High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Howard Staunton (1810 – 22 June 1874) was an English chess master who is generally regarded as having been the world`s strongest player from 1843 to 1851, largely as a result of his 1843 victory over Saint-Amant. He promoted a chess set of clearly distinguishable pieces of standardised shape—the Staunton pattern—that is still the style required for competitions. He was the principal organiser of the first international chess tournament in 1851, which made England the world`s leading chess centre and caused Anderssen to be recognised as the world`s strongest player.