Chess middlegame

abcdefgh
8
a8 black rook
d8 black queen
h8 black king
a7 black pawn
b7 black knight
e7 black bishop
f7 black pawn
g7 black rook
h7 black pawn
e6 black pawn
f6 white knight
g6 black pawn
c5 black pawn
e5 white pawn
f5 black bishop
g5 white queen
d4 black pawn
f4 white pawn
f3 white knight
g3 white rook
a2 white pawn
b2 white pawn
c2 white pawn
g2 white pawn
h2 white pawn
c1 white bishop
f1 white rook
g1 white king
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Middlegame position from the game Joseph BlackburneSiegbert Tarrasch, Breslau, 1889, after 26.Qg5. Black played 26...Nd6.

The middlegame is the portion of a chess game between the opening and the endgame. It is generally considered to begin when each player has completed the development of all or most of their pieces and brought their king to relative safety, and it is generally considered to end when only a few pieces remain on the board. However, there is no clear line between the opening and middlegame or between the middlegame and endgame. At master level, the opening analysis may go well into the middlegame; likewise, the middlegame blends into the endgame.

Theory on the middlegame is less developed than the opening or endgames. Since middlegame positions are unique from game to game, memorization of theoretical variations is not possible as it is in the opening. Likewise, there are usually too many pieces on the board for theoretical positions to be completely analyzed as can be done in the simpler endgames.