The last of our popular openings which start 1.e4 is the French Defense (1...e6).
It is considerably less popular than either 1...c5 or 1...e5, but considerably more so than any of the alternatives.
The French usually starts
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 as in the diagram.
Now White has four good moves.
- 3.Nc3 : Leads to two great families depending on whether Black responds 3...Bb4 or 3...Nf6.
- 3.Nd2 : Tarrasch Variation
- 3.e5 : Advance Variation
- 3.exd5 : Exchange Variation
For more about the diagrammed position, see
French Defense
in our Repertoire Recommendations.
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