Germany does not seek survival

Kautsky.

Karl Kautsky, a centrist leader of the Social Democratic Party, was also the leader of the largest faction within the Social Democratic Party, apart from the mainstream Social Democratic Party group such as Ebert and Noske. At that time, his influence was greater than that of the two left-wing leaders Liebknecht and Luxemburg.

Kautsky sent the letter to Faust not, like Albert did, simply to win over a famous war hero to support him.

Instead, it was Sorge who acted as the go-between. Sorge did not directly reveal the secrets of the National Socialist Party like Kautsky and other centrist leaders of the Social Democratic Party. However, judging from what Kautsky expressed in the letter, Kautsky should have regarded Faust as someone close to the left wing of the Social Democratic Party.

Faust held the letter in his palm. Kautsky would also attend Princess Louise's birthday party, so this was a good opportunity to meet and talk.

The SPD's centrists were, in political stance, closer to the left of Liebknecht and Luxemburg than to Ebert's mainstream right.

For example, Kautsky has been active in the parliament for some time. One of his main goals is to persuade the empire to release Liebknecht and Luxemburg.

Kautsky's reason was that the empire's release of the two major political prisoners could better reflect the unity of the people of all classes in the empire, prevent the Allies from dividing the empire politically, and prevent a revolution in Germany like in Russia.

At present, Kautsky has obtained the signatures of nearly two hundred members of parliament in order to fight for the release of Liebknecht and Luxemburg. The meaning of his letter is actually to hope that Faust can also sign it so as to put more pressure on the authorities.

The war budget at the beginning of the war in 1914 split the Social Democratic Party into three factions: left, center, and right.

The left-wing Liebknecht and Luxemburg were too radical and were imprisoned, leaving only a few still active in secret. However, as Germany's difficulties became increasingly severe, more and more Germans began to miss the foresight of the left-wing Social Democratic Party.

The right wing is Ebert and his gang. They are the mainstream of the SPD, hold great power, and cooperate with some dovish princes and nobles within Germany, waiting for the right time to establish a SPD government.

As for the centrists, people like Kautsky, they also opposed the war budget like the leftists, but they could not fight to the end like the leftists would rather go to jail, so they quickly chose to compromise.

Kautsky was also opposed to the war, but he did not dare to directly oppose the imperial authorities. Kautsky believed that there was no chance of winning if he confronted the imperial government head-on, and it would only waste revolutionary forces. Therefore, it would be better to remain useful and use his status as a member of parliament to protect the left-wing radical revolutionaries in prison.

However, judging by what Kautsky said in his letter, the patience of the centrist SPD was reaching its limit, and their dissatisfaction with the imperial war policy was gradually showing signs of erupting.

Forty years ago, the various factions of the German Workers' Parties chose to merge into the Social Democratic Party of Germany at the Gotha Congress. Forty years later, this merger has been proven to be a major historical mistake.

Various workers' parties with different interests were all integrated into the same Social Democratic Party, which resulted in the Social Democratic Party becoming incapable of major revolutionary issues and becoming a purely bureaucratic party capable of engaging in reformist activities.

Chapter 86 Ultra-Imperialism

The crystal chandeliers of Charlottenburg Palace were shining brightly. Lala, the little maid who took care of Faust's daily life, was also summoned into the palace. All the royal servants were in Charlottenburg Palace, preparing for Princess Victoria Louise's birthday party.

Lala looked up at the equestrian portrait of Princess Louise on the dome mural. She put her face close to the silverware, and her breath condensed into white mist on the cold metal surface. The chefs in the kitchen were talking about how the ice bricks shipped from Tyrol in preparation for this banquet had crushed the legs of three war horses.

"I'm going to the cellar to get the ice bucket."

The little maid took the initiative to carry the cotton and linen bag that was taller than herself. The thick line on the edge of the bag left red marks on her shoulders. Germany was still an aristocratic society under a monarchy. There were two types of servants in the palace. One was the maid of aristocratic origin who was only responsible for ceremonial work, and the other was servants like Lala who did rough work.

The spiral staircase leading to the cellar is lined with portraits of Prussian and German monarchs, royal relatives and princesses. Their folds of skirts and diamond belts around their waists could only buy a lot of life-saving supplies for the soldiers on the front line.

When Lala carried the ice bucket to the banquet hall, many other servants had already wiped the huge crystal chandeliers clean and were now hanging them from the dome with ropes. More maids were busy wiping the parquet floor.

The pastry chefs were preparing cakes. Lala saw a small mountain of almond candy dolls piled up on a silver plate. They were all shaped like soldiers wearing the uniforms of the various German princely states.

