The revival of France after the Franco-Prussian War

Franco-Prussian War

The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...

 was demonstrated by a world exhibition. Paris was a city of light for the first time. A great chess tournament took place in the exhibition hall from 17 June to 31 July 1878. The participation of George Henry Mackenzie

George Henry Mackenzie

George Henry Mackenzie was a Scottish–American chess master....

 and James Mason

James Mason (chess player)

James Mason was a famous chess player and writer. He was born in Kilkenny in Ireland. His original name is unknown: he was adopted as a child and only took the name James Mason when he and his family moved to the United States in 1861...

 made it the first intercontinental tournament in Europe. Eleven double rounds were played. Wilhelm Steinitz

Wilhelm Steinitz

Wilhelm Steinitz was an Austrian and then American chess player and the first undisputed world chess champion from 1886 to 1894. From the 1870s onwards, commentators have debated whether Steinitz was effectively the champion earlier...

 was present as reporter for The Field.

The event was won by Szymon Winawer

Szymon Winawer

Szymon Abramowicz Winawer , born in Warsaw, Poland, was a leading chess player who won the German Chess Championship in 1883...

 and Johannes Hermann Zukertort, who decided to share the first prize after they each won a play-off game. They drew twice, so another play-off was necessary. Zukertort won both games and gained the first prize. Mackenzie defeated Henry Edward Bird twice in the struggle for the fourth place.

Winners of the prizes were: Zukertort (1000 Frans + two Sèvres vases), Winawer (500 F + one vase), Joseph Henry Blackburne

Joseph Henry Blackburne

Joseph Henry Blackburne , nicknamed "The Black Death", dominated British chess during the latter part of the 19th century. He learned the game at the relatively late age of 18 but quickly became a strong player and went on to develop a professional chess career that spanned over 50 years...

 (1500 F), Mackenzie (1000 F), Bird (500 F), and the ill Adolf Anderssen

Adolf Anderssen

Karl Ernst Adolf Anderssen was a German chess master. He is considered to have been the world's leading chess player in the 1850s and 1860s...

 (200 F). Zukertort’s vases were priced at 5800 Francs. He needed cash. It took three days until he could sell them much below the estimated value.

The results and standings:

#	Player	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Total
1	/  Poland	x	1 0	½ ½	0 ½	1 1	½ 1	0 1	1 1	½ 1	1 1	1 1	1 1	16.5
2	/  Poland	0 1	x	1 0	½ 0	1 1	1 ½	½ ½	1 1	1 1	½ 1	1 1	1 1	16.5
3	/  Kingdom of England	½ ½	0 1	x	0 1	1 0	0 0	1 ½	1 ½	1 1	1 ½	1 1	1 1	14.5
4	/  Kingdom of Scotland	1 ½	½ 1	1 0	x	0 1	0 0	0 1	½ 0	0 1	1 1	1 1	1 ½	13.0
5	/  Kingdom of England	0 0	0 0	0 1	1 0	x	1 1	1 0	1 0	0 1	1 1	1 1	1 1	13.0
6	/   Prussian Silesia	½ 0	0 ½	1 1	1 1	0 0	x	1 0	0 ½	1 1	1 0	1 0	1 1	12.5
7	/ Czech Silesia Czech Silesia Czech Silesia is an unofficial name of one of the three Czech lands and a section of the Silesian historical region. It is located in the north-east of the Czech Republic, predominantly in the Moravian-Silesian Region, with a section in the northern Olomouc Region...	1 0	½ ½	0 ½	1 0	0 1	0 1	x	½ ½	0 1	½ ½	1 1	1 0	11.5
8	/  Poland	0 0	0 0	0 ½	½ 1	0 1	1 ½	½ ½	x	0 1	1 0	1 1	1 1	11.5
9		½ 0	0 0	0 0	1 0	1 0	0 0	1 0	1 0	x	0 1	1 0	1 1	8.5
10	/  Republic of Ireland	0 0	½ 0	0 ½	0 0	0 0	0 1	½ ½	0 1	1 0	x	1 1	1 ½	8.5
11	/  Kingdom of England	0 0	0 0	0 0	0 0	0 0	0 1	0 0	0 0	0 1	0 0	x	1 ½	3.5
12	/  Austria	0 0	0 0	0 0	0 ½	0 0	0 0	0 1	0 0	0 0	0 ½	0 ½	x	2.5