Questions on the Rumor of “Marx's Illegitimate Son”

Abstract

The rumor of “Marx's illegitimate son” has been allowed to circulate for far too long. There are numerous flaws in the evidence cited to support this allegation, even though the claim is accepted as fact by David McLellan in his 1973 work Karl Marx: His Life and Thought, regarded as the most authoritative biography of Marx to appear in the English-speaking world. The crucial evidence is a single letter, dated September 2–4, 1898, and written by Louise Freyberger (1860–1950) to August Bebel (1840–1913). Louise's letter is full of contradictions, and does not accord with the recollections of other parties. The corroborating evidence is also far-fetched. Some scholars have suggested that various original documents concerning the “illegitimate son” were sought out and destroyed, but this view is not convincing. The story of Marx's illegitimate son has to be viewed as a fabrication spread by Louise and by later historians rather than as a historical conclusion established beyond reasonable doubt.

Keywords:

• Marx
• the illegitimate son
• Louise's letter
• Freddy
• censorship of correspondence

Notes on Contributor

Lu Gang (This is a Chinese name which always puts the family name Lu ahead of the given name Gang) is a lecturer at the Institute of Ideological and Political Education, China University of Mining and Technology, Beijing. His research interests lie in the areas of Marxist theory and the history of the international communist movement.