First London Conference of Delegates of the First International in 1865

First conference of delegates of the International Workingmen's Association, held on September 25, 1865 in London, England, i.e. the preparatory meeting for the Congress. The meeting was attended by members of the General Council, delegates of the English, French, Belgian, and Swiss sections, and delegates of the national councils of Germany, Italy, and Poland, 68 in total. Marx attended the meeting as a member of the General Council and as Corresponding Secretary for Germany. The meeting decided to hold the first congress of the International in Geneva in 1866 and to celebrate the first anniversary of the founding of the International on September 28.

Marx pressed for the inclusion of the Polish question in the agenda, leading to the adoption of a resolution on the restoration of Poland’s independence. The meeting criticized the Proudhonists' narrow guild consciousness that excluded the intellectuals, and affirmed the necessity of the participation of the proletariat in the political struggle. The meeting made political and ideological preparations for the convening of the first congress of the International.