Savielly Tartakower (also known as Xavier or Ksawery Tartakower, less often Tartacover or Tartakover; 21 February 1887 – 4 February 1956) was a chess player who was awarded the title of International Grandmaster in its inaugural year, 1950. He was also a chess journalist and author during the 1920s and 1930s, and was noted for his many witticisms.
He was Austro-Hungarian by birth, later becoming first a Polish and later a naturalised French citizen.
During World War II, Tartakower joined the French Resistance under the name "Lieutenant Cartier".
Tartakower was born on 9 (21) February 1887 in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, to Austrian citizens of Jewish origin and circumcised on February 16 (28). His parents were killed in 1911 during a break-in in their house in Rostov-on-Don, where his father, a relatively wealthy businessman, owned a textile factory (or, according to some sources, a series of stores).
Tartakower stayed mainly in Austria. He graduated from the law faculties of universities in Geneva and Vienna. He spoke German and French. During his studies he became interested in chess and started attending chess meetings in various cafés for chess players in Vienna. He met many notable masters of the time, among them Carl Schlechter, Géza Maróczy (against whom he played what was probably his most famous brilliancy), Milan Vidmar, and Richard Réti. His first achievement was first place in a tournament in Nuremberg in 1906. Three years later he achieved second place in the tournament in Vienna, losing only to Réti.
During World War I Tartakower was drafted into the Austro-Hungarian army and served as a staff officer on various posts. He went to the Russian front with the Viennese infantry house-regiment.
After the war he emigrated to France, and settled in Paris. Although Tartakower did not speak Polish, after Poland regained its independence in 1918 he accepted Polish citizenship and became one of the country's most prominent honorary ambassadors. He was the captain and trainer of the Polish chess team in six international tournaments, winning a gold medal for Poland at the Hamburg Olympiad in 1930.
In France, Tartakower decided to become a professional chess player. Alongside other grandmasters like the Danish Aron Nimzowitsch and Czechoslovak Richard Réti, he was a leading figure in hypermodernism and was not afraid to play so-called “irregular” openings, such as the Dutch Defense.
He also started cooperating with various chess magazines, and wrote several books and brochures on chess. The most famous of these, Die Hypermoderne Schachpartie (The Hypermodern Chess Game) was published in 1924 and has been issued in almost 100 editions since. Tartakower took part in many of the most important chess tournaments of his day. In 1927 and 1928 he won two tournaments in Hastings and shared first place with Aron Nimzowitsch in London. On the latter occasion, he defeated such notable players as Frank Marshall, Milan Vidmar, and Efim Bogoljubov. In 1930 he won the Liège tournament, beating Mir Sultan Khan by two points. Further down the list were, among others, Akiba Rubinstein, Nimzowitsch, and Marshall.
Tartakower won the Polish Chess Championship twice, at Warsaw 1935 and Jurata 1937. In the 1930s he represented Poland in six Chess Olympiads, and France in 1950, winning three individual medals (gold in 1931 and bronze in 1933 and 1935), as well as five team medals (gold in 1930, two silver in 1931 and 1939, and two bronze in 1935 and 1937).
In 1930, at second board at the 3rd Chess Olympiad in Hamburg (+9−1=6);
In 1931, at second board at the 4th Chess Olympiad in Prague (+10−1=7);
In 1933, at first board at the 5th Chess Olympiad in Folkestone (+6−2=6);
In 1935, at first board at the 6th Chess Olympiad in Warsaw (+6−0=11);
In 1937, at first board at the 7th Chess Olympiad in Stockholm (+1−2=10);
In 1939, at first board at the 8th Chess Olympiad in Buenos Aires (+7−3=7);
In 1950, at first board at the 9th Chess Olympiad in Dubrovnik (+5−5=5).
In 1935 he was one of the main organizers of the Chess Olympiad in Warsaw.