturally then, the key 1.Rc4! unpins the black grasshopper. In six variations that grasshopper jumps over a white man, which then moves to mate Black, in the process removing the hurdle over which the black grasshopper would otherwise have switched back.

Another artist has left the chessboard.