Revolution and Counter-Revolution

Revolution and Counter-Revolution is an account of what happened in Prussia, Austria and other German states during 1848, describing the impact on both middle-class and working-class aspirations and on the idea of German unification. Events in Austria and Prussia are discussed, along with the role of the Poles and Czechs and Panslavism, which Engels was against. Also discussed is the Cologne Communist Trial, in which the defendants were acquitted after some of the evidence was shown to have been crudely forged. Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Germany (German: Revolution und Konterrevolution in Deutschland) is a book by Friedrich Engels, with contributions by Karl Marx. Originally a series of articles in the New York Daily Tribune published from 1851 to 1852 under Marx's byline, the material was first published in book form under the editorship of Eleanor Marx Aveling in 1896. It was not until 1913 that Engel's authorship was publicly known although some new editions continued to appear incorrectly listing Marx as the author as late as 1971. Early in 1851 Charles Dana, then an editor of the New York Daily Tribune, suggested to Karl Marx that he should contribute topical and historical writings to the newspaper. Dana was alerted to the possible availability of Marx by the suggestion of Ferdinand Freiligrath, a former associate of Marx on the editorial staff of the Cologne (Köln) newspaper Neue Rheinische Zeitung. Marx was at the time engrossed in economic research and was unable to fulfill the commission, but on August 14, 1851 we wrote a letter asking his friend and co-thinker Frederick Engels to produce "a series of articles about Germany, from 1848 onwards." Engels agreed with this plan and over the next 13 months he went on to produce 19 articles on the 1848 German revolution for the New York press. Marx was closely consulted during the writing of this material and read over each manuscript before sending it for publication. Even though written by Engels, these articles were published under the byline of Karl Marx, under the series title "Germany: Revolution and Counter-Revolution." Articles were not additionally titled, but instead appeared under a Roman numeral; individual titles were created in 1896 by editor Eleanor Marx Aveling for the first edition of the material in book form. The articles ran from October 25, 1851 to October 23, 1852. After appearing in the Tribune the material was never published again in the lifetime of Marx and Engels, with the exception of the first two pieces, which were reprinted in German translation by the New-Yorker Abendzeitung late in October 1851. The "Revolution and Counter-Revolution" articles written by Engels were instrumental in establishing Marx with the Tribune and a journalistic relationship began which was to continue for more than a decade. Marx began to himself write for the paper in August 1852 when he contributed an article on the elections in England, writing first in German and making use of Engels and other friends to assist with the English translation. By January 1853 Marx was fluent enough in English to write for the Tribune without additional editorial assistance. Marx would receive a very modest flat rate of 1 pound per article for these lengthy contributions.