Open games & French

French Defense

1.e4 e6

The French Defense starts with 1.e4 e6 and is catalogued under ECO C00, in the open games & french half of the book. The catalog indexes 212 lines inside it, grouped into 170 named variations, and the position after those moves has 10 playable continuations to walk from here.

Opening repertoire map

Root edges show how often each move is played around your Elo. Use the arrow on a position to reveal the next replies.

Current position
French Defense
Popularity by Elo
Share of Lichess blitz, rapid, and classical games that continued with each move.
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Current setup

Move ideas

  1. 1.e4

    Claims the center with a pawn and opens lines for the queen and king’s bishop.

    Idea: Build quick development and make early castling possible.

  2. 1…e6

    Prepares ...d5 to challenge White’s center with a supported pawn.

    Idea: Build a compact pawn chain, then attack its base with ...c5.

  3. 2.d4

    Advances to d4 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.

    Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.

  4. 2…d5

    Advances to d5 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.

    Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.

Book continuations

Waiting for Lichess game popularity.

10 moves
Nc3French Defense: Paulsen Variation85 named lines · French Defense: Marshall Gambit · French Defense: Winawer VariationDevelops the knight to c3, bringing it into the game.Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.Nd2French Defense: Tarrasch Variation22 named lines · French Defense: Tarrasch Variation, Open System · French Defense: Tarrasch Variation, Modern SystemDevelops the knight to d2, bringing it into the game.Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.e5French Defense: Advance Variation18 named lines · French Defense: Advance Variation, Main Line · French Defense: Advance Variation, Euwe VariationAdvances to e5 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.exd5French Defense: Exchange Variation3 named lines · French Defense: Exchange Variation, Bogoljubow Variation · French Defense: Exchange Variation, Monte Carlo VariationCaptures the pawn on d5 and changes the local pawn or piece balance.Idea: Open lines in the center and reshape the center for the next phase.c4French Defense: Diemer-Duhm Gambit2 named lines · French Defense: Diemer-Duhm Gambit AcceptedAdvances the c-pawn to gain queenside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.Nf3French Defense: Perseus Gambit2 named lines · French Defense: Carlson GambitDevelops the knight to f3, bringing it into the game.Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.Bd3French Defense: Schlechter Variation1 named lineDevelops the bishop to d3, bringing it into the game.Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.Be3French Defense: Alapin Gambit1 named lineDevelops the bishop to e3, bringing it into the game.Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.Nh3French Defense: Morphy Gambit1 named lineDevelops the knight to h3, bringing it into the game.Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.Qe2French Defense1 named line · French Defense: Hoffmann GambitRepositions the queen to e2, where it influences a new part of the board.Idea: Coordinate threats carefully while avoiding unnecessary tempi against the queen.

Named variations

Each line below is an indexed entry under French Defense. Open one to load it on the board and keep exploring from that position.

146 more named lines sit inside this family — the tree above walks all of them.

Openings from the same volume

ECO groups openings by the structures they lead to, so these families tend to share plans with the French Defense.