Karl Deutsch

Who was Karl Deutsch?

Karl Wolfgang Deutsch was a Czech social and political scientist from a German-speaking family. His work focused on the study of war and peace, nationalism, co-operation and communication. He is also well known for his interest in introducing quantitative methods and formal system analysis and model-thinking into the field of political and social sciences, and is one of the best known social scientists of the 20th century.

Born in Prague on July 21, 1912 when the city was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Deutsch became a citizen of Czechoslovakia after World War I. His mother Maria Leopoldina Scharf Deutsch was a Social Democrat, and the first woman to be elected to the Czechoslovak parliament where she became known for her resistance to Nazism. His father Martin Morritz Deutsch owned an optical shop on Pragues' Wenceslas Square, and was also active in the Czechoslovak Social Democratic Worker's Party. His uncle Julius Deutsch was an important political leader in the Social Democratic Party of Austria.

Karl studied Law at the German University at Prague, where he graduated in 1934.