Minor Pieces

Last time we left George Edward Wainwright at the time of the 1921 census, when, approaching the age of 60, he’d recently retired from his senior post with the now defunct Local Government Board and moved to his wife’s home village of Box, not far from Bath.

Chess in London for him was now over: no more City of London Championships. But, as always, he’d wasted no time in joining his nearest chess club, in the City of Bath.

The first record we have for him there was the previous December where he defeated the celebrated problemist Comins Mansfield on top board in a match against Bristol & Clifton. (Bristol’s Board 10, intriguingly, was  Agnes Augusta Talboys (née Snell), an artist famous for her paintings of Persian cats, sometimes playing chess.)

The 1921 British Championship Congress was held in Malvern, and it was here that George Edward Wainwright scored one of his best results, sharing third place with Reginald Pryce Michell, behind Fred Dewhirst Yates and Sir George Alan Thomas.

Here he is in play against Roland Henry Vaughan Scott.

Stockfish doesn’t agree that Wainwright should have won this game. Opening up the kingside left his own king the more exposed, and Scott found a rather unusual winning move.

Here’s the game. (Click here and paste the pgn to play through any game in this article.)

[Event “British CF-14 Championship Malvern”]
[Date “1921.08.15”]
[Round “7”]
[White “Wainwright, George Edward”]
[Black “Scott, Roland Henry”]
[Result “0-1”]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. Nf3 Nc6 5. c3 Nf6 6. Be2 Bf5 7. Bf4 h6 8. Nbd2 g5 9. Bg3 Bg7 10. Qb3 Qc8 11. O-O O-O 12. Ne5 e6 13. f4 g4 14. Rae1 h5 15. Qd1 Qc7 16. h3 gxh3 17. Bxh5 Nxh5 18. Qxh5 hxg2 19. Kxg2 f6 20. Nef3 Qf7 21. Qxf7+ Kxf7 22. Re3 Rh8 23. Nh4 Bg4 24. Ndf3 Ne7 25. Rfe1 Rh7 26. Nh2 Bf5 27. Nxf5 Nxf5 28. Rxe6 Rg8 29. Ng4 Bh8 0-1

He had some luck in a couple of other games. Sir George Thomas, better known as a steady positional player, gave up material but misplayed the attack, erring on move 20.

[Event “British CF-14 Championship Malvern”]
[Date “1921.08.11”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Thomas, George Alan”]
[Black “Wainwright, George Edward”]
[Result “0-1”]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Nc3 d6 7. d3 O-O 8. h3 Nd7 9. Be3 f5 10. exf5 Rxf5 11. Bb3+ Kh8 12. Ne4 Qe8 13. Nfg5 Nd8 14. f4 exf4 15. Bxf4 Bxg5 16. Nxg5 Rxf4 17. Rxf4 Qe3+ 18. Rf2 Qxg5 19. Qe2 Qe5 20. Qf3 Nf6 21. Re2 Qd4+ 22. Kh1 Bd7 23. c3 Qh4 24. Re4 Qh6 25. Rae1 Nc6 26. R4e2 Rf8 27. d4 Na5 28. Be6 Bxe6 29. Rxe6 Nc6 30. b4 Kg8 31. a4 Qh4 32. b5 axb5 33. axb5 Ne5 34. Qe2 Ng6 35. Qc4 d5 36. Qxc7 Ne4 37. Re3 Qf2 38. R3xe4 dxe4 39. Rxe4 Nf4 40. Rxf4 Qxf4 41. Qxb7 Qg3 42. Qd5+ Kh8 43. Qc4 Re8 0-1

Michell played a Maroczy Bind against Wainwright’s Sicilian Dragon, gained an overwhelming positional advantage but lost the thread, and, with the draw in hand, allowed transposition into a lost pawn ending.

[Event “British CF-14 Championship Malvern”]
[Date “1921.08.16”]
[Round “8”]
[White “Michell, Reginald Pryce”]
[Black “Wainwright, George Edward Sr”]
[Result “0-1”]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6 5. c4 Bg7 6. Be3 Nf6 7. Nc3 d6 8. Be2 Bd7 9. O-O O-O 10. f3 a6 11. Qd2 Nxd4 12. Bxd4 Bc6 13. b4 Ne8 14. a4 Nc7 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. a5 Bd7 17. Rfd1 Be6 18. e5 dxe5 19. Qe3 Qc8 20. Qxe5+ f6 21. Qc5 Kf7 22. Na4 Ne8 23. Rab1 Rb8 24. Nb6 Qxc5+ 25. bxc5 Nc7 26. Nd5 Rfc8 27. Nb6 Rd8 28. Rxd8 Rxd8 29. Rb2 Ke8 30. Kf2 Bc8 31. Nxc8 Rxc8 32. Rxb7 Ne6 33. Rb6 Nxc5 34. f4 Kd7 35. Ke3 Rc6 36. Bf3 Rd6 37. Be4 Rxb6 38. axb6 Nxe4 39. Kxe4 Kc6 40. c5 a5 41. g4 a4 42. Kd3 e5 43. g5 e4+ 0-1

There was no competition for the British Championship in 1922: the congress itself, in London, featured an international tournament (1st Capablanca, 2nd Alekhine) as its top section. Wainwright didn’t take part but may well have visited as a spectator.

