Letter to Friedrich Engels, September 2, 1864

Author(s) Karl Marx
Written 2 September 1864


First published in Der Briefwechsel zwischen F. Engels und K. Marx, Bd. 3, Stuttgart, 1913
Printed according to the original
Published in English for the first time in Marx-Engels Collected Works, Volume 41


MARX TO ENGELS

IN MANCHESTER

[London,] 2 September 1864

Dear Frederick,

Yesterday afternoon I received a letter from Freiligrath, of which copy below; from it you will see that Lassalle has been gravely wounded in a duel in Geneva. I went to see Freiligr. that same evening. However, he had not received any more telegrams. Incidentally, he told me—entre nous[1] —that his bank was in a state of crisis, aggravated by the affair in Geneva and the role Fazy had played in the same.[2]

Salut.

Your

K. M.

[COPY OF FREILIGRATH'S LETTER]

Dear Marx,

'I have just had a letter from Klapka in Geneva, containing the sad news that, on 30 August, Lassalle fought a duel in Geneva with a Wallachian pseudo-prince[3] and was mortally wounded. Herewith the details from K.'s letter....

'"Lassalle had been conducting a love-affair here, though with perfectly honourable intentions as he wished to marry the girl,[4] the daughter of the Bavarian envoy, von Dönniges. The father objected to the marriage, the girl deceived poor Lassalle; a man to whom she had been previously engaged, the above-mentioned pseudo-prince, arrived from Berlin; then came explanations, an unpleasant exchange of letters, and a challenge ensued. Lassalle's seconds were Colonel Rüstow and my fellow countryman, General Count Bethlen. Lassalle, as befitted a man of his reputation and political position, behaved with no less courage than dignity. He was shot in the stomach and is now laid up at the Hôtel Victoria with his life hanging in the balance. Unfortunately for him, the bullet is lodged deep in the body, so the wound might well become gangrenous. I went to see him at once upon my arrival and found him dictating his will, but otherwise calm and resigned to death. I am exceedingly sorry for him; often one does not get to know a person until his end is near."

'So much for Klapka.'

  1. ↑ between ourselves
  2. ↑ Fazy suffered a crushing defeat at the elections to the Geneva Canton Council in August 1864, following the exposure of his financial machinations as President of the General Bank of Switzerland. After the elections, Fazy's supporters caused disturbances by attacking voters who had opposed him at the polls. When Swiss government troops were sent to Geneva to restore order, Fazy fled to France. Freiligrath was a member of the board of the London branch of the General Bank of Switzerland.
  3. ↑ J. von Racowitza
  4. ↑ Helene von Dönniges