Friedrich Engels, whose biography is of great interest to many researchers, came from a textile manufacturer's family, quite successful at the time. His mother was intelligent, kind, had a good sense of humor, loved art and literature. Frederick had 8 sisters and brothers. Most of all, he was attached to Mary. Let us consider further what Friedrich Engels is known for. Biography, creativity, ideas will also be described in the article.
Youth
Friedrich Engels (years of life 1820-1895) was born in the city of Barman. In this city, he went to school until the age of 14, and then Elberfeld Grammar School. At the insistence of his father, in 1837 he left his studies and began to work in a trading company owned by the family. In August 1838, until April 1841, Friedrich Engels, whose photo is presented in the article, continued to study in a trade specialty. He received this education in Bremen. There he earned money as a correspondent. At 18, Friedrich Engels (his birthday on November 28) wrote his first article. Since September 1841, he served in Berlin. There he also had the opportunity to attend university lectures and get acquainted with Young Hegelians.
Friedrich Engels: biography (summary of his stay in England from 1842 to 1844)
In November 1842, he was passing through Cologne. In this city, his first meeting with Marx took place. It happened in the editorial office of the Rhine newspaper. It should be said that a new friend took him rather coldly. This was due to the fact that Marx considered him a Young Hegelian. And their ideas were not supported by them. After that, Friedrich Engels went to Manchester. There he was about to complete his education at his father's cotton mill. In England, he spent almost two years. Here he met with the Irish Lydia and Mary Burns. With both of them, until the end of his days, a warm relationship remained. At the same time, Mary was the first, and Lydia was the second wife. He lived with them both in a civil relationship. But both the first and the second, stepping over the principles, before the death of each Engels entered into an official marriage.
Revolutionary steps
Friedrich Engels, whose biography and activity is inextricably linked with events taking place in the working environment, in England was able to get acquainted with the life and life of workers, which subsequently had a significant impact on his worldview. Here began his interaction with the Union of the Just (the revolutionary organization of the time), as well as with the Chartists in Leeds. In England, his articles began to be published for the publication Owenisten, which were also published in The Northern Star. In addition, correspondence was also conducted with the Rhine newspaper. In November 1843, Friedrich Engels wrote articles on the communist regime on the European continent. In February, from 1844 letters appeared in the German-French annual editions. During his stay in England, an acquaintance with the poet and trade manager Wert took place. Later, he will become head of the feuilleton heading during the revolutionary time in the New Rhine Newspaper.
Friedrich Engels: biography from 1844 to 1845
The first significant result of the study of political economy was the article of 1844. In it, Friedrich Engels tried to illustrate the contradictory nature of capitalist society. He accused bourgeois science of apologetics of the real state of affairs. In a sense, it was this article that made Marx take up economics textbooks. In 1844, the first articles were published in the German-French Yearbook. It was published by Marx and Ruge in Paris. New articles became the reason for a long correspondence. On the way to Germany, Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx met for the second time. This time the atmosphere was more friendly. They both concluded that their views coincided. From that moment on, Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx began close cooperation.
New stage
In 1845, having returned to Germany, Friedrich Engels wrote an extensive work devoted to the situation of workers in England. By that time, he began to have problems in relations with his father. In addition, there were difficulties with the police (they established surveillance). Marx also experienced some difficulties with French law. All this forced friends to move to Belgium. This country was considered at that time the freest in Europe. In July 1845, friends went to England. There they met with representatives of the "Union of the Just" and with many chartists. After returning to Brussels in 1846, they created the Communist Committee. It was a virtual organ that carried out postal communication between the socialists of all European states. Until the summer of 1846, they developed dialectical materialist views, which were later expressed in their common work, German Ideology. In this work, their views were contrasted with Feuerbach's materialism, as well as with the idealism of the Young Hegelians. At the end of the summer of 1846, Friedrich Engels began writing for the French edition of La Réforme, and from 1847 for the German-Brussels newspaper. In the same year, a proposal was received from the Union of the Fair to join it. Engels and Marx accepted him. Subsequently, they contributed to the renaming of the organization in the Union of Communists. The first congress instructed Marx to draft the text of the project "Communist Creed." He later formed the basis of the Communist Party Manifesto.
The revolution of 1948-1949
By that time, in many circles they knew who Friedrich Engels was. During the revolution, he, together with his associate, wrote materials for the newly created Rhine newspaper. In their work, which expressed the demands of the Communist Party in Germany, they opposed the export of revolutionary events to the country. In 1848, Engels moved to Cologne as part of a group of activists. Here he wrote several articles about the June Paris uprising. He called this event the first war between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie. In September 1848, he had to leave Germany. This time he stopped in Lausanne (a Swiss city). Active correspondence with the New Rhine Newspaper continued from there. In Lausanne, Engels took part in the labor movement. In January 1949, he returned to Cologne. There he wrote a series of articles on the national liberation struggle of the Italian and Hungarian people.
Civil War
It began on the southwestern and western German territories in May 1849. In June of this year, Engels joined the People's Army of the Palatinate and Baden. He took part in the battles against Prussia and the Elbertfeld uprising. At the same time, he met Becker. The latter led the Baden people's resistance. After a while, strong friendships will arise between them. After the revolutionary army was defeated, Engels left first for Switzerland and then for England.