The chef used tweezers to adjust the feathers on the sugar figures' military caps. Each sugar figure corresponded to a unit of the empire, and then used gold foil to outline the medals of several marshals.

"Can I help stick the military emblem on the sugar figure?"

Lala suddenly said, "I recognize the styles of all these medals. Major Faust has this Blue Marx Medal and an Iron Cross hanging in his study..."

"Lala, go sort the rose petals," an elderly maid said rudely, holding up a flower stem. "Look at this one! Trim the thorns off the stem neatly."

Lala opened her mouth, but finally lowered her head and continued to cut the flowers. She inserted the neatly trimmed roses into the vase one by one. Even the angle of the petals facing outward had to be consistent. Then the gold and silver cutlery on the dining table had to be the same, and not an inch of the position could be wrong.

After a busy day, before dusk fell, Lala was finally allowed to take a look at the decorated banquet hall. All the crystal lamps were lit, and the candlelight made the goddess of Victory on the dome mural seem to be flowing. The silver tableware on the long table formed a galaxy, and Beethoven's "Piano Sonata No. 14" was playing in the banquet hall.

"Her Royal Highness will be cutting the cake here tonight." The elderly maid narrowed her eyes. "Lala, why is there dirt on your apron? Go change into a clean one! Her Majesty's guests can't see this."

"I'll change it right away, ma'am."

Lala stood up holding the dirty apron. When she passed the side door, she suddenly heard voices coming from inside. They were several soldiers in formal attire. Faust, who was invited to the banquet, was among them. Lala wanted to say hello to Faust, but she immediately realized that this occasion was not suitable for her to speak.

The little maid moved slowly along the wall, afraid of rubbing against the velvet curtains in the corridor. She knew that she would never appear on the banquet list - but it didn't matter. When the national anthem "Long Live the Victor's Laurel Crown" sounded, even Lala would bathe in the glory of the empire, and all her fatigue would turn into longing in her chest. May the German Empire prosper forever.

Lala touched her apron pocket, where she hid a sugar man badge and a blue Marx medal she had just picked up. She held it against her chest, as if to be closer to a hero like Faust and to the dream of Germany that was spinning in the candlelight.

On the other side of the corridor, Faust also walked into Charlottenburg Palace. He was wearing an Iron Cross and a Blue Max Medal. As soon as he appeared, he was surrounded by the crowd. The cameras of the reporters from the official news agency flashed non-stop.

Everyone knows that Faust is about to be granted noble status. It is said that His Majesty the Emperor also intends to arrange a royal marriage for Faust. How old is this young man?

In the pre-war era, he would have been a college student from a poor family, but now he has suddenly become the new rich of the German Empire.

Among the guests of Charlottenburg Palace, there were also many "new money" from the bourgeoisie. They generally did not have aristocratic status, or at best had an untitled aristocratic title that allowed them to add the word "Feng" to their names.

Even a banker as noble as Bismarck's Chancellor Bleichröder, who managed the largest private bank in the empire and was rich enough to rival a country, only had the title of baron. Even in his most favored times, the great banker Bleichröder could only enter through the back door of Bismarck's house. The powerful and wealthy turned to the "new money" for financial help, but they did not truly respect the "new money".

It’s different for soldiers.

German soldiers have the highest social status. For example, at Baron Bleichröder's famous luxurious banquets, even though there were many celebrities, there were never any German officers, because they were the "elite among the elite" in German society.

Faust is also a new upstart, but he is also a military elite with a bright future. He is praised by everyone, even by the old nobles.

Lieutenant Colonel Rundstedt helped Faust to reject many invitations. The dignitaries were discussing the arrangements after the victory. Everyone seemed to think that Germany would win without a doubt. Some people said that 50 billion francs in compensation should be demanded from France, and then some people said that the whole of Belgium should be annexed into Germany.

Some people were discussing enthusiastically how to redivide Eastern Europe. One moment they talked about who should be the king of the Kingdom of Poland, and the next moment they fantasized about how Belarus and Ukraine should be divided. Some people's thoughts and conversations went directly to the distant Caucasus region, saying that a German satellite state should be established in the Caucasus to ensure the source of oil for Germany's future industrial development.

The court dignitaries of His Majesty William II seemed completely unaware of the devastating impact of the US declaration of war on Germany. Among these arrogant fools, only a member of parliament in a stand-up collar shirt spoke eloquently, and his words showed extraordinary rationality and calmness.

The man's white hair was half bald, and he had a German Social Democratic Party emblem pinned on his navy blue suit.

