Karl Marx Biography15Karl Marx was born on May 5, 1818 to Heinrich and Henrietta Marx in the historic city of Trier. Karl was one of seven children raised in a comfortable middle-class home provided by his father. Marx's father worked as a legal advisor at the High Court of Appeal in Trier. David McClellan believes that “Trier first instilled in Marx his abiding passion for history.”1 Although the Marx family had a long lineage of Jewish origin, Heinrich converted his family to Protestantism to maintain his position in the court . “Some have considered this rabbinic lineage to be key to Marx's ideas and see him as a secularized version of an Old Testament prophet.”2 Overall, Marx grew up in a very loving and supportive environment and maintained a special relationship with his fathers throughout his life.3 In 1830 Marx began school at the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Gymnasium, a Jesuit foundation that had become a respectable high school with a liberal headmaster. While in high school, Marx was known as a bully and acted more like a leader to the students than a close friend. His grades were below average in subjects related to history, French and mathematics. Marx, however, earned excellent grades in Greek, Latin, and German.4 In 1835, Marx graduated from high school and fell in love with Jenny von Westphalen, daughter of a powerful politician. The couple became secretly engaged in the summer of 1836 but, due to their conflicting ancestry, their families did not allow the marriage to begin for seven years.5 After the couple's engagement, Marx was enrolled at the University of Bonn on 17 October 1835. like a pivot... in the center of the paper... beyond him to change the world.Notes1 David McClellan, Karl Marx: The Legacy (London: British Broadcasting Corporation,1983), 11.2 McClellan, 12.3 Top Biography “Karl Marx: Ancestry and Birth” August 2000, (March 2002).4 Eugene Kamenka, The Portable Karl Marx (The Viking Portable Library 1983), xiv.5 Kamenka, xv.6 Maximilien Rubel and Margaret Manale, Marx Without Myth ( New York: Harper & RowPublishers, 1975), 12.7 Superior Biography 2.8 Kamenka, xvi.9 Kamenka, xvii.10 McClellan, 20.11 McClellan, 26.12 Rubel and Manale, 85.13 Kamenka, xix.14 Karl Marx. 15 Marx/Engels Image Library>