Karl Marx
A 19th-century thinker whose critique of capitalism provided the foundational theory for revolutionary movements across the globe.
1818–1883 (age 65)·German philosopher and socialist·Birthday: May 5
Biography
Karl Marx spent his life in intellectual exile, his ideas too dangerous for the powers of his time. Born in Trier, Prussia, to a middle-class family, he studied law and philosophy, developing a radical perspective that would get him expelled from multiple countries. Settling in London, often in dire poverty, he spent decades in the reading room of the British Museum, meticulously constructing his analysis of society. Collaborating with his friend and financial patron Friedrich Engels, Marx argued that history was a story of class struggle, driven by economic forces. His 1848 'Communist Manifesto' was a fiery call to action, while 'Das Kapital' was a dense, scholarly dissection of the capitalist system's internal contradictions. More than an academic, Marx was a committed activist, helping to organize the International Workingmen's Association. He died before seeing his ideas ignite, but his work became the bedrock of 20th-century communism, shaping nations, wars, and the lives of billions, making him one of the most influential and contentious figures in modern history.
#1 When Karl Was Born
The biggest hits of 1818
Karl's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1818Born
1823Started school
1831Became a teenager
1834Could drive
1836Could vote
1839Turned 21
1848Turned 30
1858Turned 40
1868Turned 50
President: Andrew Johnson
1878Turned 60
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1883Died at 65
President: Chester A. Arthur
Key Achievements
- Co-authored 'The Communist Manifesto' (1848) with Friedrich Engels, a pivotal text for socialist and communist movements.
- Authored the multi-volume work 'Das Kapital,' a foundational critique of political economy and capitalism.
- Developed the theory of historical materialism, which analyzes societal development through economic and class relations.
- Was a leading figure in the establishment of the International Workingmen's Association (the First International).
- His body of work, collectively known as Marxism, fundamentally altered the fields of sociology, economics, and history.
Did You Know?
He worked as a journalist and was the European correspondent for the New-York Tribune for over a decade.
Marx and his wife, Jenny von Westphalen, had seven children, but only three survived to adulthood due to their poverty.
He was famously unkempt and his wife once had to pawn his trousers to buy food.
His tomb in Highgate Cemetery, London, is topped by a large bust of his head and bears the inscription 'Workers of all lands unite.'
He earned a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Jena with a dissertation on ancient Greek materialism.
“The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways; the point is to change it.”
