Chess Board Setup

Tournament-style chess boards like ours have the ranks (horizontal rows) numbered 1 through 8, and the files (vertical columns) indicated with the letters A through H:

Chess.com has a great page about the setup of the board which goes a little bit more in depth, but below are how the pieces are laid out:

Here are the specific instructions for the correct chess board setup:

• White pieces are placed onto ranks 1 and 2, and black pieces are on ranks 7 and 8.
• White pawns are lined up across rank 2, and black pawns are lined up across rank 7.
• Rooks are in the corners.
• Next to the rooks are the knights.
• Nest to the knights are the bishops.
• The queen always goes onto the square that matches her color (white queen on light square, black queen on dark square), which is on the D file. 
• The king is the only piece left, they start on the E file.

After the board is set up and the clock is set, opponents shake hands, and white moves first. And then the magic begins.