Publisher’s Note¶
Core Argument¶
This Publisher’s Note establishes the textual authority of the present edition of Lissagaray’s History of the Paris Commune, grounding it in the direct involvement of Karl Marx. The translation by Eleanor Marx was made from a manuscript personally revised by Lissagaray and approved by Marx himself, a fact that confers a unique political and scholarly legitimacy. Lissagaray regarded this version as the definitive edition of his work, and the note therefore signals that editorial intervention has been kept to a minimum. The only changes are the correction of minor mistranslations from the original French and the revision of certain anachronistic terms—themselves taken directly from the French—to clarify their meaning for an English-speaking readership. A glossary has been provided for recurring French terms, and Lissagaray’s own appendices and notes, which the note describes as containing valuable documentation of the events, are reproduced in full.
The note also clarifies Lissagaray’s personal role in the Commune, which was modest. He was neither a member, officer, nor functionary of the Commune, but followed its course as a journalist and barricade fighter. This detail is significant: it establishes Lissagaray as a participant-observer rather than a leading figure, lending his account the credibility of direct experience without the partiality of high office. The note thus positions the text as both a primary source and a work of committed historical writing, authorised by the central theoretical figure of Marxism. The editorial restraint signals that the text is to be trusted as it stands, and that the political and historical value of Lissagaray’s account requires no modernisation beyond the correction of obvious errors. The note is brief, functional, and entirely concerned with establishing the provenance and integrity of the edition.