Ladislav Prokeš

Ladislav Prokeš (7 June 1884 – 9 January 1966) was a Czech chess master and one of the most prolific composers of endgame studies in chess. He was born and died in Prague.

Prokeš was joint Czech Champion in 1921 While a strong tournament player, it is his chess compositions that gained him fame. In 1951 he published a collection of studies "Kniha šachových studií". His 1,244 endgame studies, as listed in Harold van der Heijden's database, rank fourth among all composers.

Prokeš maneuver

The Prokeš maneuver is a tactic in chess that enables a rook to draw against two advanced pawns in a chess endgame. Prokeš composed an endgame study in 1939 which illustrated the Prokeš maneuver for the first time. The solution begins: and Black threatens to promote a pawn, which would win. But White forces the draw with: 4. Rc4+! Kd3 5. Rd4+! Kxd4