"Who is this……"

"Mr. Kautsky."

Rundstedt introduced the identity of the parliamentarian to Faust. This person was Karl Kautsky, the centrist leader of the Social Democratic Party, with whom Faust had already made an appointment to meet. He was known as the "Pope of Marxism". Before Lenin won the victory of the October Revolution, Kautsky was the number one theoretical authority in the international communist movement.

Kautsky's attitude was upright and amiable. He was different from the cold Noske and the unpredictable Chairman Ebert. It was obvious that he was a very sincere person.

Kautsky said politely, "This is our first meeting, Major Faust, but I have long admired you, both in the newspapers and in letters. As far as I know, you are one of the most outstanding fighters in our party. Moreover, your background is sympathetic. Germany should give decent people like you, Major, their due."

Faust had few acquaintances in Charlottenburg Palace. If he could chat with Kautsky, he could avoid boring greetings with other court dignitaries. Faust wished someone could take him out of his misery.

"Mr. Kautsky, we at the front have also heard your calls for peace, a peace without cessions of territory or indemnities. In reality, only the dignitaries in the rear are still insisting on ceding territory and paying indemnities. The soldiers at the front just want to achieve peace as quickly as possible."

Faust said calmly, "Most German officers and soldiers are actually willing to accept a peace in which neither side cedes territory. As long as Germany doesn't have to pay reparations or cede territory, the frontline troops will accept a ceasefire under such conditions."

Liebknecht and Luxemburg of the left wing of the Social Democratic Party, and Kautsky of the centrist SPD, all opposed the war. However, Liebknecht and Luxemburg were radical advocates of ending the war through revolution to overthrow the empire, while Kautsky advocated that the warring countries should reach an armistice and peace through negotiations in which all major powers would not have to cede territory or pay indemnities.

Compared with the radical ideas of Li and Lu, Kautsky's peace advocacy was of course more easily accepted by the German public and could be tolerated to a certain extent by the German government. Therefore, in recent months, especially after the United States declared war, Kautsky's "peace without cession of territory" suddenly became popular, and his personal reputation also grew day by day.

Kautsky's peace policy was based on a major judgment he made about the future development of capitalism, namely the theory of "ultra-imperialism" which was strongly criticized by both Lenin and Luxemburg.

Lenin once made an extremely influential judgment on the development of capitalism, that is, the highest stage of capitalist development is imperialism, that is, monopoly capitalism completes the monopoly of capital within a powerful country, and then forms imperialism. These imperialists that have monopolized their own countries will launch life-and-death wars in order to compete for the market, and the result will be either the destruction of the world or the destruction of imperialism itself.

The outbreak of this world war has powerfully proved Lenin's theory.

Lenin believed that imperialism was the final stage of capitalist development, and that the imperialist order would collapse due to world war and enter a stage where socialism would take over the world.

Kautsky's view was different. He believed that the highest stage of capitalist development was not imperialism, but that above imperialism there was another higher stage of development, namely, super-imperialism.

Therefore, the development of capitalism has not reached its limit in promoting the development of productivity. The capitalist system still has room for improvement. The ultimate result of this progress is the formation of a super-imperialist globalized capital system.

Chapter 87: New Independent Party

“The decline of the British protectionist movement, the reduction of American tariffs, the intention to reduce armaments, the rapid decline of capital exports between France and my country in the last years before the war, and finally the growing international integration of different groups of financial capital...”

Kautsky and Faust found a separate dining table in the banquet hall of Charlottenburg Palace. As they sat down, Kautsky introduced to Faust his theory of "super imperialism".

“These changes have made me realize whether the present imperialist policy can be replaced by a new, ultra-imperialist policy which will replace the struggle between the various national finance capitals with the common exploitation of the world by internationally united finance capital.”

Faust nodded slightly as he listened; he roughly understood what Kautsky meant.

Kautsky believed that the outcome of the war might lead to "the final replacement of imperialism with the Holy Alliance of Imperialism", that is, to organize imperialist countries on an international scale, reach agreements with each other, form a world-wide international monopoly organization, and replace the predatory wars between imperialists with peaceful exploitation of the world.

"Do you think," Faust asked, "that the lowering of tariffs, the growing international alliances of financial groups, and so on, are likely to give rise to the germ of ultra-imperialism?"

“The union of the great industrial powers,” said Kautsky, “will lead to a new era of disarmament and lasting peace within the framework of capitalism.”

Faust couldn't help but laugh. "Lasting peace?! Your prediction might be possible in the future, but look at the present. Over the past three years of world war, tens of millions have died on the battlefields. Talking about lasting peace now seems completely ridiculous, because the blood feuds between the various nations caused by this war will not disappear easily."

