William Bone (* Friday 31.08.1810 -  † Monday 14.12.1874)

British chess player and chess composer of chess problems & endgame studies

The chess player William Bone composed also chess studies, direct mates and selfmates.

He wrote "One Hundred Original Positions" and was a friend of George Walker's.

Memories

William Bone as chess composer

"William Bone, along with the Rev. Horatio Bolton,  is considered to have been one of the two best early English chess problemists.

John Augustus Miles, a chess problemist (who knew them both and studied the art from Bone himself) and publisher of chess problem compilations, referred to them as "Ancient Masters"

because their styles, though not entirely similar, are of a classical, even primative, sort.

Both problemists were fond of extremely long direct mates and mates with special requirements.

Bolton, however, developed into a  more revolutionary and forward-looking composer while Bone remained true to his style.

Bone was one of those people who led a quiet, uneventful life and other than his amazing talent for creating chess problems, his most fascinating aspect is his heritage.

His grandfather, Henry Bone, had been a royal enamel, mostly in miniature, portrait painter for three British monarchs; William Bone's uncle, Robert Trewick Bone, was also an enamel painter who exhibited at the Royal Academy and who taught William Bone's father, Henry Pierce Bone, the art. Henry Pierce became the enamel painter for Queen Victoria.  Another of Henry Pierce Bone's brothers (he had three more, two were military men and one a lawyer) was named William Bone, but often called William Bone Senior or "the Elder" in contrast to his nephew (our  William Bone) who was called Junior or "the Younger." William Senior was also an enameler of some repute with many works in the Royal Trust.

    Henry Pierce Bone had 2 sons and 3 daughters.  Both sons, William Junior and Charles Richard, as well his youngest daugher, Louisa Frances, became enamelers.  Below is William Bone Junior's Royal Academy catalogue from the  "Journal of the Royal Institution of Cornwall," Volume 6 1878-1881"

William Bone as chess player and composer

Bone, who learned to play chess at age 14,  was also considered an excellent whist player.  Although he originally studied law, he turned to painting and chess composition.  His problems were published in collections such as  Alexandre's "Beauties of Chess" and Miles' "Chess Gems," as well as in periodicals such as "The Philidorian," "Le Palamède" and "The Chess Player’s Chronicle."  George Walker wrote a chess short story called  Vincenzio the Venetian for which Bone supplied four problems.

Others: 5 endgame studies composed by William Bone can be replayed on arves.org.