The Kennedy family is often described as the closest thing the United States has ever had to a royal dynasty. Although only one member ever served as president, the family's political influence, glamour, and repeated tragedies have fascinated the public for decades.
Joseph Patrick Kennedy and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy were the patriarch and matriarch of the clan. Their son John Fitzgerald Kennedy, known as JFK, became one of the most admired presidents in American history. His assassination in 1963 and the murder of his brother Robert in 1968 were national shocks that still resonate today.
The family's story in America began with Patrick Joseph Kennedy, the paternal grandfather of John, Robert, and Ted. Born in Boston in 1858 to Irish Catholic immigrants, he worked as a stevedore on the Boston docks. He later became a prominent figure in the Democratic Party, serving in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate.
Joseph Patrick Kennedy, his son, was born in Boston in 1888. He attended Harvard University and earned a degree in economics in 1912. However, he was denied membership in a fraternity due to prejudice against Irish Catholics, a slight that left lasting bitterness.
In 1914, Joseph married Rose Fitzgerald. Their first child, Joseph Patrick Kennedy Jr., was born in 1915. John Fitzgerald Kennedy followed in 1917, and eight more children came after them.
During the late 1960s, rumors surfaced that Joseph Patrick Kennedy made his fortune as a bootlegger during Prohibition. The theory emerged amid conspiracy speculation about JFK's assassination and possible connections between the family and organized crime. However, Richard Nixon reportedly investigated the family before the 1960 election and found no evidence of bootlegging.
What is documented is that Joseph made legal money in the alcohol trade. His father had been a successful whiskey importer before Prohibition. When Prohibition ended in 1933, Joseph used his fortune and political connections to secure exclusive contracts for importing whiskey and gin from the United Kingdom.
Rose Kennedy lived to be 104 years old. She was born in Boston in 1890 and was the daughter of John Francis Fitzgerald, a prominent Boston politician. She briefly left her husband over his infidelities while pregnant with her daughter Kathlin, but her father convinced her that divorce was not acceptable for Catholics.
Joseph's most famous affair was with actress Gloria Swanson, a major star of silent and early sound films. In the early 1930s, Joseph controlled a major film company and became involved with her. Swanson once remarked about Rose, "That Rose must be a saint, a fool, or just a better actress than I am."
Rose believed the purpose of sex was procreation. After giving birth to her last child, Ted, in 1932, she withdrew from her husband sexually. She suffered silently through his affairs and focused on raising her nine children.
The first two family tragedies occurred in 1944. Joseph Patrick Kennedy Jr., the eldest son, died on August 12, 1944, during a risky mission in World War II. His plane, loaded with explosives, detonated prematurely before he could parachute out. The following month, Kathlin Kennedy's British husband, William Cavendish, was killed by a German sniper in Belgium.
Kathlin Kennedy died tragically at age 28. After being widowed, she began a relationship with William Fitzwilliam, an Anglican earl. Her mother disapproved of another marriage to a non-Catholic. On May 13, 1948, Kathlin and the earl died when their plane crashed during a storm in France. Rose refused to attend the funeral and was hospitalized.
JFK was a Boy Scout and became the first member of the movement to reach the presidency. He was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, on May 29, 1917. Between 1934 and 1936, he was hospitalized three times for various ailments, including colitis and jaundice. He attended Harvard, where his older brother was already studying.
In 1938, JFK accompanied his father to London, where Joseph served as U.S. ambassador. He traveled through Europe and gathered information for his Harvard thesis. He was in London when Britain declared war on Germany in 1939. He tried to enlist in the army but was rejected due to back problems. With his father's influence, he joined the Navy.
During World War II, JFK showed heroism. On August 2, 1943, his torpedo boat was rammed by a Japanese destroyer in the Solomon Islands. He helped his crew reach safety on a nearby island and received several medals for his actions.
After the war, JFK entered politics. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1946 and won a Senate seat in 1952. He married Jacqueline in 1953. His health was poor, and at one point he received the Catholic sacrament of extreme unction. He recovered and ran for vice president in 1956 but lost the nomination.
In 1957, JFK voted for legislation that granted civil rights to Black Americans, particularly voting rights in southern states. He also helped secure the release of Martin Luther King Jr. from jail.
JFK won the presidential election of 1960 against Richard Nixon by a narrow margin. He took office on January 21, 1961, and delivered his famous line: "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."
