Vera Menchik (Moscow, 16 February 1906 – London, 27 June 1944) was a British-Czech chess player. Menchik was the first women's world chess champion. She also competed in chess tournaments with some of the world's leading male chess masters, defeating some of them, including future World Champion Max Euwe.<ref name="H/W">Hooper, David and Whyld, Kenneth 1992. "The Oxford Companion to Chess" 2nd ed, Oxford University Press, </ref>