My pet theory is Willich is a good candidate for the father of the child Marx's maid had out of wedlock (if its not the obvious choice in Engels).
The timeline fits when he was a guest, Willich was also a womaniser and having a massive falling out where you blame the person for being too liberal over an interpersonal issue would be funny.
I agree, doesn't really fit Marx, though an affair isn't out of the question I doubt he'd abandon a child at any cost
Anyone can have an affair, but Marx the weird intellectual covered in pustulant boils (hiradenitis suppurativa) who seemed to genuinely love Jenny his wife, seems unlikely compared to Engels (huge philanderer, charismatic, handsome) or any of the dozens of European exiles that drifted through their home. I believe they (or Engels) did look after the maid and her child financially.
https://allthatsinteresting.com/august-willich
In England, he was introduced to Karl Marx by his former aide-de-camp, Friedrich Engels, who later co-authored The Communist Manifesto.
But he eventually found Marx too conservative, as he wanted democratic communism, even challenging Marx to a duel. The duel never happened, but Marxist Konrad Schramm later challenged Willich.
With duels illegal in the United Kingdom, they relocated to Belgium for the contest. Willich’s bullet grazed Schramm’s head but didn’t kill him. Schramm died eight years later of tuberculosis.
Dueling was never illegal it was the consequences of the duel that could be crimes.
If both men shot guns in a field and no one died or got hurt, there was no crime. Which often happened. As the guns were not accurate.
But if you killed a guy and there were witnesses (both the attendant doctor and priest would turn their back as not to be witnesses) it could be manslaughter or murder.
Industrialisation made it harder to duel due to population density.
Proudhon something something guillotined as conservative something.
