Karl Marx (1818-1883) was the father of modern communism and writer of Das Kapital, which first explained the communist theory of history and political economy. In 1847, the Communist League commissioned Marx and his colleague Friedrich Engels to write down the program of the league. The "Communist Manifesto" has since been used as the basis for many international socialist movements.
"Communists scorn to hide their views and aims. They openly declare that their purposes can only be achieved by the forcible overthrow of the whole extant social order. Let the ruling classes tremble at the prospect of a communist revolution. Proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win. PROLETARIANS OF ALL LANDS, UNITE!"
Marx, K., Friedrich Engels. The Communist Manifesto. New York: International Publishers, 1930, 68.
Annotation by: Koirala/Pritchett