He was back again at Southsea in 1923, where he scored a creditable 6/11 (no draws: remarkably there were only eight drawn games out of 66), finishing in 5th place. Sir George Thomas took the title for the first time, with Yates just behind in second place. Sir George also won the Men’s Singles in the All England Open Badminton Championship in the same year, a feat which will surely never be repeated.

Wainwright was snapped again by The Sphere, this time in a game he won against tournament tail-ender William Gooding. Unfortunately, the moves of this game are unavailable.

Against the Scottish solicitor William Gibson, he built up a slow kingside attack, concluding with a queen sacrifice.

[Event “British CF-16 Championship Southsea”]
[Date “1923.08.14”]
[Round “2”]
[White “Wainwright, George Edward”]
[Black “Gibson, William”]
[Result “1-0”]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5 Be6 9. c3 Be7 10. Re1 O-O 11. Be3 Qd7 12. Nbd2 Nc5 13. Bc2 Rad8 14. Bxc5 Bxc5 15. Nb3 Be7 16. a4 b4 17. Qd3 g6 18. Qxa6 Ra8 19. Qd3 Rfb8 20. Nfd4 Nd8 21. Nxe6 Nxe6 22. c4 d4 23. Rad1 c5 24. Nc1 Bf8 25. b3 Bg7 26. Qg3 Re8 27. Be4 Ra6 28. Nd3 Qe7 29. f4 Nf8 30. Bd5 Kh8 31. Rd2 Nd7 32. Rde2 Nf8 33. h4 Bh6 34. Qg4 Ne6 35. g3 Rg8 36. Rh2 Ng7 37. Kf2 Nf5 38. Qf3 Ne3 39. g4 Bf8 40. g5 Qd7 41. Rg1 Rg7 42. h5 Qc7 43. Bb7 Rb6 44. Be4 Qd7 45. Qh3 Qd8 46. Rgh1 gxh5 47. Qxh5 h6 48. Qxh6+ 1-0

Wainwright also sacrificed his queen against the Australian civil servant Charles Gilbert Steele. (Steele would meet a premature death the following year, falling off a railway station platform in front of an oncoming train.) The sacrifice, 34… Kf8, only turned a winning position into a level position, but he was later able to force resignation by sacrificing one of his rooks.

[Event “British CF-16 Championship Southsea”]
[Date “1923.08.13”]
[Round “1”]
[White “Steele, Charles Gilbert”]
[Black “Wainwright, George Edward”]
[Result “0-1”]

1. Nc3 e5 2. d4 exd4 3. Qxd4 Nc6 4. Qa4 Nf6 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e4 h6 7. Bh4 d6 8. O-O-O Bd7 9. Be2 O-O 10. f4 a6 11. Bxf6 Bxf6 12. Nd5 Re8 13. Bd3 b5 14. Qa3 Be6 15. Nxf6+ Qxf6 16. g3 Bg4 17. Re1 Nd4 18. h3 Bd7 19. c3 Ne6 20. Nf3 Nc5 21. Bc2 Bc6 22. e5 dxe5 23. fxe5 Qe7 24. Rhf1 a5 25. Kb1 Bd5 26. b3 a4 27. b4 Nb3 28. Be4 Bxe4+ 29. Rxe4 Na5 30. Rg4 Qd7 31. Nd4 Nc4 32. Qc1 Nxe5 33. Rxg7+ Kxg7 34. Nf5+ Qxf5+ 35. Rxf5 Nd3 36. Qd2 Rad8 37. Rf1 Rd6 38. c4 bxc4 39. Qc3+ Ne5 40. Re1 f6 41. Qc2 a3 42. Qa4 Rb8 43. Qxa3 Rdb6 44. Kc2 Rxb4 45. Kc3 c5 46. Qa7+ Kg6 47. Rxe5 fxe5 48. Qxc5 Kf5 49. Qf2+ Ke6 50. g4 R8b6 51. Qf5+ Kd5 52. h4 Rb1 53. Qf3+ Ke6 54. Qf5+ Kd5 55. Qf3+ Ke6 56. g5 R6b3+ 0-1

This time round he beat Roland Scott in a fluctuating game, essaying the English Opening, which was just starting to become popular.