Faust was certainly very clear that, let alone the end of World War I, even after the end of World War II, the ultra-imperialism described by Kautsky did not emerge, and the arms race did not end, but intensified, because a bigger thing appeared that Kautsky had not foreseen when he constructed the theory of ultra-imperialism, namely the result of the revolution launched by his old Russian comrades - the Soviet Union.

Not only did the Soviet Union win the Second World War, but it also formed the Soviet and Eastern European bloc and engaged in an arms race with the US-led NATO bloc that lasted for nearly half a century. The world was neither completely controlled by the imperialist alliance as Kautsky predicted, nor did the proletariat of the world unite to establish a global socialist country as Lenin predicted. Instead, the world was divided into half, forming a pattern of confrontation between two major camps, which ultimately ended in the collapse of the socialist camp.

In this sense, ultra-imperialism did not correctly predict the international landscape after the world war. However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the international order from the 1990s to the early 21st century, dominated by the United States within a one-superpower, multiple-power structure, did, to a certain extent, conform to Kautsky's ultra-imperialism predictions.

There was some truth in Kautsky's prediction, but because he actually leaned towards reformism based on "ultra-imperialism", he inevitably became a negative factor in the international communist movement.

This is not surprising, because Kautsky believed, based on the theory of "ultra-imperialism", that the capitalist system still had vitality and had not been completely metabolized. At this time, launching a revolution to fight a final battle with capitalism would definitely end in failure.

Therefore, in order to safeguard the power of the proletariat, Kautsky opposed armed revolution, believing that at the current stage, the proletariat should still obtain some immediate benefits through reform movements under the capitalist system.

From a theoretical perspective, Luxemburg refuted Kautsky's concept of "ultra-imperialism".

During the two years that Luxemburg was in prison, she wrote an article in "Spartacus Letters" discussing this matter, and Faust also read this article.

"Mr. Kautsky, I remember reading in The Spartacus Letters that Ms. Luxemburg believed that the future might indeed develop towards a world trust encompassing all enterprises and all countries, but that before the ultra-imperialist unity of the finance capital of all countries could be achieved, imperialism would collapse due to the mutual wars for markets, and ultra-imperialism would probably never come into being."

Both Lenin and Luxemburg firmly believed that imperialism would self-destruct before reaching the stage of "super-imperialism". This judgment could not be said to be wrong. However, neither Lenin nor Luxemburg knew that the invention of nuclear weapons would appear in the future, which greatly reduced the risk of direct war between imperialist countries.

But is Kautsky’s language more accurate than Luxemburg’s?

That is not the case, because it is obvious that in Faust's memory, the ultra-imperialist hegemony established by the United States in the early 21st century is not stable. Rather than saying it is ultra-imperialism, it is actually still closer to a struggle for hegemony between one imperialist alliance and another imperialist alliance. It's just that the strength of this imperialist alliance on the American side is much stronger for a period of time, but overall it is not strong enough to overwhelm everything.

Kautsky's main purpose in selling this theory of "ultra-imperialism" to Faust was to win over Faust and make Faust, a war hero, stand up for Kautsky's "peace without cession of territory."

Kautsky believed that as long as a "peace without cession of territory" could be achieved between the Allied and Central Powers, after the armistice, a century of prosperity and peace could be achieved by allowing the powers of Britain, France, Germany, Russia and Austria to implement ultra-imperialist coordination, compromise with each other on the basis of globalization, and distribute capital and markets.

To this end, what the proletariat should do is not to revolt, but to put pressure on their own governments through peaceful anti-war demonstrations, forcing the major powers to support ultra-imperialist coordination - or globalization.

During this period, through Sorge's channel, Kautsky vaguely knew that Faust was carrying out some "anti-establishment" underground activities, but Kautsky was not very clear about the specific extent of Faust's group's radicalism.

He didn't care about this issue either. Kautsky was only concerned about his peace proposals.

Kautsky then told Faust: "Major, your position is very special. If you stand up and join us in promoting a peace without cession of territory, it will surely achieve better results."

Faust blinked and asked, "Who are you referring to, Mr. Kautsky? To be honest, I just visited the residence of Chairman Ebert, the Chairman of the Social Democratic Party, Mr. Ebert, and his views are very different from yours."

Kautsky folded his fingers on his knees and said, "Yes, Major, you are quite right. Ebert and I have never been on the same page. When I say 'we' I don't mean the mainstream of the Social Democratic Party, but only the one hundred or so members of the centrist group in the Social Democratic Party."