He launched a battle against organized crime, supported by his brother Bobby as attorney general. He also pushed for racial integration. When James Meredith became the first Black student at the University of Mississippi, JFK sent federal agents and soldiers to protect him.
JFK reignited the American space program. On May 25, 1961, he declared that the nation should land a man on the moon before the end of the decade. In 1962, he said the U.S. chose to go to the moon "not because it is easy, but because it is hard." America achieved that goal in 1969.
In 1962, JFK faced the Cuban Missile Crisis, one of the most dangerous moments of the Cold War. The Soviet Union was building missile sites in Cuba, threatening the U.S. with nuclear attack. Through intense negotiations, JFK and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev defused the crisis.
JFK was known for his infidelities, much like his father. He reportedly had relationships with several young women working in the White House. He was also linked to Marilyn Monroe, who sang "Happy Birthday" to him at a public event in May 1962.
On November 22, 1963, JFK was shot and killed in Dallas, Texas. Lee Harvey Oswald was named the lone gunman but was murdered a year later. Many Americans still believe JFK was the victim of a conspiracy. A 1999 poll found that JFK was the third most admired person in American history, after Martin Luther King Jr. and Mother Teresa.
Rosemary Kennedy, the third child, was born in 1918 with a mild intellectual disability. She suffered from sudden fits of anger. In 1941, at age 23, she underwent a lobotomy, a procedure that left her with the mental age of a two-year-old. She spent most of her life in psychiatric institutions and died at 86.
Eunice Kennedy, the fifth child, was influenced by her sister Rosemary's condition. She worked on behalf of people with disabilities and founded what became the Special Olympics. She died in 2009 at age 88.
Patricia Kennedy, the sixth child, tried to work in film production in Hollywood but found limited opportunities for women at the time. She married actor Peter Lawford, but the marriage ended due to his alcoholism and affairs. Patricia struggled with alcohol addiction and died of mouth cancer in 2006 at age 82.
Robert Kennedy, the third son, was born in 1925. As attorney general, he was his brother's closest advisor. He served in the Navy but did not see combat. He worked for Senator Joseph McCarthy, the leader of the anti-communist witch hunts, and even named McCarthy as godfather to his first child. Later, both John and Robert distanced themselves from McCarthy.
Bobby Kennedy also investigated union corruption. He clashed with Jimmy Hoffa, the powerful leader of the Teamsters Union. Hoffa celebrated the assassinations of both Kennedy brothers before disappearing in 1975.
After JFK's death, Canada named a mountain in the Yukon after him. In 1965, Bobby became the first person to climb Mount Kennedy, despite never having climbed a mountain before. He left items related to his brother at the summit.
As a senator from New York, Bobby opposed the Vietnam War and continued fighting for civil rights. In 1968, he entered the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. President Lyndon Johnson, facing a weak showing in the primaries, dropped out of the race.
On April 4, 1968, Bobby learned of Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination while campaigning in Indianapolis. He gave an emotional speech about racial reconciliation. Indianapolis remained calm during the riots that followed, and Bobby won primaries in Indiana and Nebraska.
On June 4, 1968, Bobby won the California primary. Shortly after midnight, while walking through the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, he was shot by a young Palestinian man who said he acted in response to Kennedy's support for Israel. Bobby died on June 6, 1968.
Conspiracy theories again emerged, including claims of a second gunman. Some pointed to the mafia as possible organizers. These theories were never proven.
Jean Kennedy, the eighth child, served as U.S. ambassador to Ireland. She married Stephen Smith, who managed the family fortune and ran political campaigns. She died in 2020 at age 92, the second longest-lived Kennedy after her mother.
Ted Kennedy, the youngest child, was born in 1932. He was caught cheating on a Spanish exam at Harvard and was forced to leave for two years. He later returned and graduated. In 1964, he survived a plane crash that left him with lasting back pain.
In 1969, Ted was driving a car that went off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island. A woman passenger, Mary Jo Kopechne, drowned. Kennedy left the scene and did not report the accident until later. He received a light sentence, but his reputation was damaged. He ran for president in 1980 but lost the nomination to Jimmy Carter.
John F. Kennedy Jr., known as John-John, was born on November 25, 1960. He was three years old when his father was assassinated. A famous image shows him saluting his father's casket at the funeral. On July 16, 1999, he died when the plane he was piloting crashed into the Atlantic Ocean. His wife and her sister were also killed.
The Kennedy family left a lasting mark on American history. Their legacy continues through the political and social contributions of its members and through the enduring questions surrounding their most famous deaths.