Contemplate a man expelled from Paris. That man is Karl Marx. He found a new home in London in August 1849. It became his base until his death.
Karl Marx’s London life is remembered with a blue plaque. It sits at 28 Dean Street, Soho. Fifty years ago, this marked the spot. The six-member Marx household lived in shabby rooms on the second floor. This wasn’t a happy period. Two of Karl Marx’s children died while living on Dean Street. The family resided here from 1850 to 1856. Initially, they briefly stayed at number 64, which has since been demolished.
But, this time was also important. Marx started working on Das Kapital during this period. He worked mostly in the Round Reading Room at the British Museum.
In 1856, the family moved north to western Kentish Town. Their first address was 46 Grafton Terrace. It was then numbered 9, and it still stands today. Later, Karl Marx resided at two houses on nearby Maitland Park Road. Both of these houses have been demolished.
Karl Marx’s financial situation was always unstable. In 1862, he sought a clerkship with the Great Western Railway. His application was rejected because of his terrible handwriting.
Karl Marx died in March 1883. He was at 41 Maitland Park Road. A blue plaque marked this house in 1935. Fascist supporters smashed it. They also smashed its replacement. The homeowner then declined another plaque.
Now, a block of flats occupies the site. The local council put up a plaque. Karl Marx’s collaborator and benefactor, Friedrich Engels, also has a plaque. It remains at 122 Regent’s Park Road. Karl Marx’s daughter Eleanor has a plaque, at 7 Jews Walk, Sydenham.
Karl Marx is buried at Highgate Cemetery. He never visited the Marx Memorial Library in Clerkenwell Green. Vladimir Lenin supposedly worked there. He was in exile from Russia in 1902-3.
Karl Marx’s blue plaque is unique. The inscription doesn’t mention his work. It only states his name, dates, and “lived here.” Arguments about Karl Marx’s legacy will continue. His historical impact is undeniable. His name speaks for itself.
From 1850 to 1864, Karl Marx experienced material misery and spiritual pain. His funds were depleted. Except once, he couldn’t bring himself to seek paid employment. In March 1850, he and his wife and four children were evicted. Their belongings were seized. Several of his children died. One son, Guido, was a sacrifice to bourgeois misery. A daughter, Franziska, also died. His wife desperately tried to borrow money for a coffin. For six years, the family lived in two small rooms in Soho. They often subsisted on bread and potatoes. The children learned to lie to creditors. They would say “Mr. Marx ain’t upstairs.” Once, he fled to Manchester to escape them. His wife suffered breakdowns.
During these years, Engels supported Karl Marx financially. At first, the sums were small. Engels was a clerk at Ermen and Engels in Manchester. Later, in 1864, he became a partner. His contributions were then generous. Karl Marx was proud of Engels’s friendship. He tolerated no criticism of him. Bequests from his wife’s relatives and his friend Wilhelm Wolff also eased their distress.
Karl Marx had a steady income source in the United States. Charles A. Dana invited him to be the European correspondent for The New York Tribune in 1851. From 1851 to 1862, Karl Marx contributed almost 500 articles and editorials. Engels provided about a fourth of them. He analyzed social movements worldwide from India and China to Britain and Spain.