Marx with his daughters and Engels

1864

This rare and historic photograph, taken in 1864, captures Karl Marx alongside his daughters and his lifelong friend and collaborator Friedrich Engels, in a quiet garden scene far from the heated debates and revolutionary pamphlets that shaped the 19th century.

At the time, Marx was living in London, where he had settled after being exiled from continental Europe. Just months after this photo, Marx would co-found the International Workingmen’s Association (the First International), planting the seeds of modern socialist movements. Yet here, he is simply a father — bearded, relaxed, and holding his hat, surrounded by family and friends.

This image offers a rare glimpse behind the political icon: a domestic moment with the two men who together wrote The Communist Manifesto (1848), and who would profoundly influence the social and political landscape of the modern world.

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