Max Euwe – Amsterdam, Netherlands
Posted by: 
dtrebilc
N 52° 21.751 E 004° 52.971
31U E 628206 N 5803027
Max Euwe was the only ever Dutch world chess champion, and the only ever amateur world chess champion, who later became president of the World Chess Federation. He was also an author who had over 70 chess books published.
Waymark Code: WMD9FH
Location: Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Date Posted: 12/09/2011
Views: 8
Max Euwe was born on May 20th 1901 and died on 26th November 1891. He studied mathematics at the University of Amsterdam and gained his doctorate in 1926.
It is said that he had a very logical approach to the game of chess and perhaps that was down to his mathematical background. Certainly one of his books was a mathematical proof that a proposed rule change to prevent infinite games would not work.
However he was also able to write easily understandable books for beginners and the former Soviet grandmaster Gennadi Sosonko used Euwe's Practical Chess Lessons (Practische Schaaklessen) as a textbook when teaching in the Leningrad House of Pioneers.
He remained an amateur player because of his commitment to bringing up a young family, but his winning the world chess title greatly increased the popularity of chess in the Netherlands.
His bust stands on a stone column in Max Euweplein and shows him contemplating chess moves with his hand on top of a black pawn supporting his head. His tie hanging down from his bust completes the outline of a white pawn to match the black one. The bust is slightly smaller than life size.
The sculptress was Jose Finjaut and it was unveiled on 7th May 2004. Her inspiration for the pose was a photo of him on a postage stamp in 2001, printed 20 years after his death. It showed him in a similar pose as the statue. There was a second postage stamp that showed the position of the chess pieces at the end of the last game when he became world champion. (
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The column has the following inscription.
MAX EUWE
1901 - 1981
WERELDKAMPIONE
SCHAKEN
1935 - 1937