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Chess has more than 1000 years of existence and the pieces got their modern day movements in 15th century Spain. But which is the oldest chess game of which we know the moves?

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The oldest recorded game with the modern rules for moves is this game played in 1475. Although it's not clear if castling and en passant were in force.

[FEN ""]
[Event "Valencia "]
[Date "1475"]
[White "Francesco di Castellvi"]
[Black "Narciso Vinyoles"]

1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 Qd8 4.Bc4 Nf6 5.Nf3 Bg4 6.h3 Bxf3 7.Qxf3 e6 8.Qxb7 Nbd7 9.Nb5 Rc8 10.Nxa7 Nb6 11.Nxc8 Nxc8 12.d4 Nd6 13.Bb5+ Nxb5 14.Qxb5+ Nd7 15.d5 exd5 16.Be3 Bd6 17.Rd1 Qf6 18.Rxd5 Qg6 19.Bf4 Bxf4 20.Qxd7+ Kf8 21.Qd8#

There is also this - http://www.chess2u.com/t8826-oldest-recorded-chess-game - game which is supposed to have been played some time in the 10th century with old move rules. So, no double first move for pawns, bishops moving like a knight (2 squares diagonally but jumping over the intervening square) and possibly other rules for queens for example.

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  • That's a shockingly well-played game.
    – Cleveland
    Oct 4, 2015 at 4:50
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    @Cleveland: I would rather say it's a pretty bad game. And what's more, it's clear that in the pre-modern rules time there where arabian players who were much, much stronger than this. Allegedly some where capable of playing three blindfold games simultaneously.
    – BlindKungFuMaster
    Oct 4, 2015 at 16:01
  • In the context of two people that know the rules of the game but have never played chess before? I think it's significantly better than one would expect.
    – Cleveland
    Oct 4, 2015 at 19:13
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    Where do you get the idea that they never played chess before?
    – BlindKungFuMaster
    Oct 5, 2015 at 12:45
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    Can you add a source for the dating? This score is the first in Oxford Encyclopedia of Chess Games, so it is early, but it is here dated as 14?? indicating that the confidence in the last two digits of the year is too low. The volume has a kind of subtitle (only on the cover and back, not on the title page), which says that it spans the period 1485-1866 -- and that may be where the year comes from (indirectly). The source OECG refers to is a MS by Murray in the Bodleian: "Collection of European Games".
    – user24765
    Nov 23, 2020 at 19:02

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