How the queen moves
The queen moves like a rook or a bishop, choosing one of the eight straight directions and travelling as far as she likes along it. She cannot jump and she cannot combine directions in one move, so no L-shaped knight moves.
Each side starts with one queen, on the square of her own colour: the white queen on d1, a light square, and the black queen on d8, a dark square.
How the queen captures
The queen captures the first enemy piece along any of her lines by moving onto its square. Her reach makes her ideal for double attacks, threatening two things at once.
How to use your queen well
Because she is so valuable, the queen is easy to chase. Bringing her out early lets your opponent develop pieces with tempo by attacking her. Develop knights and bishops first and bring the queen out once the position is ready for her.
The queen shines in attacks on the king and in endgames with open boards, where she can check from long distances. Combined with a knight or a bishop near the enemy king, she creates mating threats that are hard to parry.
Common mistakes
- Bringing the queen out too early and losing time as she is chased around.
- Losing the queen to a knight fork or a discovered attack because she was left on an exposed square.
- Trading the queen for less than her value, such as one rook and a pawn, without good reason.
Questions about the queen
Can the queen move like a knight?
No. The queen moves along ranks, files and diagonals only. The knight's L-shaped jump is unique to the knight.
Can you have two queens?
Yes. When a pawn promotes, you may choose a queen even if your original queen is still on the board.
Where does the queen start?
On the d-file, on her own colour: d1 for White and d8 for Black.
Practise every piece on a live board in the rules of chess, and read more about promotion.