Wolfgang Abendroth was postwar Germany’s most important socialist intellectual. As one of the few socialist jurists and political scientists in his country in this period, he trained a generation of Marxist scholars — as well as cutting a singular figure on the West German public stage.

Abendroth’s adventurous life took him from the ranks of the German Communist Party (KPD) to the deserts of North Africa, East Germany, and back to the West — a personal biography embodying the grand hopes and bitter catastrophes of the century he inhabited.

But this also served as the foundation for Abendroth’s wide-ranging thinking and writing. He made an unforgettable impression on those of us who had the privilege to learn from him, inspiring us to dedicate our academic careers to better understanding and strengthening the workers’ movement.