Caissa Codex
C17

French Defense: Winawer Variation, Retreat Variation, Armenian Line

Chess diagram: French Defense: Winawer Variation, Retreat Variation, Armenian Line after 6…cxd4

Type a move and press Enter: e4, Nf3, O-O, or from and to squares like g1f3 (e7e8q to promote). The board is also played with the mouse.

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Statistics from Lichess

44,495 games: White 44.1% / Draw 6.4% / Black 49.5%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
30,65531K
5,3515,351
4,4854,485
3,6403,640
168168
5757
5252
3535

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 8, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.61 White is slightly better

Best play: 7. Nb5 Bc7 8. f4 Bd7 9. Nxc7+ Qxc7 10. Bb2 a6 11. Nf3 Ne7

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

French Defense: Winawer Variation, Retreat Variation, Armenian Line (ECO C17, Open Games) is a variation of the French Defense: Winawer Variation, Retreat Variation, reached after 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Ba5 6. b4 cxd4 (6 moves).

In 44,495 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 44.1%, Black 49.5% and 6.4% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. Nb5, in 69% of those games.

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How to play against the French Defense: Winawer Variation, Retreat Variation, Armenian Line

7. Qg4 scores best for White: 54.8%, with White winning 52.1% and Black 42.4% of 5,351 games. The most played, 7. Nb5, scores 46.4% in 31K games, and 7. Qxd4 scores lowest: 44.9%. Stockfish's first choice is 7. Nb5.

Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “French Defense: Winawer Variation, Retreat Variation, Armenian Line (C17)”. Lichess data as of 8 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/french-defense-winawer-variation-retreat-variation-armenian-line

https://chesscodex.org/openings/french-defense-winawer-variation-retreat-variation-armenian-line