apr 1, 1851 - London 1851 chess tournament (1st international chess tournament)

Description:

The first international chess tournament

Adolf Anderssen of Germany won the sixteen-player tournament, earning him the status of the best player in the world.

Some of the main organizers of the tournament were Bledow (who had passed away by the time the final proposals could be arranged), von der Lasa, Kennedy and Staunton. They wanted a congress of competitive chess players at the start of the London World's Fair that could serve as an international and recurring chess meeting for the best players in Europe and the rest of the world. The tournament started in May of that year and proceeded to standardize issues such as consistent time-controls, rules and notation in a knock-out style format.