Karl Kautsky
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Karl Johann Kautsky (; ; 16 October 1854 – 17 October 1938) was a Czech-Austrian
philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...
, journalist, and
Marxist Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
theorist A theory is a rational type of abstract thinking about a phenomenon, or the results of such thinking. The process of contemplative and rational thinking is often associated with such processes as observational study or research. Theories may be ...
. Kautsky was one of the most authoritative promulgators of orthodox Marxism after the death of
Friedrich Engels Friedrich Engels ( ,"Engels"
'' World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
in 1914. He was the most important socialist theorist during the years of the
Second International The Second International (1889–1916) was an organisation of socialist and labour parties, formed on 14 July 1889 at two simultaneous Paris meetings in which delegations from twenty countries participated. The Second International continued th ...
. He founded the socialist journal ''
Neue Zeit ''Die Neue Zeit'' (German: "The New Times") was a German socialist theoretical journal of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) that was published from 1883 to 1923. Its headquarters was in Stuttgart, Germany. History and profile Founded ...
''. Following the war, Kautsky was an outspoken critic of the
Bolshevik Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolsheviks, Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was ...
, engaging in polemics with
Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...
,
Leon Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein. ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky; uk, link= no, Лев Давидович Троцький; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trotskij'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky''. (), was a Russian ...
and
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...
on the nature of the
Soviet state The Government of the Soviet Union ( rus, Прави́тельство СССР, p=prɐˈvʲitʲɪlʲstvə ɛs ɛs ɛs ˈɛr, r=Pravítelstvo SSSR, lang=no), formally the All-Union Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, commonly ab ...
.


Life and career


Early years

Karl Kautsky was born in
Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
of an artistic and middle class family of Slavic descent – his parents were Johann Kautsky (a Czech scenic designer) and
Minna Minna is a city in Middle Belt Nigeria. It is the capital city of Niger State, one of Nigeria's 36 federal states. It consists of two major ethnic groups: the Gbagyi and the Nupe. History Archaeological evidence suggests settlement in th ...
, née Jaich (an Austrian actress and writer). The family moved to
Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...
when Kautsky was the age of seven. He studied
history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
,
philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
and
economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...
at the
University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...
from 1874, and became a member of the
Social Democratic Party of Austria The Social Democratic Party of Austria (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Österreichs , SPÖ), founded and known as the Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria (german: link=no, Sozialdemokratische Arbeiterpartei Österreichs, SDAPÖ) unti ...
(SPÖ) in 1875. In 1880 he joined a group of German socialists in
Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
who were supported financially by Karl Höchberg, and who smuggled socialist material into Germany at the time of the
Anti-Socialist Laws The Anti-Socialist Laws or Socialist Laws (german: Sozialistengesetze; officially , approximately "Law against the public danger of Social Democratic endeavours") were a series of acts of the parliament of the German Empire, the first of which was ...
(1878–1890).


Political career

In 1883, Kautsky founded the monthly ''
Die Neue Zeit ''Die Neue Zeit'' (German: "The New Times") was a German socialist theoretical journal of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) that was published from 1883 to 1923. Its headquarters was in Stuttgart, Germany. History and profile Founded ...
'' ("The New Times") in
Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
, which became a weekly in 1890. He edited the magazine until September 1917: this gave him a steady income and allowed him to propagate
Marxism Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
. From 1885 to 1890 he spent time in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, where he became a close friend of Friedrich Engels. His position as a prominent Marxist theorist was assured in 1888, when Engels put him to the task of editing Marx's three-volume work ''
Theories of Surplus Value ''Theories of Surplus Value'' (german: Theorien über den Mehrwert) is a draft manuscript written by Karl Marx between January 1862 and July 1863. It is mainly concerned with the Western Europe, Western European theorizing about ''Mehrwert'' (add ...
''. In 1891 he co-authored the
Erfurt Program The Erfurt Program was adopted by the Social Democratic Party of Germany during the SPD Congress at Erfurt in 1891. Formulated under the political guidance of Eduard Bernstein, August Bebel, and Karl Kautsky, it superseded the earlier Gotha Pr ...
of the
Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the ...
(SPD) together with August Bebel and Eduard Bernstein. Following the death of Engels in 1895, Kautsky became one of the most important and influential theoreticians of Marxism, representing the mainstream of the party together with August Bebel, and outlining a Marxist theory of
imperialism Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas, often through employing hard power (economic and ...
. When Bernstein attacked the traditional Marxist position of the necessity for revolution in the late 1890s, Kautsky denounced him, arguing that Bernstein's emphasis on the ethical foundations of Socialism opened the road to a call for an alliance with the "progressive" bourgeoisie and a non-class approach.


