Tree path 6 levels King's Pawn Game › King's Knight Opening › Philidor Defense › Philidor Defense › Exchange Variation › Philidor Defense: Boden Variation
C41

Philidor Defense: Boden Variation

Open in Lichess
Share: X Reddit Telegram Facebook
Play from here → Click pieces to play, or use ← / → arrows.

Overview

Philidor Defense: Boden Variation is a named branch in the Open Games group of chess theory, classified under ECO C41.

The Open Games group covers open games — classical 1.e4 e5 openings where both sides contest the centre directly with pawns.

It is reached after 8 plies of play, with the move sequence 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 exd4 4. Qxd4 Bd7.

In the opening tree, this line branches off from Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation, part of the broader King's Pawn Game system.

Use the board to walk through every move, check how the position has scored on Lichess, or take it head-to-head against Stockfish.

ECO code
C41
Group
Open Games (C)
Plies
8
Parent
Philidor Defense: Exchange Variation

This overview is generated automatically from the opening's metadata. Know this line well? Write a description — submissions are reviewed before publishing.

Statistics from Lichess

54,576 games · White 51.5% / Draw 4.9% / Black 43.6%

MovesGamesW / D / B
Nc321,877
Bc412,286
e55,545
Bg54,039
c43,374
Bf41,338
Be31,216
Bd31,178

Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 01:51:16

Write a description

Markdown supported (headings ###, bold, lists, links). Submissions are reviewed before publishing.