The author of the Communist Manifesto was Karl Marx, in collaboration with Friedrich Engels. Published in 1848, this influential political pamphlet outlined the principles of communism and the critique of capitalism. The manifesto argued that history is characterized by class struggles and that the proletariat, or working class, would eventually rise against the bourgeoisie, or capitalist class, to establish a classless society. It called for the workers of the world to unite, emphasizing solidarity among the oppressed. The Communist Manifesto inspired various socialist movements and revolutions throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, making it a foundational text in the history of political thought.