In the late 18th century, audiences across Europe gathered to witness a marvel: a life-sized figure dressed in Turkish robes, seated at a cabinet, capable of playing competitive chess. Known as The Turk, this machine defeated human opponents and sparked awe wherever it went.
But it wasn’t truly mechanical. Concealed inside the cabinet, a human chess master manipulated the arm and pieces, orchestrating every move. Over the next 80 years, the Turk would astonish emperors, duel the era’s top minds, and tour the globe—its secret remaining hidden far longer than many believed possible.
Kempelen’s Creation and Early Tours
In 1769, Wolfgang von Kempelen, a Hungarian author and inventor in the service of Empress Maria Theresa, unveiled the Turk in Vienna. The machine appeared to be a complex automaton, its mechanical arm moving pieces on the board in response to opponents’ plays. It was, in fact, operated by a human concealed inside the cabinet, who used a sliding seat and levers to control the arm.
Among the hidden operators was Johann Baptist Allgaier, a skilled Austrian chess master. After tours across Europe, including performances for Catherine the Great in 1773, Kempelen eventually retired the machine. It remained in storage after his death in 1804.
Mälzel’s Modifications and the Napoleon Match
The Turk was sold in 1805 to Johann Nepomuk Mälzel, a Bavarian engineer known for developing musical devices, including a type of metronome. Mälzel repaired the machine and learned its workings before reintroducing it to the public. In 1809, Napoleon Bonaparte challenged the Turk at Schönbrunn Palace.
According to reports, Napoleon tried illegal moves, which the Turk rebuffed—once by resetting the piece, then by removing it, and finally by sweeping the pieces off the board. Amused, Napoleon played a fair game, eventually conceding defeat. Over the next decade, the Turk toured Europe, was sold and bought back, and underwent improvements including a voice box to say “Échec!” when giving check.
American Exhibitions and Poe’s Essay
Mälzel brought the Turk to the United States in the 1820s. It was operated there by William Schlumberger and toured cities such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. In 1836, Edgar Allan Poe published an essay, Maelzel’s Chess Player, attempting to deduce the Turk’s secret.
While Poe’s conclusions were partially incorrect, he correctly suspected a human was hidden inside. The machine’s final operator, Schlumberger, died of yellow fever in Cuba in 1838. Mälzel died the same year at sea, and the Turk was returned to Philadelphia.
Destruction, Revelation, and Replicas
The Turk passed through various owners before being restored by John Kearsley Mitchell and eventually donated to Charles Willson Peale’s museum. On July 5, 1854, a fire at the National Theater spread to the museum and destroyed the Turk. In 1857, Silas Weir Mitchell, the son of the last private owner, finally revealed the secret workings of the machine in The Chess Monthly.
In the 1980s, magician’s engineer John Gaughan reconstructed the Turk based on historical diagrams and the original chessboard. The replica debuted in 1989. Interest in the Turk was renewed during the rise of computer chess and the creation of IBM’s Deep Blue, leading to multiple books and documentaries exploring the machine’s extraordinary deception.
It looked like magic: a life-sized mechanical figure in Turkish robes playing flawless chess.
The 'Turk' amazed kings, defeated challengers, and toured continents—but it was never truly mechanical.
For over 80 years, a secret hidden inside fooled the world…🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/wX7he5YBS4
— Fascinating True Stories (@FascinatingTrue) August 7, 2025