Wartime years

In 1914, when the German Social-Democrat deputies in the Reichstag voted for war credits, Kautsky (who was not a deputy but attended their meetings) suggested abstaining. Kautsky claimed that Germany was waging a defensive war against the threat of Czarist Russia. However, in June 1915, about ten months after the war had begun and when it had become obvious that this was going to be a sustained, appallingly brutal and costly struggle, he issued an appeal with Eduard Bernstein and
Hugo Haase Hugo Haase (29 September 1863 – 7 November 1919) was a German socialist politician, jurist and pacifist. With Friedrich Ebert, he co-chaired of the Council of the People's Deputies after the German Revolution of 1918–19. Early life Hugo Haa ...
against the pro-war leaders of the SPD and denounced the German government's annexationist aims. In 1917 he left the SPD for the
Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany The Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Unabhängige Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, USPD) was a short-lived political party in Germany during the German Empire and the Weimar Republic. The organization was establish ...
(USPD) with united socialists who opposed the war. After the November Revolution in Germany, Kautsky served as under-secretary of State in the Foreign Office in the short-lived SPD-USPD revolutionary government and worked at finding documents which proved the war guilt of Imperial Germany.


Post-War years

In 1920, when the USPD split, he went with a minority of that party back into the SPD. He visited
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
in 1920 and wrote a book on the
Democratic Republic of Georgia The Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG; ka, საქართველოს დემოკრატიული რესპუბლიკა ') was the first modern establishment of a republic of Georgia, which existed from May 1918 to ...
that at that moment was still independent of Bolshevist Russia. By the time it was published in 1921, Georgia had been thoroughly influenced by the
Russian Civil War , date = October Revolution, 7 November 1917 – Yakut revolt, 16 June 1923{{Efn, The main phase ended on 25 October 1922. Revolt against the Bolsheviks continued Basmachi movement, in Central Asia and Tungus Republic, the Far East th ...
, the Red Army had invaded Georgia, and the Bolsheviks had imposed the
Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (Georgian SSR; ka, საქართველოს საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა, tr; russian: Грузинская Советская Соц ...
. By that point, Kautsky considered the Soviet Union to have become an imperialist state, due to the destructiveness of the invasion of Georgia, and the minimal political role that the actual proletariat had in Soviet Russia. Kautsky assisted in the creation of the party program adopted in Heidelberg (1925) by the German Social Democratic Party. In 1924, at the age of 70, he moved back to Vienna with his family, and remained there until 1938. At the time of Hitler's
Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...
, he fled to
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
and thence by plane to
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
, where he died in the same year. Karl Kautsky lived in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
-
Friedenau Friedenau () is a locality (''Ortsteil'') within the borough (''Bezirk'') of Tempelhof-Schöneberg in Berlin, Germany. Relatively small by area, its population density is the highest in the city. Geography Friedenau is part of the southwestern s ...
for many years; his wife,
Luise Kautsky Luise Kautsky (née Ronsperger, 11 August 1864 – 8 December 1944) was a German politician and member of the USPD. Life and career Kautsky was a Socialist and active Social Democrat. She married the prominent Marxist theorist Karl Kautsky. ...
, became a close friend of Rosa Luxemburg, who also lived in Friedenau. A commemorative plaque marks where Kautsky lived at Saarstraße 14.
Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...
described Kautsky as a "renegade" in his pamphlet ''
The Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky ''The Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky'' (most frequently published as ''The Dictatorship of the Proletariat and the Renegade Kautsky)'' is a work by Vladimir Lenin written in October and November 1918 defending the Bolsheviks agai ...
''; Kautsky in turn castigated Lenin in his 1934 work ''Marxism and Bolshevism: Democracy and Dictatorship'': A collection of excerpts of Kautsky's writings, ''Social Democracy vs. Communism,'' discussed Bolshevist rule in Russia. He saw the Bolsheviks (or Communists) as a conspiratorial organization that had gained power by a coup and initiated revolutionary changes for which there was no economic rationale in Russia. Instead, a bureaucracy-dominated society developed, the miseries of which outweighed the problems of Western
capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for Profit (economics), profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, pric ...
, he argued. He stated: And:


Death and legacy

Kautsky died on 17 October 1938, in Amsterdam. His son, , spent seven years in
concentration camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...
s; his wife,
Luise Kautsky Luise Kautsky (née Ronsperger, 11 August 1864 – 8 December 1944) was a German politician and member of the USPD. Life and career Kautsky was a Socialist and active Social Democrat. She married the prominent Marxist theorist Karl Kautsky. ...
, was murdered in Auschwitz.Callinicos, A. ''Social Theory: a historical introduction''. Kautsky is notable for, in addition to his anti-
Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
polemics, his editing and publication of Marx's ''
Capital, Volume IV ''Das Kapital'', also known as ''Capital: A Critique of Political Economy'' or sometimes simply ''Capital'' (german: Das Kapital. Kritik der politischen Ökonomie, link=no, ; 1867–1883), is a foundational theoretical text in materialist phi ...
'' (usually published as ''
Theories of Surplus Value ''Theories of Surplus Value'' (german: Theorien über den Mehrwert) is a draft manuscript written by Karl Marx between January 1862 and July 1863. It is mainly concerned with the Western Europe, Western European theorizing about ''Mehrwert'' (add ...
'').


Works in English

* ''The Economic Doctrines of Karl Marx.'' (1887/1903) * ''Thomas More and his Utopia.'' (1888) * ''
The Class Struggle (Erfurt Program) The Class Struggle (Erfurt Program) (german: Das Erfurter Programm in seinem grundsätzlichen Theil erläutert von Karl Kautsky) is an 1892 book-length work by Karl Kautsky. It was first published in Stuttgart and was the official commentary of ...
.''
Daniel DeLeon Daniel De Leon (; December 14, 1852 – May 11, 1914), alternatively spelt Daniel de León, was a Curaçaoan-American socialist newspaper editor, politician, Marxist theoretician (Marxism), theoretician, and trade union organizer. He is regar ...
, trans. New York: New York Labor News Co., 1899. * ''Communism in Central Europe at the Time of the Reformation.'' J.L. & E.G. Mulliken, trans. London: T.F. Unwin, 1897. * '' Forerunners of Modern Socialism'', 1895. * ''Frederick Engels: His Life, His Work and His Writings''.
May Wood Simons May Wood Simons (May 10, 1876 – December 3, 1948) was an American socialist writer, editor, teacher and economist .Mari Jo Buhle, ''Women and American Socialism, 1870-1920.'' Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1981; pp. 166–169. She de ...
, trans. Chicago: Charles H. Kerr & Co., 1899. * ''On the Agrarian Question'' (1899), Pete Burgess, trans. London: Zwan Publications, 1988. * ''The Social Revolution and On the Day After the Social Revolution.'' J. B. Askew, trans. London: Twentieth Century Press, 1903. * ''Socialism and Colonial Policy'' (1907) * ''The Historic Accomplishment of Karl Marx'' (1908) * ''Ethics and the Materialist Conception of History.'' J. B. Askew, trans. Chicago: Charles H. Kerr & Co., 1909. * '' The Road to Power'' A.M. Simons, trans. Chicago: Samuel A. Bloch, 1909. * ''
The Class Struggle (Erfurt Program) The Class Struggle (Erfurt Program) (german: Das Erfurter Programm in seinem grundsätzlichen Theil erläutert von Karl Kautsky) is an 1892 book-length work by Karl Kautsky. It was first published in Stuttgart and was the official commentary of ...
.'' William E. Bohn, trans. Chicago: Charles H. Kerr & Co., 1909. * ''Finance-Capital and Crises'' (1911) * ''The High Cost of Living: Changes in Gold Production and the Rise in Prices.'' Chicago: Charles H. Kerr & Co., 1914. * ''The Guilt of William Hohenzollern.'' London: Skeffington and Son, n.d. (1919). * '' The Dictatorship of the Proletariat.'' H. J. Stenning, trans. London: National Labour Press, n.d. (c. 1919). * ''Terrorism and Communism: A Contribution to the Natural History of Revolution.'' W.H. Kerridge, trans. London: National Labour Press, 1920. * "Preface" to ''The Twelve Who Are to Die: The Trial of the Socialists-Revolutionists in Moscow.'' Berlin: Delegation of the Party of Socialists-Revolutionists, 1922. * '' Foundations of Christianity: A Study of Christian Origins.'' New York: International Publishers, 1925. * ''The Labour Revolution.'' H. J. Stenning, trans. London: National Labour Press, 1925. * ''Are the Jews a Race?'' New York: International Publishers, 1926. * ''Communism vs. Socialism.'' Joseph Shaplen, trans. New York: American League for Democratic Socialism, 1932.