[Event “British CF-16 Championship Southsea”]
[Date “1923.08.18”]
[Round “6”]
[White “Wainwright, George Edward Sr”]
[Black “Scott, Roland Henry”]
[Result “1-0”]

1. c4 f5 2. g3 e5 3. Bg2 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Nc3 c6 6. Nf3 d6 7. a3 Ng4 8. e3 O-O 9. h3 Nf6 10. d4 exd4 11. exd4 Qe8+ 12. Be3 Bb6 13. O-O Nh5 14. Qd3 f4 15. Bxf4 Nxf4 16. gxf4 Rxf4 17. Rae1 Qh5 18. Qe3 Rf8 19. Ne2 Qf7 20. Nd2 d5 21. cxd5 cxd5 22. Ng3 Nc6 23. Qg5 Rd8 24. Nf3 h6 25. Qh4 Bf5 26. Re3 Rd6 27. Qf4 Rf6 28. Ne5 Bc7 29. Bxd5 Qxd5 30. Nxf5 Raf8 31. Nxc6 Rg6+ 32. Rg3 Rxg3+ 33. fxg3 Qd7 34. Nxh6+ Kh7 35. Qe4+ Kxh6 36. Rxf8 bxc6 37. Rh8+ Kg5 38. h4+ 1-0

In 1924 a chess festival was held in Weston-Super-Mare, with the participation of future world champion Max Euwe (1st) from the Netherlands, the Paris-based Russian master Eugene Znosko-Borovsky (3rd) and eight English amateurs led by Sir George Thomas (2nd). George Edward Wainwright was invited to take part, but only managed a disappointing 1½/9. He lost his first six games, drawing with Cyril Duffield of Bristol in round 7 and finally managing a win against local player Captain Percivale David Bolland in the final round. (Capt Bolland was a retired and disabled army officer who had served in the Welch Regiment and would later find employment as a Laundry Manager.)

Here’s his final tournament game in which he faced the dashing Max Lange Attack, winning when his opponent blundered on move 34.

[Event “Weston Super Mare”]
[Date “1924.04.25”]
[Round “9”]
[White “Bolland, Percivale David”]
[Black “Wainwright, George Edward Sr”]
[Result “0-1”]

1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nf3 Nc6 5. O-O Bc5 6. e5 d5 7. exf6 dxc4 8. Re1+ Be6 9. Ng5 Qd5 10. Nc3 Qf5 11. Nce4 O-O-O 12. Nxc5 Qxc5 13. Rxe6 fxe6 14. Nxe6 Qe5 15. Nxd8 Kxd8 16. fxg7 Qxg7 17. Qh5 Qe5 18. Bg5+ Kc8 19. Qg4+ Kb8 20. Bf4 Qd5 21. Bxc7+ Ka8 22. Bg3 Rg8 23. Qf4 a6 24. Rd1 Re8 25. f3 Re2 26. Bf2 Rxc2 27. Bxd4 Nxd4 28. Rxd4 Qc5 29. Kf1 Ka7 30. Rd2 Rc1+ 31. Ke2 Rg1 32. Qg4 Qe5+ 33. Qe4 Rxg2+ 34. Ke1 Rg1+ 35. Kf2 Qxh2+ 0-1

Perhaps discouraged by this result, Wainwright decided to retire from tournament chess, although he continued playing club chess until Spring 1926. One of his last games, which I may look at elsewhere, was again against Comins Mansfield, where he lost a winning rook ending two pawns up.

In January 1933 his friend Charles Dealtry Locock (another important but forgotten figure in British chess whom you will meet in future Minor Pieces) wrote about him in a memoir in the British Chess Magazine.

In 1881 I went to the University College, Oxford, and finding that the hon. secretary of the ‘Varsity Chess Club was at that college I at once left a card on him. A few hours later came a knock on my door, and entered a man, one year my senior, with a round bespectacled face, who announced himself as G. E. Wainwright. We did not guess then what hundreds of games we should play together, nor how often the rosy-fingered Dawn would surprise us still playing. On this occasion we had a trial game and Wainwright defeated me with a King’s Gambit.

George Edward Wainwright died on 31 August that year at the age of 71, his death being registered in Keynsham, near Bristol, a place a whole generation grew up knowing how to spell.

Another friend – and opponent in City of London Championships, Philip Walsingham Sergeant (Edward Guthlac’s second cousin and notable chronicler of British chess) wrote an obituary for the October 1933 issue of British Chess Magazine.

