This is Bertrand Russell's first book (it was published in 1896). Its purpose then was to provide a convenient introduction to German Social Democracy - its history, its goals, its tactics, and the influence upon it of such thinkers as Marx, Engels and Lassalle.Since that time, much has changed. But the book remains an important historical document, precisely because it does represent the views of an orthodox Liberal of the period. As Bertrand Russell was to say later in his life, in it "a former writer comments on a former world".German Social Democracy is a vital document for students of European history, and for all those who read and admire the works of Bertrand Russell.