Caissa Codex
D69

Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Classical Variation 14. Nxe5 Qxe5

Chess diagram: Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Classical Variation after 14…Qxe5

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Statistics from Lichess

6,255 games: White 41.9% / Draw 14.1% / Black 44.0%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
2,8032,803
969969
591591
464464
269269
245245
189189
153153

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.05 The position is about equal

Best play: 15. f4 Qf6 16. f5 b5 17. Be2 Rd8 18. Qc1 Rd6 19. Bxb5 cxb5

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

Overview

Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Classical Variation (ECO D69, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a declined gambit in the Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Classical Variation, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. e3 O-O 6. Nf3 Nbd7 7. Rc1 c6 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 Nd5 10. Bxe7 Qxe7 11. O-O Nxc3 12. Rxc3 e5 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Qxe5 (14 moves).

In 6,255 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 41.9%, Black 44.0% and 14.1% were drawn. White's most played move here is 15. f4, in 45% of those games.

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How to answer 14…Qxe5

15. Qb3 scores best for White: 53.4%, with White winning 47.4% and Black 40.6% of 969 games. The most played, 15. f4, scores 52.1% in 2,803 games, and 15. Qf3 scores lowest: 40.3%. Stockfish's first choice is 15. f4.

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. “Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defense, Classical Variation (D69)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-orthodox-defense-classical-variation-4

https://chesscodex.org/openings/queens-gambit-declined-orthodox-defense-classical-variation-4