The Bourgeoisie and the Counter-Revolution

A group of articles by Marx summarizing the March Revolution in Germany. Written in December 1848, four articles in total, published in the Neue Rheinische Zeitung, Nos. 165, 169, 170 and 183, on December 10, 15, 16 and 31, 1848.

After the March Revolution in Germany, the bourgeois government that came to power soon colluded with the feudal reactionary forces, betrayed the revolution and went against the people. The Frankfurt National Assembly, devoid of real power and army, was powerless in the face of feudal reactionary forces. In September 1848, an uprising took place in Frankfurt, which was supported by mass organizations such as the democratic societies, the workers’ associations as well as the Committee of Public Safety, but the uprising was eventually suppressed. In The Bourgeoisie and the Counter-Revolution, Marx profoundly criticized and exposed the fact that the German bourgeois cabinet, which was thrust onto the arena of history after the March Revolution, in order to safeguard the interests of the bourgeoisie, compromised with the feudal despotic rulers and intensified its exploitation and domination of the people. He pointed out that due to the backwardness and weakness of the bourgeoisie, the March Revolution in Prussia was quite different from the English Revolution of 1648 and the French Revolution of 1789. The latter two were revolutions in the European fashion which proclaimed the victory of the political system of the new European society; however, the March Revolution was a provincial Prussian revolution, and the establishment of the bourgeois cabinet lagged behind the requirements of the times and hindered the reunification of the country. In order to reconcile with the feudal class, the bourgeois cabinet stood on the opposite side of workers and peasants, but was finally abandoned by the feudal rulers, and by means of repression and deception, it eliminated the achievements of the democratic revolution and provided an opportunity for counter-revolutionary restoration. As for the later German revolution, Marx pointed out: “The history of the Prussian middle class, and that of the German middle class in general between March and December shows that a purely middle-class revolution and the establishment of bourgeois rule in the form of a constitutional monarchy is impossible in Germany, and that the only alternatives are either a feudal absolutist counter-revolution or a social republican revolution.” The practice of the March Revolution in Germany has proved that the bourgeoisie was no longer the force to launch a revolution, and the proletariat had to rely entirely on its own strength to push it forward.

By analyzing the manifestations of the bourgeoisie in the March Revolution, The Bourgeoisie and the Counter-Revolution exposed the reactionary nature of the German bourgeoisie, foreshadowed the prospects of the German revolution at that time, expounded on the class struggle and questions that the working class was more concerned about, and greatly promoted the awakening of the German workers while summing up the revolutionary experience.

Address of the Central Committee to the Communist League (March 1850)

An important document in which Marx and Engels summarized the experience of the German Revolutions of 1848. Written before March 24, 1850, initially printed as a leaflet and circulated secretly among the members of the League. In 1885, it was revised by Engels and included as an appendix to the Revelations Concerning the Communist Trial in Cologne. The Chinese translation was first published in the Beijing Political Life, No. 14, 1924.

During the 1848–49 revolutionary movement in Europe, the Communist League proved itself, but its organization was weakened, its members suffered great losses and its work came to a standstill. In June 1849, most of the members of the Central Committee met again in London, and in August, Marx and Engels settled in London, where they rebuilt the Central Committee and led the League’s rectification and reorganization. In order to explain the situation of the Communist League to its members, analyze the revolutionary situation, tasks and tactics, and promote its reconstruction, Marx and Engels jointly drafted the Address of the Central Committee to the Communist League in March 1850.

The Address to the League summarized the revolutionary experience in Germany from 1848 to 1849, analyzed the performance and losses of the League in the revolution, analyzed the nature and the tasks of the German revolution, and elaborated the revolutionary tactics of the proletarian political party. Its basic viewpoints include: First, it emphasized that the views of the proletarian revolutionary movement in the light of the experience of the European revolutionary movement was the only correct one. Marx and Engels pointed out that the understanding by the League of the proletarian revolutionary movement as expressed in The Communist Manifesto has been shown to be the only correct one, and explained the necessity of reorganizing the League in light of the needs of the development of the revolutionary situation. Second, it analyzed the situation of various classes in German society and their attitude towards the revolution. Marx and Engels pointed out that the German bourgeoisie had anti-feudal demands but was extremely hostile to the proletariat and persecuted the workers as soon as it held power; the democratic petty bourgeoisie in Germany demanded a bourgeois republic but only wished for improvements that did not change the capitalist system, and the working class could on some occasions ally itself with them while retaining the organizational and ideological independence. The countryside was the scene of fierce struggle between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie, and for its own sake and that of the peasantry in general, “the workers must ally themselves with the rural proletariat.” Third, it analyzed the nature and tasks of German revolution and the tactics of proletariat with the principle of historical materialism. Marx and Engels pointed out that the Revolutions of 1848–1849 were defeated because of the betrayal of the bourgeoisie and the wavering and compromising of the petty bourgeoisie, and that the upcoming German revolution would still be a bourgeois-democratic revolution rather than a proletarian socialist revolution. Realizing German reunification remained an important task of the revolution. Given that the proletariat was not able to propose directly communist measures, it was necessary to elevate the claims of the democrats for improvement to a direct attack on private property and give full play to making inroads into the existing social order. Fourth, it emphasized the necessity of establishing an independent proletarian party and upholding an independent revolutionary tactic. Starting from the actual situation of the revolutionary movement in Germany at that time, Marx and Engels focused on elaborating the tactics of the proletarian party against the petty bourgeois democrats. They emphasized that the proletariat should draw on the experience and lessons of the Revolutions of 1848–1849, that there is a need to ally with petty-bourgeois democrats in the bourgeois-democratic revolution. But in order to reach final victory, it was necessary to insist on its own independent class interests, party principles and revolutionary tactics, to put forward particular political demands, to set up a workers’ governments, and to remain independently armed at all times in the revolution, always frustrating any attempts to disarm the workers. Fifth, the theory of the “permanent revolution” of the proletariat has been expounded in a more complete manner for the first time. Marx and Engels pointed out that the interests of the proletariat required a permanent revolution until the conquest of state power, the complete abolition of the rule of the bourgeoisie, and the concentration of the productive forces in the hands of the proletarians. The proletariat is not satisfied with the completion of the democratic revolution, it wants the final abolition of private property and the establishment of a new society. The proletariat must not stall in its revolutionary march, but must stick to the battle cry of “permanent revolution”.

The Address to the League has shown that the understanding of the revolutionary movement of the proletariat in The Communist Manifesto has been shown to be the only correct one. Its publication unified the thinking of the League members, raised their consciousness and played a major role in the reorganization of the League. In March 1850, the Central Committee of the League approved and sent special envoys with the Address to the League to different places, smoothly carried out the reorganization and reconstruction work, and the organization of the League was recovered and developed during the summer. In June, Marx and Engels wrote the second Address of the Central Committee to the Communist League to report on the situation of organization of the League in various places and call on the League members to welcome the new revolutionary upsurge.