At this point, Kautsky revealed an air of extraordinary confidence: "Let me tell you another piece of news, Major. In a week, the Social Democratic Party representatives who support an unceded peace will gather in Gotha. We will hold the Second Gotha Conference. I am very confident that I will lead the truly conscientious elements of the Social Democratic Party to leave and found a new party."

Forty years ago, the various factions of the German Workers' Parties held a merger meeting in Gotha to form today's Social Democratic Party of Germany.

Also in Gotha, this time Kautsky was to lead the center-left wing of the Social Democratic Party to leave.

If Kautsky could really accomplish this, the new party he founded would have the potential to become the second largest party in Congress.

Kautsky was full of confidence. He had always been a scholar, and now Faust felt that he was very much like a scholar of the literati. "Major Faust, we are absolutely sure that after the independent party is established, I have already agreed with Mr. Haase on the name of the new party. It will be called the Independent Party."

Kautsky also extended an olive branch to Faust: "After the establishment of the Independent Party, we would also like to invite you, Major Faust, and hope that you will consider leaving the Social Democratic Party and joining the Independent Party."

Faust remained noncommittal about Kautsky's invitation today: "The Independent Party... does the Independent Party also include Herr Liebknecht and Frau Luxemburg?"

Kautsky, without hiding anything from Faust, spoke frankly, saying, "Not long ago, I managed to visit Rosa and her friends in prison and had a good talk with them. Unfortunately, Rosa refused to join the Independent Party, but many of her followers are still interested in it. Moreover, even if Rosa had not wanted to join, once the Independent Party was established, I would have mobilized the entire strength of the new party to put pressure on the imperial government to release Rosa as soon as possible."

Faust did not believe that the Independent Party's non-violent pressure alone could force William II to release Rosa Luxemburg. The Independent Party had no connection with the truly powerful princes and Junker families in Germany, and it did not have reliable armed forces. In fact, it was not as good as the Social Democratic Party.

Albert's Social Democratic Party has been colluding with dovish aristocrats such as the Prince of Baden. "Razor" Noske also controls many paramilitary organizations such as workers' pickets and gangster thugs.

If the situation in Germany collapses in the future, the Social Democratic Party, which has connections and armed potential, will definitely have a much greater chance of winning in the chaos than Kautsky's Independent Party, a club of pure intellectuals.

Faust kindly reminded Kautsky, "Mr. Kautsky, no one knows how the situation will unfold in the future. But I have always felt that the number of seats held in the Reichstag alone cannot determine the future strength of the Independent Party. True strength lies in the Independent Party's grassroots roots. If the Independent Party can gain a deep understanding of the workers' organizations or establish influence among the soldiers at the grassroots level, then I will consider joining the Independent Party."

Germany's trade unions are also divided into left and right factions. The right-wing trade unions are powerful and have the largest number of members. They are mainly controlled by the mainstream Social Democratic Party faction led by Ebert.

The left-wing trade union is the foreman organization, which is mainly composed of hardware workers and has a much smaller membership. However, the foreman organization is closer to the center-left of the Social Democratic Party in its stance.

For example, when Liebknecht and Luxemburg were arrested and imprisoned, everyone remained silent, but the foreman organization boldly stood up and demonstrated and went on strike, demanding that the authorities release Liebknecht and Luxemburg.

In Faust's view, if Kautsky's Independent Party really wanted to make a difference, it must at least take good control of the left-wing trade unions so that it could have some reliable armed forces in the future.

Otherwise, without an armed party, no matter how many seats in Congress you hold, you will not be qualified to sit at the table after 1918.

Chapter 88: The Habsburg Chin

The success of the Ebert system has cast a deep shadow on the non-mainstream center-left within the Social Democratic Party.

Kautsky, who is sitting in front of Faust today, and Rosa Luxemburg, who wrote many articles criticizing Lenin in the past, both hated the "Ebert system" and hated the organization that was created from top to bottom through a series of bureaucratic layers with extremely high efficiency.

Therefore, Lenin of Russia could easily accept the construction of the Russian revolutionary party into a highly organizationally strict system.

Kautsky and Luxemburg in Germany found it difficult to accept this because they had actually seen this kind of party - the German Social Democratic Party under the Ebert system, which was the predecessor of the Leninist party. Kautsky and Luxemburg both witnessed the final outcome of the Ebert system.

Kautsky opposed the draft war budget for 1914 in principle but was forced to support it in practice. Liebknecht and Luxemburg strongly opposed it both in principle and in practice, but to what avail?