The king can only move one square at a time, but in any direction. The king cannot move to a square where it can be captured. If the square is occupied by an opponent's piece the latter can be captured and will be removed from the board.
The king is easy to recognise: it is the tallest piece in your army and always has a cross on the top of its crown. The whole game of chess revolves around the struggle to corner and attack the king so that it is unable to escape – that’s called checkmate – and checkmate ends the game.
The king, therefore, is the most important piece on the board, and you should aim to keep it as secure as possible. The best policy is to surround your king with a defensive shield of pawns and pieces. If you leave the king without adequate protection it can easily come under a dangerous attack by the opposing army.
Be aware that the king, compared to most other pieces, has limited mobility, so cannot move out of danger very quickly.
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