Bilguer, who was a lieutenant in the Prussian army, was sent to Berlin on a course, where he met the six gifted German players with whom he formed a group that became known as the 'Berlin Pleiades'.
[1] To the modern chess world he is known above all as the co-author of the Handbuch des Schachspiels.
He died at age 24, probably of tuberculosis, before finishing the Handbuch, but the work was completed by his friend Tassilo von Heydebrand und der Lasa, who gave primary credit to Bilguer.
The Handbuch was for many years considered the definitive reference work on the game of chess, and on openings in particular.
This biographical article relating to a German chess figure is a stub.