• Francois-Andre Danican Philidor (1726 - 1795) was a French-born chess master and composer
• He is widely regarded as one of the greatest chess players of all time
• Philidor was the chess champion of Europe for over 30 years
• He was the first player to popularize the "Philidor Defense"
• He wrote the first book on modern chess strategy, Analyse du jeu des Échecs
• He was also a renowned composer and musician, having written several operas and other musical works
• Philidor is credited with introducing the idea of "pinning" pieces in chess, as well as developing the idea of "development" in chess strategy
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