In such a Critique of the Gotha Programme, Marx admonished the unforgivable concessions to Lassalleism

When Marx returned to London, he thought that the preparations for the unification of the German workers' movement on the basis of scientific communism were done by reliable men. Unfortunately, this was not the case, and he was disappointed.

Although Marx and Engels read from the German workers' press, the representatives of the Eisenach and Lassalles met in February 1875 to draw up a draft programme and a draft statute. But neither of them knew anything about the contents of the draft programme.

At the end of February, Bebel, who had been imprisoned for more than two and a half years, sent a letter. He consulted Marx and Engels and asked them what their opinions were on the imminent merger of the Social-Democratic Labour Party with the All-German Workers' Union. But it was not until after March 7 that Marx and Engels saw the draft programme, which was seen in the newspapers.

Marx was taken aback. This draft programme is no further than the Eisenach Programme of 1869. On the contrary, it has regressed considerably. All sorts of vulgar democratic, petty-bourgeois terms undermine the effectiveness of the programme. Moreover, it was the unforgivable concessions made by Liebknecht and the other leaders of the Eisenach faction to LaSalleism, which had long been refuted by facts.

Engels wrote a detailed letter to Bebel, expressing his and Marx's attitude on the question of annexation and the basis of the programme of incorporation, and explaining why they could not agree to the compromise programme. But the letter was not sent, because William Belak also made an urgent appeal.

In a letter to Engels, he said: "It is impossible for me to accept this programme. Bebel's opinion is the same as mine... But I'd love to know first what you and Marx think about this. The two of you have more experience than I do and judge better than I do. ”

In order to meet this demand of Brack, in the weeks after receiving the letter, Marx analyzed the draft program article by article and wrote in detail the "Annotations to the Program of the German Workers' Party". This Commentary (later known as the Critique of the Gotha Programme) was sent in early May to Blake, Liebknecht and other leaders of the German Party, reminding them to avoid the unfortunate consequences of such a compromise at the last minute.

Marx's "Annotations to the Programme of the German Workers' Party" contains a rich content of new theoretical knowledge, and his critique itself, by its very nature, is a very important program. The Commentary, like the Communist Manifesto and Capital, has become one of the most important theoretical documents of Marxism.

(Gemkov's "Marx" reading notes)