Schachdorf Ströbeck

Schachdorf Ströbeck is a village in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, which since 1 January 2010 is part of the town of Halberstadt in the Harz district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Located about 8km west of the city centre, the Schachdorf ("chess village") is known for its long historic connection with chess.HistoryThe first mention of Strebechi dates back to 995, when King Otto III of Germany dedicated the estate in the Eastphalian Harzgau to his sister Abbess Adelaide of Quedlinburg. In 1004 his successor King Henry II granted it to Drübeck Abbey. Ströbeck was a fief of the Bishopric of Halberstadt, later held by the comital House of Regenstein, from 1343 by the Counts of Wernigerode.ChessThe main activity for which the village is known, occurred possibly in 1011. According to legend, Bishop Arnulf of Halberstadt had imprisoned Gunzelin of Kuckenburg, the deposed Margrave of Meissen, in the Wartturm, a tower in Ströbeck, and ordered the local farmers to guard him. Due to the boredom in his prison, Gunzelin created a chess set and taught his guards the game.