The London System is an opening system in chess where White opens with 1.d4 and develops the dark-squared bishop to f4, then supports the d4-pawn with pawns on e3 and c3. The other bishop is developed to d3 (or occasionally e2) and the knights typically to f3 and d2. This set-up often results in a closed game. The London System can be used against virtually any Black defence and thus comprises a smaller body of opening theory than many other openings. Although it has a reputation as a solid opening, the London System has faced criticism for its tedious nature and lack of dynamic play.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
The rapid development of the dark-squared bishop in the London System can be contrasted with the Colle System, in which the queen's bishop typically remains on c1 during the opening phase of the game.[7]
The British-American James Mason was the first master-level player to regularly employ the London System, including at the strong 1882 Vienna Tournament (in which he finished third) and later at tournaments at London (1883) and New York (1889). The opening did not catch on, and received limited outings in master play in subsequent decades. It did, however, appear with some regularity in the games of certain masters, including F.J. Lee, Joseph Henry Blackburne and Akiba Rubinstein.
The name London System derives from the reappearance of the opening on seven occasions in the very strong London tournament of 1922, including in games by José Raúl Capablanca, Alexander Alekhine and Akiba Rubinstein. After this tournament the opening remained rare in master practice, but the London set-up soon became the standard response for Black against the Réti Opening (this line being named the New York Variation, after its use in Réti–Capablanca during the New York 1924 tournament).
Although the London System remains rare in grandmaster tournaments, it has been played occasionally by players including Bent Larsen, Tony Miles, Teimour Radjabov, Vladimir Kramnik and Fabiano Caruana, and more frequently by players such as Gata Kamsky, Levon Aronian and Magnus Carlsen. During the 21st century the London System has become popular amongst club-level players due to its solid nature, clear plans and lack of aggressive responses by Black. One of the most famous games of the 21st century utilizing the London System was round 6 of the 2023 World Chess Championship between Ding Liren and Ian Nepomniachtchi, in which Ding used it to win with the white pieces.
White set-up
The London System consists of a set-up for White employing the following moves (which can be played in a variety of move orders): d4, Nf3, Bf4, e3, Bd3, Nbd2, c3. The move h3 is often also played, enabling the bishop on f4 to drop back to h2 if attacked, thus remaining on the same diagonal and continuing to influence e5.
Following the publication of the influential 2005 work Win with the London System by Sverre Johnsen and Vlatko Kovačević, it has become common for White to prefer to develop the queen's bishop to f4 on move 2 (rather than opting for 2.Nf3 and then 3.Bf4, as had previously been common). Johnsen and Kovačević note that, in the case of 2.Nf3, if play proceeds 2...c5 3.Bf4?!, then 3...cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nd7 "may already be better for Black".[8] Meanwhile, Kiril Georgiev notes in Fighting the London System that "The idea of delaying the [Nf3] development is to avoid the famous line [1.d4 d5] 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bf4 c5 4.e3 Nc6 5.c3 Qb6 6.Qb3 c4 7.Qc2 Bf5, when White should retreat [the queen] ingloriously to c1."[9]
Black responses
White's future plans will depend upon Black's choice of set-up. Black has a particularly wide range of possibilities in the early stages as White's London structure exerts little influence on Black's side of the board. Black may therefore develop freely. Common options include:
Queen's Gambit Declined-type defence: d5, e6, Nf6, c5, Nc6 (or d7), Bd6 (or e7), 0-0. Black stakes out some space on the queenside. The position will likely resemble a Slav Defence with colours reversed. White will typically post his king's knight on e5 and aim for a kingside attack.
Queen's Indian-type defence: Nf6, b6, Bb7, e6, d6, Be7, Nbd7. Black adopts a flexible hypermodern defence, preventing a knight incursion on e5, and then waits to see how White will proceed before deciding on the placement of the central pawns and on which side to castle.
King's Indian-type defence: Nf6, g6, Bg7, d6, 0-0. Black will typically aim for either ...e5 (after suitable preparation with Nbd7 and Re8) or ...c5 (in which case the game will resemble a Réti Opening with colours reversed). White may prefer to post the king's bishop on e2 rather than d3 in this line, as Black's fianchetto structure means that a bishop on d3 would have limited scope.
Other options for Black include mirroring White's play by also adopting the London System (d5, Bf5, e6, etc.), or playing the Hippopotamus Defence (g6, Bg7, b6, Bb7, d6, e6, Ne7, Nd7) in which case White will probably have little option but to play e3–e4, losing a tempo, and a knight on d2 may not be optimally placed. Additional options for Black include Slav-type structures (d5/c6), Grünfeld-type structures (Nf6/g6/Bg7/d5), reversed Torre Attack (d5/Nf6/Bg4), Chigorin-type play (d5/Nc6/Bg4), etc.
A popular response to the London System at higher levels of play is an early ...c5, allowing ...Qb6 (aiming at White's weak b2-pawn, which is no longer defended by a bishop on c1). This seeks to disrupt White's comfortable development system. The line 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 c5 3.e3 Qb6 was considered by Johnsen and Kovačević to be the most critical line.[10]
Rapport–Jobava System
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A sample line in the Rapport–Jobava London: 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 d5 3.e3 c5 4.Nc3 cxd4 5.exd4 Nc6 6.Qd2 Bf5 7.0-0-0
A modern development named after grandmasters Richárd Rapport and Baadur Jobava, this system still has considerable surprise value. It combines Bf4 with Nc3 (this knight would usually be developed to d2 in the standard London System) creating potential threats against Black's c7.
^Gallagher, Joe (1996). Beating the Anti-King's Indians. Batsford. pp. back cover, 149. ISBN978-0713480122. Some want to bore the pants off you with [...] the London System", "[...] a favourite amongst those who disregard opening theory or those who want to bore you out of your mind.
^Cox, John (2005). Dealing with d4 Deviations. Everyman Chess. p. 8. ISBN978-1857443998. If someone wants to play the London System, you have to recognise that the game's going to be pretty quiet for a long time.
^Sielecki, Christof (2021). Sielecki's Queen's Gambit Declined. Chessable.com. Due to [its] rather schematic approach, the London 'enjoys' the reputation of being a dull and unambitious opening: 'It's always the same, how boring!'
