Neue Rheinische Zeitung

The Neue Rheinische Zeitung: Organ der Demokratie ("New Rhenish Newspaper: Organ of Democracy") was a German daily newspaper, published by Karl Marx in Cologne between 1 June 1848 and 19 May 1849. It is regarded by historians as one of the most important dailies of the Revolutions of 1848 in Germany. The paper was regarded by its editors and readers alike as the successor of an earlier Cologne newspaper, the Rheinische Zeitung ("Rhenish Newspaper"), also edited for a time by Karl Marx, which was suppressed by state censorship more than five years previously.

Establishment
The Neue Rheinische Zeitung: Organ der Demokratie ("New Rhenish Newspaper: Organ of Democracy") was founded 1 June 1848 in Cologne (Köln), part of Rhineland. The paper was established by Karl Marx, Frederick Engels, as well as leading members of the Communist League living in Cologne immediately upon the return of Marx and Engels to Germany following the outbreak of the 1848 Revolution. The paper's editorial staff included Joseph Weydemeyer, with Marx serving as editor-in-chief.

The paper's name was chosen in recollection of a newspaper edited by Karl Marx in Cologne from 1842 to 1843, the Rheinische Zeitung. The paper bore a subtitle "Organ of Democracy," intended as a reference not to the establishment of parliamentary democracy, but rather to the revolutionary "Democratic front" which included the progressive petty bourgeoisie, the working class, and the peasantry.

The paper was financed through the sale of shares of stock, contributions and loans, and paid advertising. The paper was produced as a a 4-page broadsheet, with the use of occasional special supplements.

Circulation of the paper ranged from 3,000 to 6,000 copies per issue, a number far in excess of the membership of the Communist League itself, which has been reckoned by specialists to have numbered between 200 and 300 participants. This effectively rendered the publication into what one historian has called "the leading centre of the Communist League, directing the political activity of its members throughout Germany during the revolutionary period."

A total of 301 editions of the Neue Rheinische Zeitung' (NRZ) were produced during the course of its existence. To these Marx himself contributed a total of not fewer than 80 articles over the course of its existence. Since editorial contributions to the NRZ were unsigned and handwritten manuscripts have not survived, a precise count is impossible, however.

The Neue Rheinische Zeitung' (NRZ) was outspoken in its criticism of Prussia and Austria as centers of Monarchist counter-revolution and actively agitated for their defeat. The paper was also critical of the willingness of the liberal bourgeoisie to compromise with Monarchist forces — policies which Marx and his comrades believed would imperil the German revolution.

Throughout its existence the NRZ was harassed by the Prussian government, which brought lawsuits against it charging the NRZ with having "slandered" government officials. As the revolutionary upsurge of 1848 ebbed, the government's hindrance of the publication became steadily more effective, culminating in Karl Marx's expulsion from Germany — a move which effectively killed the paper.

Suppression
On 2 March 1849, Prussian soldiers came to Marx's home to arrest one of the writers. Marx refused to turn over the writer, and the soldiers eventually left.

On 16 May 1849 Marx received an official note from the royal government declaring:

"The tendency of the Neue Rheinische Zeitung to provoke in its readers contempt for the present government, and incite them to violent revolution and the setting up of a social republic has become stronger in its latest pieces.... The right of hospitality which he has so disgracefully abused is therefore to be withdrawn from its editor-in-chief, Dr. Karl Marx, and since he has not obtained permission to prolong his stay in these states, he is ordered to leave them within 24 hours. dIf he should not comply voluntarily with this demand, he is to be forcibly conveyed across the frontier."

This expulsion order, combined with the growing threat of arrest or exile of its writers forced the NRZ to publish its last issue on 19 May 1849. This so-called "red issue" as it was printed entirely in red ink. Marx's closing statement mocked the government against which he had railed:

"Why these absurd phrases, these official lies? The trend and tone of the latest pieces of the Neue Rheinische Zeitung do not differ a whit from its first 'sample piece.' * *  *

"And the 'social republic'? Have we proclaimed it only in the 'latest pieces' of the Neue Rheinische Zeitung? Did we not speak plainly and clearly enough for these dullards who failed to see the 'red' thread running through all our comments and reports on the European movement? * *  *

"We have no compassion and we ask no compassion from you. When our turn comes, we shall not make excuses for the terror. But the royal terrorists, the terrorists by the grace of God and the law, are in practice brutal, disdainful, and mean, in theory cowardly, secretive, and deceitful, and in both respects disreputable."

Legacy
In January 1850 Marx launched a new publication, a monthly magazine called Neue Rheinische Zeitung: Politsch-ökonomische Revue ("New Rhenish Newspaper: Politico-Economic Review"). Edited in London and printed in Hamburg, the periodical managed only six issues before folding.

The journalism of Karl Marx and Frederick Engels in the NRZ became systematically accessible to an English readership only in 1977, with the publication of volumes 7, 8, and 9 of the Marx-Engels Collected Works. It was then that a total of 357 of the 422 articles contained therein were published in English for the first time.

In 2005 an online newspaper calling itself Neue Rheinische Zeitung was established.

Editorial Board
Source: "Statement of the Editorial Board of the Neue Rheinische Zeitung," no. 1, June 1, 1848. Reprinted in MECW: Vol. 7, pg. 15.


 * Karl Marx (editor-in-chief)
 * Heinrich Bürgers
 * Ernst Dronke
 * Friedrich Engels
 * Georg Weerth
 * Ferdinand Wolff
 * Wilhelm Wolff