Work in the Union of Communists
In November 1849, Engels arrived in London. There he continued his work in the Union. Over the following years, he writes many different articles. In particular, one of the first was the outcome of revolutionary events. Acting as a member of the Central Committee of the Union, Engels prepared an article-appeal to the members of the organization. At the same time there was a struggle with Schapper and Willich, who were in the Union. They called for an immediate revolution. Engels, however, spoke of the adventurism of these statements, and feared a split in the Union. The separation of the organization nevertheless happened in the autumn of 1850.
Journalistic work
In 1850, Engels arrived in Manchester. There he worked in the trading company of his father, who left his son a share in the enterprise. After a while, Engels sold his part. His income, including from writing, was sufficient not to deny himself anything. In addition, from his own funds he provided financial assistance to Marx. The latter at that time was in an extremely difficult position. Engels wrote for the Daily Tribune for the New York newspaper. Some articles were devoted to the revolution in Germany. They dealt with questions of tactics of leadership in the armed struggle. From this time on, Friedrich Engels was the founder of Marxism.
Military theme
Engels had a fairly rich experience in service. This helped him become an expert on the army. He has written many articles on military topics. Among them were notes on the situation in China and India, in the USA. Articles were also devoted to the Italo-Franco-Austrian and Franco-Prussian war. In the American Encyclopedia were published notes "Fleet" and "Army". During the Italian War, Engels published an anonymous pamphlet entitled Poe and the Rhine. At the end of the war, an article was written about Savoy, Nice and the Rhine. In 1865, a pamphlet was published on the Prussian military question and the German labor party. Many of his articles were accepted by readers for works written by the Prussian general. The government of Prussia itself several times unsuccessfully tried to obtain the extradition of Marx and Engels.
International
Since the end of September 1864, Engels has been one of its leaders. He began an active collaboration with Liebknecht and Bebel. Together, they fought against the formation of the SDLP in Germany and lassalianism. In October 1870, Engels moved to London. Since 1871, he has been a member of the General Council of the International, secretary-correspondent for Spain and Belgium, and then for Italy. At a conference in London, Engels called for the formation of a revolutionary party of workers in every state. There they advanced the thesis of the need to establish the dictatorship of the proletariat.
Own work
From 1873 he began to write as a German philosopher. Friedrich Engels embarked on the work Dialectics of Nature. In this work, it was supposed to give a dialectical materialistic generalization of all the achievements of the natural sciences. The manuscript continued for 10 years. But Engels did not complete this work. In the years 1872-73. he described the housing problem, authority, emigrant literature. In 1875, collaboration began with Marx on criticizing the Lassalian proposals for the program of the German party of workers. In 1877-78 several articles were published against Dühring. Subsequently, they came out in one edition. This work is considered the most complete of all that he has ever created. In March 1883, Marx died. From this moment, a rather difficult period began.
Further work
After the death of Marx, all responsibility for the completion and preparation for the publication of the second and third volumes of Capital fell on Engels. This, in fact, he did until his death. Along with this, however, he published his own works. In 1884, work was completed, which became one of the key in understanding Marxism. It described the origin of the state, private property and family. In 1886, another significant work was published on Feuerbach. In 1894, a work was published on the peasant question in Germany and France. It addressed the problems of mass pauperization of the population.
Interaction with Russian revolutionaries
Engels watched with particular interest the situation in the country. He managed to establish contacts with Lopatin, Lavrov, Volkhovsky and other leading workers. They praised the work of Dobrolyubov, Chernyshevsky. Engels noted the firmness of their character, endurance, dedication. Along with this, his populist illusions were criticized. Systematically, he corresponded with Zasulich and Plekhanov. It was with great joy that the news of the formation of the Emancipation of Labor association in Russian social circles was received. Engels hoped that he could survive until the time when tsarism was overthrown in Russia and the socialist revolution triumphed.
Special role in the movement
Engels is rightfully considered the founder of a materialistic understanding of the historical process. He, together with his associate, carried out the processing of bourgeois political economy. Together with Marx, he created dialectical materialism, scientific communism. In a series of his works, he outlined a new worldview in a strict systematized form, highlighted its key elements, theoretical sources. All this contributed significantly to the victory of the ideas of Marxism in the international labor movement at the end of the 19th century. During the development of the doctrine of socio-economic formations, several special patterns of development of the primitive communal system, the ancient and feudal era were revealed. The origin of private property, the formation of classes, and the creation of the state were explained. During the last years of his life, Engels paid great attention to the problems of the relationship of the economic basis, ideological and political superstructures. Especially in his works, the need to concretize the great impact on social life of the political concepts of certain classes, their struggle for domination, as well as ideology and legal relations is emphasized. Engels also played a huge role in the development of the Marxist theory of art and literature. Some areas of science have become more the result of his own contribution to learning. Among them - the theory of dialectical patterns in natural science and nature, military affairs and the army.
Contribution to the labor movement
Engels and Marx insisted on the unity of the theoretical and practical aspects. They jointly developed a scientific program, tactics and strategy for the proletariat. They were able to justify the role of the working class as the creator of a new society, the need for the formation of a revolutionary party, the conduct of a socialist revolution to establish the dictatorship of the working people. Engels and Marx became propagandists of internationalism. They organized the first international workers' associations.
