History
Luxemburg and Liebknecht—the son of SPD founder Wilhelm Liebknecht—were prominent members of the left-wing faction of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). They moved to found an independent organization after the SPD supported the German government's declaration of war on the Russian Empire in 1914, beginning World War I. Besides their opposition to what they saw as an imperialist war, Luxemburg and Liebknecht maintained the need for revolutionary methods, in contrast to the leadership of the SPD, who participated in the parliamentary process. The two were imprisoned from 1916 until 1918 for their roles in helping to organize a public demonstration in Berlin against German involvement in the war.
After two years of War, opposition to the official party line grew inside the SPD. More and more members of parliament refused to vote for the war-bonds and were expelled, which ultimately led to the formation of the Independent Social Democratic Party - USPD. The Spartacus League was part of the USPD in its formation period. After the Russian Revolution of 1917, the Spartacus League began agitating for a similar course, a government based on local workers' councils, in Germany. After the Kaiser was overthrown by the German Revolution of November 1918, a period of instability began, which lasted until 1923. In November, from a balcony of the Kaiser's Berliner Stadtschloss, Liebknecht declared Germany a "Free Socialist Republic". On the same night, Philipp Scheidemann of the SPD declared a republic from the Reichstag.
In December 1918, the Spartakusbund was officially renamed the Communist Party of Germany (KPD). In January 1919, the KPD, along with the Independent Socialists, launched the Spartacist uprising. This included staging massive street demonstrations intended to destabilize the Weimar government, led by the centrists of the SPD under Chancellor Friedrich Ebert. The government accused the opposition of planning a general strike and communist revolution in Berlin. The uprising was quickly crushed by the government, with the aid of the Freikorps. Luxemburg and Liebknecht were taken prisoner, and killed in custody.
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