Though he had dropped out of chess for some years – practically since he retired from Government service and went to live at Box, Wiltshire – the death of G. E. Wainwright came as a painful shock to his very numerous friends of the past, to whom his bright and mercurial temperament was still a pleasant memory. His achievements at chess are also still vivid in the mind though not, of all, since many of them go back well into the past.

Born in Yorkshire on November 2, 1861, G. E. Wainwright went up to University College, Oxford, in 1880, and in the Michaelmas Term of the following year he was hon. secretary of the O.U.Ch.C. (see an article by his friend C. D. Locock in our January number of the present year), while in 1882 he became president. He played five times for Oxford, a record which he shared with Locock, W. M. Gattie, the Rev. E. H. Kinder, and R. W. (later Sir Richard) Barnett; for in those days there was no such limitation as there is to-day with regard to playing for one’s University. He was 6th board in 1881 and 2nd board in 1882-5, scoring in all 4 wins, 2 draws, and one loss. After leaving Oxford he quickly made his mark in metropolitan chess, indeed in English chess generally. In 1889 he won the Newnes Challenge Cup, which was equivalent to the Amateur Championship. In later days he competed in the B.C.F. tournaments for the British Championship in 1905 (when he was 6th), 1906 (equal 3rd), 1907 (eq. 2nd), 1909 (eq. 6th), 1910 (eq. 4th), 1920 (8th), 1921 (eq. 3rd), and 1923 (5th).

At the City of London Chess Club he was always to the fore, and won the championship twice, in 1907 and, after a triple tie, in 1918.

He played in the Anglo-American cable matches five times, in 1899, 1907, 1908, 1909, and 1910, his highest board being 4th in 1909.

Wainwright will be vividly remembered by all his opponents of old for his remarkably rapid play. Yet the present writer remembers one occasion on which Wainwright took three-quarters of an hour over a single move against him – duly apologising afterwards, though the position was exceedingly difficult. Three-quarters of an hour over a whole game was more like his usual style! He was a great springer of ‘wild-cats’ on his adversaries; and his attacks, even when unsound, were very difficult to meet, inspired as they were by a strong personality, very rapid sight of the board, and a healthy confidence. In addition, he had studied the game deeply, beginning in his University days, if not sooner.

George Edward Wainwright was an important, but mostly forgotten figure in English chess, of master standard at his best, with a highly attractive style of play. Apart from this obituary, there’s little about what he was like as a person, but his vivacious attacks and speed of play were often mentioned. It’s clear he was a lifelong chess addict, and if Sergeant’s obituary is anything to go by, a splendid chap as well. We can certainly see traits of loyalty – to his career-long job in the Local Government Service, and to his family, from caring for his elderly mother to retiring to his wife’s home village.

It remains to look at what happened to his children.

George Edward junior was, as we’ve already seen, also a chess player, but at a lower level, and, like his father worked in local government – in Ilkley, where his father grew up.

In 1916 he married Jane Savile, who had previously been married briefly to a Polish waiter, an ‘illegal alien’ who had moved to London and committed various criminal offences. They moved to Liverpool and later, it seems down to Surrey, where he died in 1950.

Philip Francis Wainwright worked in the photography business, but served as a paymaster in the Royal Navy in the First World War. For some reason he changed his surname to Pictor-Wayne – Pictor being his mother’s surname. In the 1920s his business hit financial problems and he was declared bankrupt. He lived in London, married and had a son, but later returned to the Bath area where he died in 1969.

Constance Margaret Wainwright married a first cousin, Alan Newman Pictor, and had two daughters, the first born in Surbiton and the second, exotically, in Fiji. They moved to Bath, and, after the death of her husband, she retired to Wimbledon, where she died in 1982.

David had an eventful life. He served as an officer in the Royal Navy during World War One. In 1916 it was reported that he had been killed at the Battle of Jutland, but in fact he was a Prisoner of War. He later returned to duty and in 1919 was awarded the Albert Medal for gallantry in saving life at sea. On leaving the Royal Navy he joined the Palestine Police, where he married and had a son. Returning to England he took a job as a salesman, but then, in 1938, became an Observer in Czechoslovakia,  in which role he was commended by Lord Halifax.

In March 1939 he was to meet a sudden and tragic end. Returning to England, in the Naval Reserve and with global conflict again on the horizon, he went on a refresher course at Portland, Dorset, walked out of his hotel, and later his body was found in the sea off Chesil Beach. For further information on David Wainwright see here.

Come back soon for some more Minor Pieces featuring chess players from Twickenham, Richmond and who knows where else.

Sources:

ancestry.co.uk

findmypast.co.uk

chessgames.com

BritBase

MegaBase 2022

EdoChess

British Chess Magazine 1933

Various other websites linked above.