If you have ever played a game of chess online and suddenly had your pawn captured by a piece that landed behind it, you might have thought your opponent was cheating. What you experienced was en passant (French for "in passing").

En passant is a special pawn capture rule that often confuses beginners. Once you understand the history and the logic behind it, however, it becomes a simple and powerful tool in your chess arsenal.

Why Does En Passant Exist?

Centuries ago, pawns could only move one square forward on their first move. To speed up the game, the rules were changed to allow pawns to move two squares on their initial turn.

However, this created a loophole: a pawn could sprint past an enemy pawn on an adjacent file, avoiding a confrontation. To prevent this, the en passant rule was introduced. It ensures that a pawn cannot use its double-step move to escape capture by an opposing pawn.

How En Passant Works

En passant can only happen when a pawn moves two squares forward and lands directly next to an opponent's pawn. The opponent has the option to capture the moving pawn as if it had only moved one square.

Here is the step-by-step process:

  1. The Setup: Your pawn must be advanced to the 5th rank (if you are White) or the 4th rank (if you are Black).
  2. The Trigger: Your opponent moves an adjacent pawn two squares forward, landing it directly next to yours.
  3. The Capture: You capture the enemy pawn by moving your pawn diagonally one square behind it. The enemy pawn is removed from the board.

For example, if your white pawn is on d5 and Black plays 1... e5, you can capture their pawn by moving your pawn to e6.

1. d4 Nf6
2. d5 e5
3. dxe6 (e.p.)

The Crucial Rule: Do It Immediately

There is one very strict condition to en passant: you must do it on the very next move.

If your opponent moves their pawn two squares, and you decide to play another move elsewhere on the board, you lose the right to capture en passant for that specific pawn. It is a "use it or lose it" rule.

Test the Rule

En passant is fully supported in online play, so you never have to worry about missing it. Start a game on LocalChess, advance your pawns, and watch how this special capture can open up the board for tactical opportunities!