Passed pawn promotion with active king

By · · 2 min read · Updated May 8, 2026

This is a White-to-move Pawn endings endgame study. With best play, the result is white wins; the solution runs 10 half-moves.

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Passed pawn promotion with active king is a Pawn endings endgame study from the Climbchess curated set of 80 positions. An advanced passed pawn supported by an active king will promote despite the opponent's defensive tries. Centralize your king to support the pawn's advance.

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Position: White to move. Result with best play: white wins. Solution length: 10 half-moves.

FEN: 8/4P1K1/8/8/8/1p6/8/1k6 w - - 0 1

Solving guide (move by move)

Show step-by-step solution

Try the position yourself first — endgame technique compounds when you struggle through the calculation before peeking.

  1. White: g7f6
  2. Black: b1c2
  3. White: e7e8q
  4. Black: c2d2
  5. White: e8e4
  6. Black: d2c3
  7. White: e4f3
  8. Black: c3c2
  9. White: f3e2
  10. Black: c2c3

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About Pawn endings

Opposition, key squares, triangulation, breakthrough.

Related endgames

Underlying chess concepts

Endgame technique reduces to a small number of recurring patterns: opposition, key squares, zugzwang, fortress, breakthrough. Climbchess catalogues 4,505 interpretable patterns extracted from Leela Chess Zero via sparse autoencoders. Browse the methodology or jump straight into the trainer to attempt this exact position interactively.

Frequently asked

Is this position a win, draw or loss?

With best play: white wins. White moves first.

What is the key idea?

An advanced passed pawn supported by an active king will promote despite the opponent's defensive tries. Centralize your king to support the pawn's advance.

How long is the solution?

10 half-moves (5 full moves) of forced or near-forced play.

Where can I practise it?

Open the Climbchess trainer using the deep-link button — the position loads pre-set so you can play it out against the engine.