DOC The Civil War in the United States by Karl Marx; Friedrich Engels in History

Review

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Walda Katz Fishmantells part of hidden story of Marx and Engels' analysis of the color (race) question in the US0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Good job!By CustomerThe book was accurately described; it arrived on time and was perfectly packaged. Good job!5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Marx and Engels on the Second American RevolutionBy Marc LichtmanThis is a new collection of Marx and Engels writings on the Second American Revolution; also known as the Civil War. It used to be called “the war between the states;” but as Marx shows; it was as much a war within the states as between them. As Marx wrote: “‘The South;’ however; is neither a territory closely sealed off from the North geographically; nor a moral unity. It is not a country at all; but a battle slogan.” Like all civil wars; it was fundamentally a war between classes.The most important pieces were written for publication in English and German language papers in the US; the UK; and Austria. Marx and Engels were not sideline commentators; they were writing to help defend the Union; and help abolish slavery. In Britain and other European countries; this was not an easy task. While public opinion in Britain was anti-slavery; the economy was largely based on clothing manufacture; and the capitalists needed cotton; and needed it cheap. Therefore; it was in their interest to confuse people as to what the war was about. The Confederacy had their own diplomats trying to convince Parliament that it was a war for self-determination! So Marx and Engels carefully review and destroy all the arguments; and show why the small minority of slave owners had launched a war for the protection of that institution.Even though British workers were laid off in large numbers because of the lack of cotton (or the fact that there was plenty being hoarded by British manufactures to get better prices); British workers mostly supported the fight against slavery; and understood this was the issue. (Philip Foner’s book British Labor and the American Civil War is well worth reading on this).It’s not only conservatives in the US who argue today that it wasn’t about slavery; but also confused radicals who claim that because Lincoln didn’t fight under the anti-slavery banner from the beginning (which would not have had sufficient support in the free states at that time); that it wasn’t a war about slavery. Some argue from a philosophical idealist position that if it wasn’t fought for “moral reasons;” it wasn’t against slavery. But slavery was an economic institution; and morals are not something separate and apart from economics and politics--see Their Morals and Ours.The American Civil War was one of the last of the bourgeois democratic revolutions in the advanced countries; and was the last progressive act of the US capitalist class; which had more fight in it than the European (see The Communist Manifesto; Revolution and Counter-Revolution or Germany in 1848; and Class Struggles in France; 1848-1850 (New World Paperbacks)).But the capitalist class hesitated at full equality and a land base for the freed slaves (see Racism; Revolution; Reaction; 1861-1877: The Rise and Fall of Radical Reconstruction). After the defeat of Radical Reconstruction; monopoly capital was consolidated; and by 1898 American imperialism emerged in the Spanish-American War.The defeat of the 1848 revolution in Germany brought many exiles into the US; among them some German Marxists (see Revolutionary Continuity: the Early Years; 1848-1917). Both the Marxists and the other revolutionaries played an important role in the Civil War; including keeping St. Louis (and therefore Missouri) for the Union.Other must reads for understanding this period include Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era and Reconstruction Updated Edition: America's Unfinished Revolution; 1863-1877.I gave this five stars for the Marx and Engels writings; not for other aspects of the book. The selection is an interesting one; and although I disagree with Zimmerman on his reasons for leaving out certain articles; it's not that important. And I was delighted to see the 3-part article by Marx and Engels' comrade Joseph Weydemeyer. I disagree with a lot in Zimmerman's introduction; but as much of what he says is not fully developed; I won't take it up here.The book has practically no annotation--few notes--no glossary; maps; timeline; photos or index. Zimmerman argues that "The wide availability of reference sources online today also make it relatively easy for readers to learn more about virtually any individual or event named in the text." But one could use the same argument for simply making the material available online; and not putting it in book form at all. Not everyone has access to computers; and for those who do; it's much easier to have the material all in one place.