--- title: "Royal fork in chess" url: "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/royal-fork.md" canonical_url: "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/royal-fork" last_updated: "2026-11-07" type: "reference" summary: "A royal fork is a fork that attacks the enemy king and queen at the same time, most often with a knight, so the king must move and the queen is lost." related: ["https://georgelichess.com/glossary/fork.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/knight-fork.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pawn-fork.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/double-attack.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary/category/tactics.md", "https://georgelichess.com/glossary.md"] --- # Royal fork in chess > **For AI agents:** the complete index of GeorgeLiChess pages is [llms.txt](https://georgelichess.com/llms.txt). Every page is also served as markdown at its URL plus .md. A royal fork is a fork that attacks the enemy king and queen at the same time, most often with a knight, so the king must move and the queen is lost. A royal fork is a fork that attacks the enemy king and queen at the same time, most often with a knight, so the king must move and the queen is lost. The word royal describes the targets. A royal fork hits the king and the queen together. Because the king is attacked, the opponent has to respond to the check right away, and no other move is allowed. The queen is then captured on the next turn, and it is often defended only by the king or not at all. A [knight](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/knight.md) is the usual forking piece, because a knight check cannot be blocked and a knight can land on a [square](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/square.md) from which it hits both targets while neither of them can take it. A pawn can also do it, and a queen or [bishop](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/bishop.md) can as well when the lines line up. The same idea works with a rook instead of the queen, but then it is simply a fork with check. To find royal forks, look at every checking move you have. For each one, ask what else the checking piece would attack from its new square. A queen that stands a knight's move away from a square that also checks the king is the usual warning sign. To defend, avoid placing your king and queen where one forking square attacks both, and look for those squares before your opponent does. In the diagram White plays Ne7+. The knight checks the king on g8 and attacks the queen on c6. The king moves, and White takes the queen with Nxc6. Also called: queen and king fork, family fork. ## Example position White to move plays Ne7+. The knight checks the king on g8 and attacks the queen on c6, so the king must move and White wins the queen with Nxc6. Position (FEN): `6k1/8/2q5/5N2/8/8/8/6K1 w - - 0 1` Also worth reading is [Fork](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/fork.md). A fork is a move that leaves one of your pieces threatening two enemy pieces together. A neighboring idea is [Pawn fork](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pawn-fork.md). A pawn fork is a pawn move that attacks two enemy pieces at once, one on each of the two diagonal squares ahead of the pawn, so only one of them can escape. Compare it with [Scholar's mate](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/scholars-mate.md). Scholar's mate is a four-move checkmate on f7: White's queen and bishop both aim at that square, where only the king defends, and Qxf7 ends the game when Black overlooks it. To see how often "Royal fork" or a pattern like it decides your own games, book a [first lesson](https://georgelichess.com/book/first-lesson.md): George Li reviews your games and writes a study plan around what he finds. ## Related terms - [Fork](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/fork.md) - [Knight fork](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/knight-fork.md) - [Pawn fork](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pawn-fork.md) - [Double attack](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/double-attack.md) ## Guides that go further - [How to choose a chess coach](https://georgelichess.com/how-to-choose-a-chess-coach.md): What to decide first, the questions to ask, what a first lesson should show and the red flags to avoid. - [How much does chess coaching cost?](https://georgelichess.com/chess-coaching-cost.md): Published rates for private, group and subscription chess coaching, with the source and the date of each. - [The first lesson](https://georgelichess.com/book/first-lesson.md): A game review, a read on your level and a written study plan from George Li. [Book your first lesson](https://georgelichess.com/book.md) and George Li reviews your games and builds a study plan around them. Questions about lessons: write to hello@georgelichess.com. ## Related - [Fork in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/fork.md) - [Knight fork in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/knight-fork.md) - [Pawn fork in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/pawn-fork.md) - [Double attack in chess](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/double-attack.md) - [Chess terms: Tactics and combinations](https://georgelichess.com/glossary/category/tactics.md) - [Chess terms glossary: plain definitions](https://georgelichess.com/glossary.md)