10 questions Β· Society & Everyday
Rosa Luxemburg is born in 1871 into a Jewish family in the then Russian-ruled part of Poland. Already as a young woman she is politically active and has to flee persecution. She studies in Switzerland, earning a doctorate in political science (a rare education for a woman of her time) and becomes one of the sharpest thinkers of the socialist movement. Later she lives and works mainly in Germany. Luxemburg is a brilliant orator and writer. She fights passionately for workers' rights, against social injustice and (especially boldly) against war. When the First World War breaks out in 1914 and most Social Democrats support it, she is among the few who firmly oppose it. For her resistance to the war she spends several years in prison. Yet Luxemburg is no mere party soldier but an independent thinker. Famous is her line "Freedom is always the freedom of the one who thinks differently": a commitment to freedom of opinion with which she also opposed authoritarian tendencies within her own ranks. Together with Karl Liebknecht she founds the "Spartacus League", out of which the Communist Party of Germany emerges. In the turmoil after the First World War, Rosa Luxemburg is abducted and murdered in Berlin in 1919 by right-wing Freikorps soldiers. Her violent death makes her a martyr of the left. To this day she is regarded as one of the most important political theorists and a symbol of the struggle for justice and freedom.
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socialist theorist / revolutionary
She was one of the sharpest thinkers of the socialist movement.
π‘ Did you know? Luxemburg was one of the sharpest thinkers of socialism, arguing for revolution but also for democracy and freedom.
Freedom is always the freedom of the one who thinks differently
Her line βFreedom is always the freedom of the one who thinks differentlyβ is still a much-quoted defence of free speech.
π‘ Did you know? With it she also opposed authoritarian tendencies within her own ranks.
against the war (First World War)
For her resistance to the war she spent several years in prison.
π‘ Did you know? When almost all Social Democrats backed the war in 1914, Luxemburg bravely opposed it and was jailed for it.
Spartacus League
The Communist Party of Germany (KPD) emerged from it.
π‘ Did you know? With Karl Liebknecht, Luxemburg founded the Spartacus League, from which the Communist Party of Germany emerged.
workers' rights
She was a brilliant orator and writer.
π‘ Did you know? Luxemburg fought passionately for workers' rights, while warning early against any dictatorship, even a left-wing one.
a doctorate (rare for a woman)
Unusually for a woman of her time, Luxemburg earned a doctorate in political economy, with distinction.
π‘ Did you know? She studied in Switzerland, where women were admitted to university.
murdered in 1919 (Freikorps)
Her violent death made her a martyr of the left.
π‘ Did you know? In 1919 Luxemburg was murdered by right-wing Freikorps soldiers and her body thrown into a Berlin canal.
Poland (Russian-ruled part)
Later she lived and worked mainly in Germany.
π‘ Did you know? Born a Polish Jew under Russian rule, Luxemburg was trebly disadvantaged all her life and yet became a world figure.
Foto: Unknown author Β· Public domain Β· Wikimedia Commons
Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg (1871 to 1919) was a socialist theorist and revolutionary, famous for her stand against war and oppression.
π‘ Did you know? Each January tens of thousands still gather in Berlin to remember Rosa Luxemburg: her legacy of freedom and resistance lives on.
1871
Born: 5 March 1871 in ZamoΕΔ, Poland
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