
Né(e): May 05, 1818 – Trier, Rhine Province, Prussia
Karl Marx was a German philosopher, economist, and political theorist whose work focused on capitalism, class struggle, and historical materialism. He co-authored The Communist Manifesto with Friedrich Engels and wrote Das Kapital. His ideas profoundly shaped modern socialism and communism, influencing political movements, academic disciplines, and labor activism worldwide.
Karl Marx was born on May 5, 1818, in Trier, in the Prussian Rhineland, into a middle-class family headed by a lawyer, Heinrich Marx. He studied first at the University of Bonn and then at the University of Berlin, where he moved from law toward philosophy and history. In Berlin he came into contact with the Young Hegelians, whose critiques of religion and politics sharpened his interest in social conflict and historical change. A decisive early turning point came when journalism drew him from academic life into public controversy. As a writer and editor for the Rheinische Zeitung, he confronted censorship, state power, and the economic grievances of ordinary people. The paper’s suppression pushed him toward exile and toward a more radical critique of society.

Karl Marx
A seminal critique of capitalism, exploring labor exploitation, commodity production, and the inherent contradictions within the economic system.

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
A revolutionary call to the working class, advocating for the overthrow of capitalism and establishment of a classless society.

Karl Marx
A seminal critique of capitalism, exploring labor exploitation, commodity production, and the inherent contradictions within the economic system.

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
A revolutionary call to the working class, advocating for the overthrow of capitalism and establishment of a classless society.
"Karl Marx was a revolutionary, sociologist, historian, and economist"
— Britannica
"The greatest and most influential name in the history of socialism is unquestionably Karl Marx"
— Thomas Kirkup
"German philosopher and revolutionary socialist Karl Marx published 'The Communist Manifesto' and 'Das Kapital,' anticapitalist works that form the basis of Marxism"
— Biography.com
"For nobody was a more vehement enemy of phrase-mongering than Karl Marx"
— Wilhelm Liebknecht
"The German philosopher, radical economist, and revolutionary leader Karl Marx (1818-1883) founded modern "scientific" socialism"
— Encyclopedia of World Biography