See also

* ''
The Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky ''The Proletarian Revolution and the Renegade Kautsky'' (most frequently published as ''The Dictatorship of the Proletariat and the Renegade Kautsky)'' is a work by Vladimir Lenin written in October and November 1918 defending the Bolsheviks agai ...
'', a response to Kautsky written by Vladimir Lenin. (1918)
Text
* ''
Terrorism and Communism ''Terrorism and Communism: A Reply to Karl Kautsky'' (German: ''Terrorismus und Kommunismus: Anti-Kautsky;'' Russian: ''Терроризм и Коммунизм)'' is a book by Soviet Communist Party leader Leon Trotsky. First published in Germa ...
'', a pamphlet written by
Leon Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein. ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky; uk, link= no, Лев Давидович Троцький; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trotskij'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky''. (), was a Russian ...
in response to a Kautsky pamphlet by the same name (1920)
Text


Footnotes


Further reading

* * Donald, Moira. (1993). ''Marxism and Revolution: Karl Kautsky and the Russian Marxists, 1900–1924.'' New Haven: Yale University Press. * Gaido, Daniel. "Karl Kautsky on capitalism in the ancient World." ''Journal of Peasant Studies'' 30.2 (2003): 146–158. * Gaido, Daniel. "'The American Worker' and the Theory of Permanent Revolution: Karl Kautsky on Werner Sombart's Why Is There No Socialism in the United States?." ''Historical Materialism'' 11.4 (2003): 79–123
online
* Geary, Dick. Karl Kautsky (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1987). * Gronow, Jukka. ''On the Formation of Marxism: Karl Kautsky's Theory of Capitalism, the Marxism of the Second International and Karl Marx's Critique of Political Economy.'' 015Chicago: Haymarket Books, 2016. * Kołakowski, Leszek, ''Main Currents of Marxism.'' P.S. Falla, trans. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2005. * Nygaard, Bertel. "Constructing Marxism: Karl Kautsky and the French revolution." ''History of European Ideas'' 35.4 (2009): 450–464. * Salvadori, Massimo L. ''Karl Kautsky and the Socialist Revolution, 1880-1938.'' Jon Rothschild, trans. London: New Left Books, 1979. * Steenson, Gary P. ''Karl Kautsky, 1854–1938: Marxism in the Classical Years.'' Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1978.


Primary sources

* Kautsky, Karl
''Karl Kautsky on Democracy and Republicanism.''
edited and translated by Ben Lewis. Leiden: Brill, 2019.


External links


Karl Kautsky
at the
Marxists Internet Archive Marxists Internet Archive (also known as MIA or Marxists.org) is a non-profit online encyclopedia that hosts a multilingual library (created in 1990) of the works of communist, anarchist, and socialist writers, such as Karl Marx, Friedrich Eng ...

Kautsky post card
* Archive o
Karl Kautsky Papers
at the
International Institute of Social History The International Institute of Social History (IISH/IISG) is one of the largest archives of labor and social history in the world. Located in Amsterdam, its one million volumes and 2,300 archival collections include the papers of major figu ...
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kautsky, Karl 1854 births 1938 deaths Writers from Prague People from the Kingdom of Bohemia 19th-century German writers 19th-century German male writers 20th-century German writers German philosophers German atheists Marxist theorists Orthodox Marxists Social Democratic Party of Germany politicians People of the German Empire German Bohemian people Czech people of Austrian descent European democratic socialists German magazine founders Politicians from Prague People from Tempelhof-Schöneberg 19th-century Czech philosophers