The Defense
Videos
The Defense is the third novel written by Vladimir Nabokov after he had emigrated to Berlin. It was first published in Russian in 1930 and later in English in 1964.
First edition (Russian)
Curt von Bardeleben
Videos
Curt Carl Alfred von Bardeleben was a German chess master, journalist, and member of the German nobility.
The Defense
…Turati: The suave Italian grandmaster of chess. Luzhin has a nervous breakdown midway through the game with Turati. The character of Luzhin is based on Curt von Bardeleben, a chess master Nabokov knew personally. Bardeleben ended his life by jumping out of a window. Nabokov said of this novel: "Of all my Russian books…
Bardeleben