November 28, 1820: Frederick Engels is born in Barmen into the family of a textile manufacturer, Friedrich Engels, and his wife, Elisabeth (née van Haar).1837-1838: Frederick Engels begins working in his father's office and moves to Bremen to learn commerceMarch 1839-March 1841: Engels devotes his leisure to ‘world literature’, philosophy, and history; publishes his ‘Letters from Wuppertal’ and his poems, reviews and essays in various literary periodicals.September 1841-October 1842: Engels does military service with an artillery brigade in Berlin.