“If socialism is a social necessity, then it would be human nature and not socialism which would have to readjust itself, if ever the two clashed.”
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Karl Kautsky
Karl Johann Kautsky was an Austrian-born Marxist theorist. One of the most authoritative promulgators of orthodox Marxism after the death of Friedrich Engels in 1895, he was for decades the leading theorist of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and the Second International. His influence was so pervasive that he was often called the "Pope of Marxism", with his views remaining dominant un…
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culture · Austrian-German Marxist theorist (1854–1938) · politician · philosopher · economist · journalist · socialist · writer · editing staff · also Karl Kautsky, Karl Johann Kautsky, Kautsky
Born 16 October 1854 · Died 17 October 1938 · Q76586
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s manifesto, which called for an international, democratic peace with self-determination and blamed the SPD majority for the split. The new party was born divided, its common denominator being only opposition to the war. The split led to Kautsky
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2026· 3 entries
“s manifesto, which called for an international, democratic peace with self-determination and blamed the SPD majority for the split. The new party was born divided, its common denominator being only opposition to the war. The split led to Kautsky”
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“I cannot think of a better introductory article ... than one about Darwin. The name alone is already a program.”
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2015· 2 entries
Libcom: The abolition of the state - Karl Kautsky
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Libcom: State socialism - Karl Kautsky
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1938· 1 entry
Died 1938-10-17.
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1925· 1 entry
But never felt at home in the increasingly reformist party of the Weimar Republic
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1924· 1 entry
Kautsky moved to Vienna on the invitation of the Austrian Socialists, effectively retiring from active party politics
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1920· 1 entry
With the majority joining the Communist Party (KPD), Kautsky advocated for reunification of the remaining USPD members with the SPD, which occurred in 1922
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1910· 2 entries
Reluctantly agreed to act as a trustee, alongside Clara Zetkin and Franz Mehring, for the finances of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) in an attempt to enforce unity between the Bolshevik and Menshev
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Over franchise reform in Prussia, where Luxemburg supported mass action and Kautsky urged caution, escalated into a bitter personal and theoretical split after Kautsky refused to publish an article by Luxemburg advocatin
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1909· 1 entry
Kautsky published The Road to Power (Der Weg zur Macht), which he conceived of as a "complement" to his 1902 work The Social Revolution
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1907· 1 entry
Endorsed a minority report opposing imperialism while the majority of the German delegation took a more conservative stance
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1906· 1 entry
This agreement was essentially ratified, despite Kautsky's and Luxemburg's opposition
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1905· 2 entries
Passed a Bebel-sponsored resolution that ambiguously accepted the mass strike as a defensive tactic and affirmed party superiority over trade unions
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“s, had revolutionary potential. He believed a worker-peasant coalition could achieve a liberal, capitalist Russia, which would then eventually lead to socialism. The 1905 revolution, coupled with a surge in strike activity in Germany, fueled a major debate within the SPD on the mass strike. Trade union leaders, concerned about costs and employer retaliation, were cautious. The SPD leadership, increasingly conservative, also resisted adopting the mass strike. However, the party”
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1900· 1 entry
Kautsky's resolution, which opposed electoral alliances but allowed for socialist entry into bourgeois governments under extraordinary circumstances (such as a Russian invasion of Germany) with party approval, was adopte
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1899· 2 entries
“s analysis, based on observations of England, was not applicable to Germany, where no significant democratic forces existed outside the working class. For Kautsky, theory (orthodox Marxism) served a practical function: it provided the German workers with self-confidence and the certainty of victory. He contended that while capitalism was not mechanically collapsing (refuting the”
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Kautsky, urged by Bebel, felt compelled to respond
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1896· 1 entry
Bernstein published a series of articles in Die Neue Zeit titled "Problems of Socialism", which questioned fundamental tenets of Marxism, including the theory of value, the inevitability of capitalist collapse, the inten
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1895· 2 entries
Kautsky's resolution rejecting the proposed agrarian program was passed by 158 votes to 63, despite opposition from Bebel on this specific issue
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Was for decades the leading theorist of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and the Second International
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1894· 2 entries
Saw Kautsky's program as the "New Testament" of Marxism, a confirmation of the predictions made in the "Old Testament" of the Communist Manifesto
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A resolution was passed calling for an agrarian program
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1893· 1 entry
But argued in favor of it by 1897 to weaken the Junkers and fight for democratic reforms
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1889· 1 entry
After a lengthy process following their separation in 1888; the split caused considerable distress among their socialist friends, particularly Friedrich Engels
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1883· 1 entry
Kautsky founded and became the primary editor of Die Neue Zeit (The New Age), a Marxist theoretical journal published by Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Dietz in Stuttgart
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1879· 1 entry
Through the wealthy German socialist Karl Höchberg, Kautsky was offered a subsidized position among exiled German socialists in Zurich, Switzerland
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1876· 1 entry
“Socialism and the Struggle for Existence”
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1875· 1 entry
But its influence was not immediately apparent in his writings
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1874· 1 entry
Was weak due to Austria's limited industrialization, economic depression, and internal divisions along national and tactical lines
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1864· 1 entry
Began attending the Melk seminary, run by Benedictine monks, which he found oppressive
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1863· 1 entry
The family moved to Vienna when Kautsky was seven years old in 1863.
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1854· 2 entries
Born 1854-10-16.
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Karl Kautsky was born in Prague on 16 October 1854, then part of the Austrian Empire.
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